Ahead the second installment of vinspired Lake of Stars' monthly residency at London's Rich Mix on Wednesday March 3rd, three young journalists review last month's opening night...
Lake of Stars is an annual music festival in Malawi funded by vinspired, an organisation set up to connect young people with volunteering opportunities. On the 3rd February 2010, the vinspired Lake of Stars Malawi Music Festival came to the Rich Mix venue in East London with a night of music from various genres. It was a full house of soul and African vibes and culture. Headliners reporters went along to take in the attractions and interview some of the evening’s performers.
Music was not the event’s only attraction, the night hosted stalls for fashion and charity, a showcase of Malawi’s best. As the first of its kind to be held in London, the headliner of the night Andreya Triana took to the stage with her sultry soul voice and her guitarist.
Kicking the night off was up and coming musician Nick Mulvey, entertaining the crowd with his acoustic guitar and infusion of African music. As well as being an eminent solo artist, Nick is also a quarter of the four piece modern jazz band Portico Quartet.
With him being so heavily influenced by Malawian and other African music he expressed how touched he was to be a part of the event, “it’s always been of interest to me. I always thought every year, I’d love to get in there and do some work. I’d love to go there and at least be involved with organising it. Then they got in touch with me. I met so many good people and plus it was a lovely holiday”.
Having volunteered with various organisations himself, Nick also stressed how important he felt it was for young people to volunteer their time, “I think it’s great. It’s really important as a young person to be a part of something bigger than yourself. There’s just so much you can learn from being proactive and being a part of a big opportunity, it’s really important. You got to get involved”.
For some on the night, the event was something much closer to their heart. Being a Malawian native, Kimba, the MC on the night, expressed why the event was such a hit with him. Kimba took time out to speak to us about his music and involvement with Lake of Stars, expressing the passion he has for both his country and music.
Q: What is the inspiration for your music?
A: I like being part of a band, I could never be a solo artist; I like that vibe of working when everyone has something to bring to the table. Sometimes someone will say I have a concept or idea, I’ve got a bit of music do you think you could write something. Mostly I’m alone in my room writing stuff (laughs).
Q: What are your feelings on the work that vinspired have been doing with the Lake of Stars projects like the Malawi Music festivals?
A: I have been excited and passionate from the beginning, because I’ve felt that it is such a killer idea. Here there are so many festivals like Glastonbury but in Malawi it is the only one of its kind so when it’s on it really is the place to be. For me it has always been the question of how I can assist whether musically or even socially, that’s my passion to use my talents to do some good.
Q: Have you been involved with any other projects and what do you aim to achieve with the Lake of Stars project?
A: I have mostly been involved with music but I couldn’t do what I wanted to do back home because of the facilities out there, Malawi really is not catered for the music industry. I am looking to help rectify that with the Lake of Stars project. I want to start a music development initiative back home, with something as simple as facilitating music instruments just anything to help the music scene.
Q: Do you think it is important for young people to get into volunteering
A: Definitely, because this is just one great example of what you can do with volunteering, the idea of volunteering is a bit dated to some people but there is actually a lot you can do that is not only beneficial to a cause but also interesting.
This story was produced by Chika Ekemezie, 19, Tajha Myer-Ferreira, 18 and Mikhail Casalis, 16 from Headliners, a journalism programme for young people aged eight to 19. www.headliners.org
If you are 16-25 and would like to volunteer, find opportunities on vinspired.com
