Cape Town — All those who were looking forward to see Burna Boy perform in Mzansi are left with a heavy heart.
The popular Nigerian singer was set to take to the stage at the Africa Unite concert, but now organisers have announced Burna Boy has been withdrawn and concerts cancelled following a public outcry.
The concert was set to take place in Pretoria and Cape Town and was meant to unite the continent against xenophobia and gender-based violence and rebuild trust and respect amongst African nations.
The drama all stated when Burna Boy took to social media in September to protest xenophobic attacks and vowed to never set foot in the country. He also urged foreigners living in South Africa to defend and protect themselves against xenophobic attacks. This was not taken lightly but South Africans, including rapper AKA, criticised him and wanted an apology.
But the African giant had a change of heart and wanted to perform at the Africa Unite concert. He even vowed that part of the proceeds from the show will go to victims of the last xenophobic attacks in the country.
The concert was set to feature Jidenna, Kwesta, DJ Maphorisa, Busiswa and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Those who bought tickets already will be fully refunded.
Here's a look at the full statement.
Following extensive engagement with Burna Boy's management team, Phambili Media and Play Network have decided to withdraw Burna Boy from the Africans Unite Concert. As a result, both legs of the concert which were set to take place on the 23rd of November 2019 at Hillcrest Quarry, Cape Town and 24th of November 2019 at Sun Arena, Pretoria have now been cancelled.
The decision to cancel the Africans Unite Concert comes after the call from the Tshwane Entertainment Collective to boycott the Africans Unite concert in Tshwane. With the increasing threats of violence from other unfortunate segments of the public and without any government intervention, Phambili Media and Play Network Africa were prompted to take the threats and warnings seriously, as the safety of all artists and attendees could not be guaranteed. We then decided to cancel the concert. The safety of all attendees, artists and crew comes first.
We do, however, stand behind our decision for the initial inclusion of Burna Boy in the Africans Unite Concert line-up. As one of artists at the centre stage of the xenophobic attacks uproar, we saw fit to engage him to be a part of the Africans Unite campaign that aims to ultimately change the current negative narrative to that of solidarity and unity. It seems we have failed in this regard.
As organisers of the Africans Unite Concert, we continue to advocate for unity and peace. Moreover, we condemn any form of discrimination, violence or aggressive behaviour towards any person due to their gender or nationality.
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Anyone who bought tickets through the Computicket website and has not yet collected their tickets can contact the call centre on 0861 916 8000 for a full refund to the card used for payment. Tickets bought at Computicket or Shoprite must be returned to any of the outlets for a full refund. For Webtickets refunds, simply login to your Webtickets profile, click on "MY TICKETS" and click on "CHOOSE ACTION" and "REFUND TICKETS" next to your transaction. If you paid via Pick n Pay or EFT, you will be prompted to enter your banking details and receive a confirmation email.
The Africans Unite movement will continue driving meaningful engagements, with the expectation that all Africans will come together, as one, against xenophobia and gender-based violence.
The Africans Unite tour continues…
#OneContinent #OnePeople #OneLove
