Trace will mark its 20th anniversary with the launch of the Trace Awards and Festival, a new live awards ceremony and festival celebrating the “creativity, cool, and confidence” of African and Afro-inspired music and culture globally.
The global music platform and African music tastemaker will be focusing a global spotlight on musicians, creators, entrepreneurs and achievers from across Africa and the African diaspora.
The Awards will recognize a broad range of music genres from Afrobeat to Dancehall, Afro-pop, Mbalax, Amapiano, Zouk, Kizomba, Genge, Coupé Décalé, Bongo Flava, Soukous, Gospel, Rap, Kompa, R&B, and Rhumba, while saluting artists in a number of cultural/lifestyle categories.
Today, global music powerhouse, Trace and @visitrwanda_now announced the first ever Trace Awards & Festival Africa, which will be held in Rwanda on 20-21 October 2023.#VisitRwanda🇷🇼 pic.twitter.com/FoAY5dwlfH
— Rwanda Development Board (@RDBrwanda) June 1, 2023
“Since its very first day, Trace has been promoting and showcasing the diversity and power of Afro-urban culture. There is no better way to celebrate our milestone twentieth birthday with this exciting new music and cultural franchise,” said Olivier Laouchez, co-founder and executive chairman of Trace.
“The Trace Awards is our way of celebrating the artistry, vision and impact of musicians and other leaders in the urban cultural landscape with an out-of-this-world ceremony that highlights and rewards their success and influences both in Africa and on the world stage.”
Trace Awards and Festival will take place in Kigali, Rwanda from October 20 to 21 in partnership with Visit Rwanda and QA Venue Solutions Rwanda, the venue management company of BK Arena.
“We are thrilled to stage the inaugural Trace Awards in Rwanda on 21 October, and look forward to hosting this global celebration of African culture in our beautiful country, promoting Rwanda as a destination for cultural tourism experiences and hosting world-class events,” Janet Karemera, CEO of the Rwanda Convention Bureau shared.
“In addition, hosting the event in Rwanda will be a great platform for our growing creative industry to showcase its diverse creativity, talent and rich Rwandan cultural heritage.”
