Malta’s largest Afro BBQ Party!
What Went Down at the Reggae Brunch x Afro Island All White BBQ Brunch – We outside Malta !
To conclude the month of July with a bang, the last weekend in Malta got fiery, as the Afro Island x Reggae Brunch BBQ day party took place under the local sunny skies. The festival’s second edition on the rock, featured a 3-day weekend which closed on a high, thanks to the joint effort with Afro Island. For those still unaware, Reggae Brunch has placed itself as one of the biggest party brunch organisers in the UK, hosting hundreds of attendees monthly, across cities like London, Birmingham, and Manchester. This year’s edition in Malta featured an all-white secret garden party that welcomed attendees at the beautiful Treehaus venue at UNO, bringing infinite vibes and delicious chops to the guests.
Numerous DJs played the best afrobeats, dancehall, soca, amapiano, and reggae tunes back to back. Starting at 12, as people gathered under the palm trees and the tropical setting of the venue, the smell of jerk chicken mingled in the air. On the menu was a choice of delicious Jamaican / Guyanese dishes: mouth-watering veg curry, tantalizing grilled fish and jerk chicken accompanied by fragrant rice & peas, and a zesty salad. Those present at the Afro Island boat BBQ last summer, like myself, knew they could not miss out on the Caribbean delicacies made by Odessa’s, the only authentic Caribbean caterer based here in Malta. Those wise enough ensured to secure their tickets asap, for the rest, if you were not there for all that deliciousness, your taste buds missed out!
The lineup was composed of talent from both event organisers. Afro Island flew out DNA to headline their bill and brought their favourite local DJ residents Veloso, Dado, Shay Who, and DJ M Funky, with the latter two giving us an epic B2B set. Reggae Brunch showed the local crowd how things go down in the UK bringing DJs Dean EG and Suave, and the phenomenal MCs Sillky, A Star, and Tubby.
The crowd looking bright, in their all-white attire, made the gathering almost look like a Sunday congregation, but some of the dance moves displayed were far from holy. The place got heated figuratively and literally as the party advanced. Many gyals came prepared, equipped with their hand fans to stay cool on the dance floor. Despite the heat, the energy was ecstatic, people socialized, danced, dutty whined, bruk it down, Willie bounced, signaled the plane and all. The beautiful smiles seen in every corner were proof of the enthusiasm and the good vibes of the people.
Among the guests was also Saga, one of season 6’s Big Brother Naija housemates, coming all the way from Lagos. During his time on the island, he showed us his take on Adekunle Gold’s TikTok challenge for his latest single Ogaranya. The video, which made more than half a million views on Instagram, featured clips of local partygoers dancing and singing along to the lyrics of the new song.
Once again music proved to be the language we all speak, helping bring together people from the African diaspora, the Caribbean, and Europe. As someone who has seen the island grow as a place where African and Caribbean music is increasingly being celebrated thanks to the recent festivals, it makes me shed a tear of joy, as this community of partygoers is becoming like a family. This was certainly a milestone for Afro Island and also foreshadows a more eventful future for the local party scene and talent. As usual, it is a pleasure to see the unity of people celebrating music and culture, so if you don’t want to miss out, make sure to be ready on the 12th of August, which brings another eventful day with Pitch Malta and Afro Island.
