Kendrick Lamar to headline Global Citizen concert

Grammy winner Kendrick Lamar is set to headline Global Citizen’s latest concert in BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda, on December 6.  

Lamar is also scheduled to perform at the Hey Neighbour Festival in SA on December 10.

Dubbed Move Afrika: A Global Citizen Experience, the first series in the momentous event will launch in Rwanda, before expanding to other parts of the continent. Move Afrika: Rwanda will add more acts to the line-up in the coming weeks.

Global Citizen will partner with US media production agency, pgLang, which will serve as the curator of Move Afrika for the next five years. The event plans to deliver world-class musical performances.

The event will further advocate and urge world leaders to take action on key issues affecting Africa, ranging from health funding to climate change, food security and access to economic opportunities for future generations.

"I am honoured and humbled to play a meaningful role that supports new-age global efforts to deal with health inequity, challenge poverty, and empower women and girls," said Tshepo Mahloele, Africa patron, Global Citizen.

"The neglect of these predicaments, including global warming, have a detrimental effect on the prospects of the citizens of Africa and this situation cannot be allowed to continue unabated. I am happy that the Global Citizen movement has reignited the debate about these critical matters and that it is continuing to keep Africa top of mind by having Move Afrika: Rwanda.

"Across the entire African continent there is huge excitement for driving economic development, tourism and world-class entertainment. We look forward to announcing additional cities for 2024 and 2025 in the coming months."

Mahloele is the chairman and founder of Lebashe Investment Group, which owns Arena Holdings. Arena Holdings publishes SA’s leading newspapers including Sowetan, Sunday Times and Business Day. It also owns the oldest record label in Africa, Gallo Music.

Similar Global Citizen concerts in recent years include Global Citizen Festival: Mandela 100, which brought international acts Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Ed Sheeran, Usher, Eddie Vedder and Chris Martin of Coldplay to SA in 2018. Global Citizen Live: Lagos featured Davido, Femi Kuti, and Tiwa Savage at Kuti’s New Afrika Shrine in 2021. Last year, Global Citizen Festival: Accra brought Usher, SZA, Stormzy, and Tems to the iconic Black Star Square. 

"Our goal with Move Afrika is to inspire local youth and artists to unlock their creativity. We hope to curate an immersive experience that empowers various communities and cultures across Africa and around the world for a lifetime," said pgLang. 

“Move Afrika is not just a call to action; it’s an invitation to be a part of history and engage in a movement that drives real social and economic change. Africa has been the home of music since the very beginning, yet, we haven’t been able to experience the biggest artists in the world performing here. So we're embarking on creating a paradigm shift, and we're so proud to be doing that with pgLang and Kendrick Lamar." 

Hugh Evans, co-founder and CEO of Global Citizen, said: "Africa is driving culture and creativity globally, but the continent has been left out of the global music touring circuit for too long.

"By moving from one-off events to the sustained commitment of an annual tour, Move Afrika will drive transformative investments across Africa through the pioneering of a world-class touring circuit," Evans said.

"Move Afrika will pave the way for many more artists to tour the continent, while generating new economic opportunities within the entertainment industry for Africa’s booming youth generation. We are incredibly excited to bring this vision to life with pgLang and Kendrick Lamar, and are grateful for our partnership with the Rwanda Development Board, who shares our belief in this vision.”