New York City

AFROPUNKFest 2023 is brought to you live, from Saturday, August 26th, and Sunday, August 27th; celebrating a weekend of The Circus of Soul. Afro Punk Fest has been a Brooklyn staple since 2005, bringing together the community with light, love, and music. This year’s Afro Punk Fest is bigger than ever, since its return post-pandemic. AFROPUNK Fest has always been held at Commodore Barry Park, but this year, they have changed locations to Green-point Brooklyn’s Skyline Drive-in Theatre by the water. As a Brooklyn native, I’ve grown up each year excited to attend the festival, but this year, as the 25-year-old fashionista writer that I’ve become, I had the opportunity to cover it as media and press. My younger self would be so proud, my current self is leaping for joy and I can’t wait to tell you guys all about this 2 day affair!

AFROPUNKFest is a festival of music, fashion, and unapologetic blackness. Every year, attendees dress up in unique outfits matching the theme of the festival. The Circus of Soul is this year’s theme, and it was drawn out perfectly. There is beauty and there is a pain in the black community when it comes to the word “Circus”. It has multiple definitions, but I had the pleasure of speaking with Sean G, Creative Director of AFROPUNK, and his inspiration for the theme was paying homage to celebrating our blackness. “The circus, on the one hand, has a dark side to it, and we wanted to do something, AFROPUNK, by exploring what that means to us. In history, black people during slavery were sold and showcased in the circus as freaks. For example, the first black albino twins were showcased as the “Men from Mars,” in 2023, and celebrities such as Winnie Harlow are now praised for their skin discoloration. AFROPUNK and I explored how the blackness from white eyes, is this fear and fascination of black people, and how white supremacy objectified and put us on display, as the detriment to ourselves, but over time we found a way to take our power back, and become not the slaves, but the masters, and come to celebrate our “freakiness”, our “oddness” and let the freak show fly”. This is a powerful quote and give us the true essence of what the AFROPUNK Festival truly is about and how we can continue to take up black power in spaces created specifically for us and by us.

AFROPUNKFest went full out on the circus theme, and so did the attendees. Once you walked in, the layout of the festival reminded me of the twists and turns in a carnival, with the excitement behind every corner. There were stilt walkers, vendors, and performers, oh my! The outfits were my favorite part because of how committed and creative everyone was. There were people painted in gold, hair as big as the sky, multiple colors, and outfits handmade and bejeweled with the brightest jewels I’ve ever seen. It was so hard to choose a favorite. AFROPUNK Fest is a safe space meant for creativity and self-expression. Since 2005, the festival looks of the attendees have elevated to the most beautiful and authentic fashions I’ve seen. Fashion outside of festivals is a bit more laid back, but the boldness of the attendees was a 100/10 for me. It’s admirable how everyone has their unique fashion sense because nothing looked the same. There wasn’t one outfit that was similar to another, which is what I craved! For more on fashion at AFROPUNK Fest, I created a reel on @Theknockturnal Instagram page and interviews with attendees and performers.

@Bambiix2 on Instagram: http://instagram.com/bambiix2

The creativity is remarkable, iconic, and legendary. It’s so impressive how these “costumes” attendees dedicate their time to get every last detail right and with a story that goes behind it. For example, I had the pleasure of speaking with Jamal, as seen below in Red. His story was so beautiful of the theme behind his red bridal dress. “My look is red, because it’s my favorite color. It is also my father’s and lover’s favorite color, who both have unfortunately passed away. This is a look that is honoring my love and is the wedding that I never got to have,” Jamal tells me emotionally. Wow! Hearing that, made me just want to break down and we hugged for a very long time, not saying a word, only exchanging each other’s embrace and love. This love is what AFROPUNK is about.

@Kingofjamaica http://Instagram.com/kingofjamaicaand @jamalisking on instagram http://instagram.com/jamalisking

My angle for approaching all the fabulous attendees are capturing their fabulous outfits, is to ask them what black joy means to you. There is so much going on in this world and our daily lives that we forget to have some fun or let our hair down for a bit, and that is why so many people love coming to AFROPUNK Fest for a weekend of pure joy and excitement; a stop in normal day life. Black joy is crucial and should be celebrated with each chance we get. This wonderful woman in this African-inspired outfit stated, “black joy is power, black joy is melanin and unity”. Another attendee, Lew Caine, stated “black joy is this! When you are around your people, spreading love, giving back, elevating and just having a good time.” Shauna Grey, Global head of Development at AFROPUNK shared her meaning of Black joy. “Black joy is watching everyone here have pure teeth while smiling, the babies walking around and those individuals fully exposed in their clothes without fear of being judged, and that’s black joy, just happiness without fear. Caroline Wanga, The President and CEO of Essence Magazine, stopped by to talk to me backstage, as Baby Tate was performing, and she shared her meaning of black joy. “I think black joy is freedom when we have to stop worrying about making black accommodate everybody else”.

For more interviews on black joy, check out my reel on @Theknockturnal Instagram.

AFROPUNK fest’23 has been one for the books.