“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Sometimes it falls on a generation to be great.” – Nelson Mandela
Global Citizen, the international advocacy organization behind the annual New York festival, has announced a concert in Johannesburg, South Africa. The organization’s take action is to be the generation to end extreme poverty, they’ve set an ambitious goal of mobilizing $1 billion in new commitments for the world’s poorest, with $500 million of that set to impact the lives of 20 million women and girls worldwide, and they are doing this by engaging people to participate in social good, those actions not only help end extreme poverty, but they also help you earn your way into either the New York City festival on September 29 or the Mandela 100 festival in Johannesburg on December 2.
Jay-Z last performed in Johannesburg in 2006. Beyoncé sang at a Mandela charity concert in 2004. Beyoncé has repeatedly looked to Africa for her artistic inspiration, but as her global status has escalated, performances on the continent have been rare. The singer performed in Lagos in 2016, in a concert that became a corruption scandal for former president Goodluck Jonathan. Her last appearance on the continent was in 2007 in Addis Ababa, to celebrate the year 2000 on the Coptic calendar. – QZ
The Carters will be joined by the Coldplay frontman, Pharrell Williams, and Ed Sheeran to celebrate the centenary of the anti-apartheid revolutionary and political leader’s birth. Oprah Winfrey will deliver a keynote address honoring South Africa’s first democratically elected president, Nelson Mandela. African stars D’Banj, Wizkid, Tiwa Savage, Casper Nyovest and Sho Madjozi will be on stage. The festival will bring Usher and Femi Kuti back to South Africa, as well as Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam.
Rather than putting tickets on sale, the festival asks fans to earn tickets through advocacy and social justice work. Sign up and find more details at the Global Citizen website.
