Tay Grin, Rick Ross listed for Iceland festival

His determination, his focus, his willingness to collaborate with international artists and his desire to do music his own way is finally paying off for rapper Tay Grin.

What could be a dream for most Malawian artists, Tay Grin, real name Limbani Kalilani, has been listed as one of the performers at this year’s Secret Solstice Festival 2017 that will take place in Reykjavik, Iceland from June 16-18.

In a press release, Tay Grin said he was excited to be part of the festival which is a huge opportunity to share the stage with well-known international artists.

“This is very special considering that apart from performing before a different audience, I will also be able to use the side events to share the story of a Malawian girl in my capacity as United Nation’s ‘He for She’ champion,” Tay Grin said.

The rapper was recommended to the festival organisers by one his fans who has been following Tay Grin’s work both in Malawi and other countries.

Tay Grin, who will perform at the festival on June 17, is the first Malawian to perform at the festival which is in its fourth year.

Secret Solstice is a hip-hop oriented festival which is perfect for the rapper’s portfolio.

“It is an excellent opportunity to introduce hip-hop with an African taste to the West,” said Tay Grin.

Other artists expected to perform at the festival are America hip-hop artist Rick Ross, Foo Fighters (US), The Prodigy (UK), Big Sean (US), Chaka Khan (US), Richard Ashcroft (UK), Anderson.Paak & The Free Nationals (US), Young M.A (US), Rhye (US), Seth Troxler (US), Unknown Mortal Ochestra (UK), Kerri Chandler (US), Dubfire (US), Pharoahe Monch (US) Ata Kak (Ghana) and a host of international DJs from England and Iceland.

Tay Grin’s rise is well-documented. He has won a number of awards which include Channel O’s Best Collabo or Duo 2009 with the video ‘My Type of Guy’ which features Zimbabwe’s Buffalo Souljah, Namibia’s Gal Level and Nigeria’s DJ Waxxy.

In 2014, he was voted as the Most Influential Person by Hub Magazine UK and won a Black Entertainment Film Fashion Television and Arts (BEFFTA) award for Best International African Act.

In 2016, he won BEFFTA Star Award in the music category and was also voted Malawian Urban Artist and Best Video during the UMP Awards and also won 2016 WatsUp TV Africa Music Video Awards Best Traditional Video award with Chipapapa which features Nigeria’s 2baba.

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