
2. Musical powerhouses John Legend & The Roots are presenting fans with a fiery new offering, Wake Up! The upcoming CD, planned to be released by Sony Music on September 21, 2010, will feature soulful music from the 60’s and 70’s all with an underlying theme of awareness, engagement and consciousness. After being inspired by the recent historical Presidential election campaign of 2008, the R&B singer Legend and hip-hop band The Roots produced a passionate album representing change, hope and activism – not only referencing one particular moment in time, but on a larger scale, holding true no matter what the political climate may be. The resulting album features eleven profoundly evocative songs infused with sounds of gospel, rock and reggae inflections with hip-hop influences. Wake Up! blends Legend’s expressive, thoughtful vocal interpretations with an element of funk that only The Roots can provide.
3. Although this year's Afrofest wouldn't turn out to be the big celebration festival for African football as anticipated by organizers due to the exist of Ghana, all is set for an exciting event nonetheless. July 10 and 11 will see the almost magical transformation of Queen's Park into an African village for this free annual celebration of African music and culture in downtown Toronto. With main-stage performers The Occidental Brothers Dance Band International featuring Samba Mapangala and 'Zimbabwe's Rebel Woman' Chiwoniso, along with JP Buse (Congo), French-Cameroonian singer Muna Mingole, Masaisai (Zimbabwe), Waleed Kush (Sudan), Mohamed Diaby & Manding Foli Kan Don (Guinea), Doody Le Tigre (Haiti), Kae Sun (Ghana), Nati Haile (Ethiopia), Jabulani (South Africa) and Soul Influence, Afrofest's musical line-up is as powerful as ever. This event of song, dance and drumming, presented by Music Africa, will be once more a showcase of the richness and diversity of African culture..
