Africolor

Africolor: thirty-five years of African music in the Parisian suburbs

Founded in 1989, the Africolor festival is one of the oldest and most respected festivals dedicated to African and Afro-diasporic music in France. Every year, from late November to Christmas Eve, it transforms the cultural stages of Seine-Saint-Denis into a crossroads of musical encounters between Africa, its diaspora, and the world.

Supported by an independent association and funded by the Department of Seine-Saint-Denis, the Île-de-France Region, and the Ministry of Culture, Africolor unfolds in about ten towns in the 93 department and the Paris region: Bobigny, Saint-Denis, Clichy-sous-Bois, Montreuil, Gennevilliers, as well as Paris. This itinerant nature is fundamental to the festival's identity, which claims a presence as close as possible to the inhabitants and African and Afro-descendant communities of the region.

A program focused on creation and transmission

Africolor does not just present African artists: it actively supports contemporary creation by commissioning artists, hosting creation residencies, and producing original shows. The festival thus serves as an incubator for many artists who have developed innovative projects there, blending traditional African music with contemporary influences – jazz, electronic, hip-hop, world music.

The artistic direction of the festival is managed by Sébastien Lagrave, who maintains a high standard of artistic quality and diversity in musical representations from the African continent. Each edition chooses a thematic focus – geographical, historical, or aesthetic – which gives coherence and meaning to the entire program.

Strong links with communities

Africolor stands out for the depth of its community engagement. Alongside concerts, the festival offers musical workshops, conferences, master-classes, and discussion panels designed as spaces for sharing, reflection, and valuing African and Afro-diasporic cultures. These activities reach a wide audience, from schoolchildren to enthusiasts, from researchers to professional artists.

The festival works in close partnership with cultural institutions in the department: MC93 in Bobigny, Théâtre Gérard Philipe in Saint-Denis, Espace 93 in Clichy-sous-Bois, Atelier du Plateau in Paris, and many other partner venues host Africolor concerts and events each year.

A look at Africa in all its diversity

Far from clichés and reductive representations, Africolor offers a vision of musical Africa in all its complexity and richness. From Malian blues to Congolese ndombolo rhythms, from Moroccan Gnawa music to contemporary sounds from Addis Ababa, including Afro-Caribbean and Afro-Brazilian creations, the festival covers a remarkably broad geographical and stylistic spectrum.

Over the years, Africolor has hosted iconic artists such as Oumou Sangaré, Youssou N'Dour, Staff Benda Bilili, Fatoumata Diawara, Bombino, Ballaké Sissoko, and dozens of other major or emerging figures from the global African and Afro-diasporic scenes.

A festival rooted in its time

Africolor is attentive to the political, social, and cultural developments of the African continent. Each thematic edition offers a look at a specific territory, language, historical period, or cultural movement, making the festival a space for knowledge as well as musical pleasure. This educational and political dimension makes it a unique tool for understanding the world in one of France's most multicultural departments.