Oppikoppi: The Ultimate South African Music Festival Experience

Oppikoppi is the name given to the annual music festival which has always been held in Limpopo province, South Africa since 1994. The only genre at the inaugural festival was rock music. Today, the Oppikoppi music festival has a complete mix of music genres that define the world of music as seen through an African festival experience.

Those who started this amazing African festival claim that it was not their intention for things to happen the way they happened. It all started with some gigs that were performed in an indoor bushveld business premise.  The event was meant to be entirely hedonistic but turned out to be something more pragmatic.

During the second Oppikoppi music festival of 1995, 27 rock bands were invited to perform. There were about 2,000 people who attended the event. It is said that almost everyone who attended the event which had only one stage has either a wound or a unique story or both of them to show for their attendance. The Oppikoppi was the first music festival that proved to the world that South Africa had much to show for its rich musical heritage.

The event planted a foundation and subsequent events just had to grow in both magnitude and coverage. No wonder many other music genres were incorporated into the Oppikoppi festival. Everything that is inherently African, or South African for that matter, somehow finds its way into the festival before the rest of the world appreciates it. Whether it is the costume-wearing traditional dancers or mask-wielding Khoikhoi warriors, South African traditions have found their way into the Oppikoppi festival.

Since the festival’s establishment, the organizers have had to put up 5 additional stages. The biggest Oppikoppi music festival ever saw 15,000 people coming to the venue to witness the events. In order to meet the demands of the increasing fan base, the organizers also have had to liberalize music at the venues of the festival. There is no type of music the world knows which is not played here. The world of rock, R&B, African Jazz, poetry, hip-hop and even reggae is represented here as well as African traditional music.

Of course there is a special place set aside for African traditional music, instrumentation and dance. Folk dancers always draw cheers from entertainment-thirsty visitors. And the dancers have never disappointed. They paint Africa in positive light, as the tourist destination of choice for the global community.

The music lovers in every age group and even families have a great fun of camping on the outskirts during the festival. Thousands of people stay together, talk, laugh and drink at the campsite.

The truth is that you will never have enough of this festival; no one will, ever. There is more to the Oppikoppi Music Festival than mere music. There is theatre, real street theatre, as well as electronic art that work out on the audience in addition to the music. A great fun goes on during day and night time. The festival lineup tells it all. The Oppikoppi has been used for strategic reasons to attract invitations for South African musicians to perform on the international arena.

Tags: world of music, South African Festival Fun, de, Oppikoppi, african traditional, the Oppikoppi music festival, african, African festival, oppokoppi, limpopo province south africa