Vic Mensa and Chance the Rapper will host the Black Star Line Festival in Accra, Ghana, on January 6, 2023.
The festival will be held at the Black Star Square. It aims to bridge the gap between Black artists from the Diaspora, the world, and Africa. ChanceMensa and Mensa made the announcement following a week spent in Ghana with eight Chicago-based students. The purpose of their trip was to explore their roots in an authentic environment. It was the pair’s second trip there together this year.
“When Vic and I started our careers and started touring, we did shows all over the U.S.,”Chance stated this in a statement. “Eventually we started touring in Europe, we did shows in Asia, South America, Central America, but we never had a chance to play our music for the people who support us the most. When we came here and touched down and felt the love that we received and the fans that we got to connect with, the understanding for the need for the connection became apparent to us. We need a music festival bringing major artists to Ghana. This is what we’re working to create.”
The festival title was inspired by civil rights leader Marcus Garvey’s iconic Black Star Line. The line was founded in 1919 and managed by Black people. It connected America, Africa, and the Caribbean with global shipping and tourism opportunities. After nearly 40 years, the Ghanian government launched their fleet with the same name in homage to Garvey, and added a black star to the country’s new flag.
Chance the Rapper released single recently “The Highs & The Lows,”He released his third album in this year. In March, he debuted “Child of God” in collaboration with Gabonese artist and painter Naïla Opiangah and Moses Sumney, and in May he released “A Bar About A Bar,”A collaboration with Chicago-based artist Nikko Washington. The rapper’s new project, Star Line GalleryThe release of, is expected to occur later in the year.