Afro-pop Evening

From Afrobeat sounds to Caribbean grooves, including coupé-décalé, dancehall, and soca, this event is a true ode to the cultural richness and creativity of Afro-descendant communities. 

Dancing, from 6 p.m.: Montreal Steppers 

Founded in 2019, Montreal Steppers is a Montreal-based arts collective and non-profit organization dedicated to step, a Black diasporic dance form that uses the body as an instrument—with stomps, taps, and chants—to create rhythm and narrative. Through workshops and performances, the group actively promotes Black art, Black memories, and Black history in Canada. Its members have taught in over 40 schools, reaching over 11,000 students, and have collaborated with various partners and institutions. Montreal Steppers combine discipline, creativity, and social impact centred around a vibrant collective practice. 

Music, from 7 p.m.: Kizaba 

Lionel Kizaba, originally from Kinshasa and living in Montreal since 2011, is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and pioneer of Afro-Congolese electro music. Named a “Radio-Canada Révélation” in 2024-2025, he skillfully blends southern Congolese soukous, Afrobeat, electro, house, and pop rock, singing in French, English, Kikongo, and Lingala. His album Kizavibe (2022), nominated for a 2024 Juno, took him to international stages—the New Orleans Jazz Fest, Womad, M for Montreal—where he appeared alongside musicians from diverse backgrounds. On stage, Kizaba delivers a mix of energy, ancestral percussion, modern grooves, and immersive visuals: symbols of his Afro-futuristic universe. 

On the decks, from 8:30 p.m.: DJ Niabi 

Niabi (pronounced ny-ya-bi) is a Montreal DJ of Canadian-Jamaican origin, whose stage name pays homage to her Nyabinghi roots, linked to Rastafarian culture. A resident of the Moonshine collective in Montreal, she masters a fusion of various styles—dancehall, hip-hop, R&B, afrobeat, house, amapiano, and even Brazilian funk—resulting in rich and dynamic DJ sets. Able to read the atmosphere and guide her audiences, she has shared the stage with artists such as Pierre Kwenders, Sister Nancy, and Bambii, proclaiming her rise on the Montreal urban music scene.