Summer has (finally!) begun, and with it the season of music festivals across Belgium. It's an opportunity for fans of Latin American and Caribbean music to find some interesting offerings on our summer stages. Here's a look at the Latin American artists who will be bringing the house down in Belgium this summer.
A small selection of Latin American artists who will be visiting us this summer
The festival kicks off this weekend in Brussels at Couleur Café. The misnamed 'world music' festival usually gives pride of place to musicians from Latin America and the Caribbean. For the 2024 season, however, the line-up is meagre. Only Jamaican Lila Iké is scheduled to perform on Saturday, offering Brussels audiences a set of committed reggae served up by a powerful voice.
The party continues at Dour, from July 17th to 21st. The festival in Mons welcomes no less than four Latin American artists. The Brazilian Ana Frango Electrico will be presenting her latest album, "Me chamo de gato que eu sou sua", a funk nugget with bossa accents served up by a deliciously hazy voice. A gentle caress to recharge the batteries before the set by Venezuelan Arca, a mix of electro, reggaeton and pop, and Mariposa. We discovered this Italian-Colombian rapper a few months ago with the track 'Hielo', and we can't wait to see what she has in store for audiences in Dour on July18th.
The following week, Latin America comes to Floreffe Abbey for the Esperanzah! festivalIt's the most complete line-up of the summer for artists from the region, with five musical acts as well as the circus artists Desplumada and Ninguna Palabra, who will be demonstrating the excellence of the Latin American continent in the circus arts. As for the concerts, we can't wait to see Acido Pantera, the duo from Bogota, defend their latest album 'Alta Pachanga', whose beats they describe as Colombian acid tropical, a clever mix of traditional instruments such as the gaita and the marimba coupled with synthesizers and drum machines. The traditional/electro mix will be rounded off by a concert from Argentina's Aluminé Guerrero and her folktronic sounds. Esperanzah! has also invited reggae legend Queen Omega and Brazilian Flavia Coelho, who will also be appearing on the AB stage in a few months' time.
In addition to the 'classic' festivals, recent years have seen the emergence of new themed festivals whose programming is entirely dedicated to Latin music. One of these is the Latino Gang Festival in Amsterdam (June 28th), headlined by Latin music legend Juan Luis Guerra from the Dominican Republic and hit machine Myke Towers from Puerto Rico (his track Lala is a real guilty pleasure). The festival is also giving pride of place to the more danceable genres, with dembow, reggaeton and rap served up by Darrell, Rochy RD, Papera and the ever-popular Gente de Zona.
The Cuban duo will be performing on Saturday 13 July at the Afrolatino Festival, taking place all weekend in Genk. The festival will also be welcoming Sergent Garcia and his so-called 'salsamuffin' style (a fusion of rumba, ska, reggae, dancehall and Latin and Afro-Caribbean rhythms). But the highlight of the show will undoubtedly be Jamaican legend Sean Paul.
So don't go on holiday in July if you want to take advantage of all the Latin music on offer at our festivals this summer. From big-name headliners to lesser-known artists, from head-nodding to hip-shaking sounds, Belgian festival-goers will be spoilt for choice when it comes to finding their summer sounds!
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