Last week, Grammy-nominated recording artist Jidenna, along with activists, influencers, executives and more came together for Africon — a four-day celebration highlighting the global Black diaspora.
From May 25 – 28, the event presented by Amplify Africa featuring panelists and performers returned for its second year after seeing huge success for the 2021 festival. Guests included Caroline Wanga (CEO of Essence Magazine), Elon Johnson (Sr. Creative Executive, Head of Development at Tyler Perry Studios), activist Chaka Bars, comedian and influencer Elsa Majimbo, and many more.
As the dayslong celebration that coincides with Africa Day (May 25) took place in Los Angeles, parties, a gala, firesides and delicious food from multiple food trucks were abundant. “Classic Man” singer Jidenna hit the stage for a rare DJ set with Nana Kwabena as part of Chiefy Chiefy.
This year, Chaka Bars partnered with Africon to raise funds for his philanthropic organization, I Heart Africa. The foundation is working to resettle 100,000 people who were displaced by a volcanic eruption in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo.
While speaking about Africa Day in a video post Chaka Bars said, “African unity means to me, being the authors of our own destiny. Carrying out the dreams of Sankara and Kruma, Garvey.” He continued, “Creating our own trade agreements and owning our own things.”
Ancestry, Amazon and Meta were among the sponsors for this amazing experience, while Afrochella was one of the many partners. On Friday (May 27), Afrochella and PVO came together for an exclusive party at the W Hotel in Hollywood. The upscale event was one of many that Africon put on for Memorial Day weekend.
The Afroball was another successful weekend soiree that took place thanks to Amplify Africa. The organization was proud to show off their favorite looks from attendees on their Instagram page. “Our Afroball attendees really showed out! These looks were everything,” a post read.
For more information on this year’s Africon and future events, log on to www.africon.global.