, From Friday, 20th of June, to Saturday 28th of June, 2025, the whole of Africa will be in Rabat, Morocco, for the biggest music event on the African continent, and the second largest music festival in the world, the Mawazine Rhythms of the World Festival. The festival which was founded in 2002, is celebrating its 20th edition this year. The festival has seen over 2.5 million attendees, has been broadcast to over 4 million people worldwide, has featured over 1300+ musicians and artiste both from Morocco and all over the world and creates direct and indirect jobs for 5000+ people every year.
The event is coordinated by Maroc Cultures a non-profit organization dedicated to the development and democratization of culture, in accordance with the vision initiated by His Majesty King Mohammed VI. Founded in 2001, Maroc Cultures’ primary mission is to create cultural and artistic offerings for audiences in the Rabat-Salé-Zemmour-Zaër region.
As a leading cultural event, the Mawazine festival promotes the Kingdom’s values and conveys a message of tolerance, openness, respect, and dialogue. It also supports the local economy by promoting the work of tourism professionals and the development of a national music and entertainment industry. True to its founding mission, Mawazine also makes a major contribution to the democratization of culture in Morocco by offering free access to 90% of its shows and concerts each year.
This year’s event is no different in its line-up of both Moroccan and international superstars. Among the names in the lineup are global icons like Americans 50cent, Lil Baby and Will Smith. Also featuring are African superstars like Wizkid, Yemi Alade, and Lojay from Nigeria, Carmen Suleiman from Egypt, Malian legend Salif Keita , and Arab icons like Majida El Roumi and Nancy Ajram, both from Lebanon.
At Arts Connect Africa, we celebrate and support the Mawazine Rhythms of the World Festival, not just because its goals align with our focus areas of education, cultural exchange, and economic impact in Africa, but also because of the platform it gives to African artistes and creatives to be able to perform alongside their global contemporaries. For more information, visit the festival website https://mawazine.ma/fr/
