More Africa Oyé 2017 details announced

Grammy winner Dobet Gnahoré first played at the festival back in 2005, demonstrating her wide-reaching mixture of rumba, high life, reggae and more, and she makes her first return visit at this year's outing. Hailing from the Ivory Coast, the multi-talented Gnahoré's material covers a broad base of sounds, accompanied by a solid collective of French and Tunisian musicians.

Also returning to Oyé for the first time since 2011 is Bonga, one of the most successful artists to emerge from his home nation of Angola. Recently turned 74, the singer-songwriter has been described as "the voice of a modern, peaceful country", with latest album Recados de Fora recalling his youth with a backdrop of music and Portuguese colonisation.

They join the previously-announced Dizzy Mandjeku & Odemba OK Allstars, Jupiter & Okwess International and Mokoomba at Sefton Park on the weekend of 17-18 June. The Oyé Village – an array of world foods, workshops, dance classes, traders, DJs and more – will also be back for this year's event, with plenty of family/child-friendly entertainment on offer. 

As part of the 25th anniversary celebrations, a series of additional events have also been announced in Liverpool: regular Oyé DJs Richie Vegas and K Marley will perform at this year's Smithdown Road Festival on 29 April, while director and musician Don Letts heads to The Shipping Forecast on 12 May for a free entry DJ set. Africa Oyé will also be involved with the Positive Vibrations reggae festival in the Baltic Triangle district on 10-11 June. More details can be found at africaoye.com.