Once again it’s time for Rototom Sunsplash. It could be said that the highly anticipated first night of the 24^th edition of Rototom Sunsplash took flight from the Lion Stage. The public were right in placing their trust in expectations that were fully met.

The extensive celebrations of África began with a band made up of musicians from every continent: The Alma Afrobeat Ensemble. It was an intensive and captivating performance with a sound which lent itself perfectly to the concept of celebrating the black continent. Yet it wasn’t until the second concert of the night that the masses of Rototom started to form up in front of the stage and across the vast space on offer to the public at the Lion Stage this year. El hombre de Guinea, who passed through America and Liberia before establishing himself in Paris, put on a powerful and spectacular concert. The festival goers who hadn’t attended truly missed out on a great opportunity.

Benicassim, 2017-08-12. Emeterians (Lion Stage). Photo by: Patrick Albertini © Rototom Sunsplash 2017.

The second half of the night on the Lion Stage was kicked off by the  Emeterians & Forward Ever Band from Madrid. Their revelatory handling of classic legendary reggae artists, brought about with mastery, enthusiasm and energy and prepared right down to the last detail, was inevitably met with great emotion as the crowd were left off the leash. Ethnopian Reggae Music Ambassadors  reaffirmed their reputation as the ambassadors of African reggae with a performance which was convincing, prepared down to the last detail, and unveiled eight singers at different intervals.

Paul Stones