Montreal is gearing up to host the 39th Festival International Nuits d’Afrique

Mark your calendar music lovers because the 39th Festival International Nuits d’Afrique is set to take over Montreal from July 8 to 20, bringing together more than 700 artists from over 30 countries.

The full program was revealed Tuesday night, outlining 13 days of indoor concerts and six days of free outdoor programming from July 15 to 20.

“We have Voix du Monde and we have Grands Évènements or Global Sounds because the music evolved, the new series emerged with the new technologies and the DJs who took over the old songs and revamped them, and we call them Afrobeats,” said Suzanne Rousseau, the general manager of Productions Nuits d’Afrique Inc.

With a self-described folk-sound based on West African musical traditions infused with blues, jazz, pop, reggae, funk, and soul – Daby Toure is coming back to perform at the festival for a third time.

“It’s always a pleasure and also an honor when people ask you to come over and play on their festival, especially on this one, because it’s resonating differently for me because it’s about Africa and it’s also about Africans outside of Africa,” said Daby Touré, an artist performing at this year’s Festival International Nuits d’Afrique.

“For me, it’s a way for me to express really what is for me African culture, the real African culture, which is really modern actually and open to the rest of the world.”

The 39th edition promises to be quite the party with a variety of headliners like Blaiz Fayah, Marzos & Matea, and Mo’Kalamity, to name a few.

“It’s a festival that makes sure it caters to a multi-generational tastes, and I’ve often heard people say it’s one of the rare festivals where my teenager and I will like the same music,” said Rousseau.

“And I love to hear that back because it’s quite, it’s quite a workout to do that, and we make sure that they find all, for different tastes – even those cultures are connected to the origin of jazz, rock, and blues, and many other genres,” she added.

Over the years, the festival has evolved from its humble origins at Club Balattou to Quartier des Spectacles, where last year more than 500,000 people from all over the globe came to attend the festival.

This year’s edition also offers an exclusive way to help festival goers access the eight series of indoor shows offered at the six various venues.

“We did a special passport that people can see the whole festival, a passport to see all the shows at a really, really amazing price or a special one just for the Ballatou for 22 shows, and it’s a limited time and it’s the first time we do that,” said Rousseau.