»AFRO x POP Unplugged«
»AFRO x POP« is a platform for contemporary African music and culture, with a particular focus on Berlin’s Afrodiasporic community. It creates spaces for artistic expression, exchange, and visibility beyond stereotypical representations.
Following last year’s edition, »AFRO x POP Unplugged« returns to Pop-Kultur Festival 2026 as an intimate live format: raw, acoustic, and immediate. Here, »unplugged« means reducing music to its essentials – voice, instrument, expression. No spectacle, no filters, just presence and authenticity.
This year’s programme brings together three established artists whose musical languages are as distinctive as they are stylistically open. Curated by Pamela Owusu-Brenyah, each artist presents a focused 30-minute acoustic set. After each performance, musician mari.ama joins them in conversation to discuss their work, musical influences, and the realities of artistic practice between local scenes and global networks. The audience is seated on traditional Senegalese mats surrounding the stage, while sobolo, a traditional West African drink, completes the sensory experience.
With her voice, Milaa moves effortlessly between soul, R&B, alternative, and atmospheric pop. She gained widespread attention in 2024 with »Feel It«, her collaboration with Cupidon, which was streamed millions of times and used in hundreds of thousands of TikTok videos. Rather than relying on viral success, however, she has continued to develop a distinctive artistic language of her own – warm, intimate, and emotionally direct, while remaining unmistakably international in scope.
Kenyan-New Zealand musician Muroki blends indie pop, soul, reggae, and laid-back grooves into a sound that feels both effortless and distinctive. Following success in New Zealand and Australia, he has also built a growing audience in Europe in recent years, both as a solo artist and through collaborations with artists including BENEE, LEISURE, and Six60. With his debut album »Amber Skies«, released in early 2026, he continues to pursue his genre-fluid and deeply personal musical path.
Baaba J is one of Ghana’s most exciting independent voices. Moving between Afro-indie, folk and alternative pop, she creates songs that explore questions of identity, belonging, and self-determination. Singing primarily in Ga, she weaves personal stories together with wider social issues, including women’s rights and queer rights. The result is music that is deeply rooted in its local context while reaching far beyond it.
