Aké Arts and Book Festival

icholo Aké  ẹnw ẹda kpai icholo ọtakada i chi icholo ẹnw ẹda kpai ẹnw ẹko ku ma che ọdo du naijiria,  i chanẹ efu ọdọ 2013,   Lola Shoneyin ch'ẹnẹ ki gbọgba ñ , ẹnẹ ki meju ewn eko kwi  Abeokuta. I ni abọ wewe ku ma chukolo kpai ọnw kwi ugbọ du ọjane ile yi du. ẹwn ki kpejuru chi tọ du ki je'wñ  abo ku ma meju kotakada ku ma nyọgba. icholo Aké chi icholo ẹwñ eda kpai egba lile ojane africa ki akọ ami ak'ọtakada  wewe wa jeju . icholo le che nugbo ku ma go oji iga kpai magajini ku ma dọ kakini *Aké Review.*

## Founding of the festival
Lola Shoneyin ki ki icholo le dama yi, iyi ẹni ya tene ugbo kabo ku ma kpibe ku ma kọla iyayi African lugbo ẹkẹtẹ ane  wa .

Icholo lẹ ma dọ ki   Aké, efewo ku mado ki Abeokuta, Ogun State, ugbo  Africa ejo dudu ẹnyu ekọ Wole Soyinka, mabi efu ọdọ   1934.

## First edition (2013)
Ẹgba ej'ododu ku ma ch'icholo yi chi  ali meju  Kuto, Abeokuta, ma che,  ọjọ 19–24 kochu nolu megwaka ọdọ  2013. Icholo le ọdọ le chi ojiji ew kẹ rewa ". ẹwñ ka chi ẹgba ki ọne me ẹlẹ kwi naijiria ku ma chi ọdọ 21 mali ọna ku ma mọlayi Wole Soyinka du.

## Second edition (2014)
Ọnu keji icholo lẹ chi efu ochu ẹkẹ gwaka  nolu mẹ gwẹjo ọdọ  2014. Oji ñ icholo  lẹ chi " ọgọchi kpai ugbo male ".

## Third edition (2015)
Oji icholo le efu ọdọ  2015 chi " eche ewn egba akpọji , efu ochu ẹkẹ gwaka nolu mẹ gwẹbie kpai ochu ẹkẹ mẹ gwaka nolu mẹ ọgwu yọka ẹefu ọfọ lẹ , i ni abo ku ma kotakada onẹ mẹ 80 aluka ma , manyu ama chewn ku ma go gwu gbo du efilẹ chaka madomo . efu ochu ẹkẹ gwaka nolu mẹ gwẹjo ọdọ own ma chicholo lẹ , amone wewe wa kọla , gọbina gwi  Ogun State Ibikunle Amosu, ẹne kia kọla koji , European   wi naijiria kpai ECOWAS Michel Arrion, kpai  gwi Marine 

Ẹne ki tọgba icholo lẹ chi  Niyi Osundare, i chi ẹne ki kpi'cholo lẹ ofe ki noji . Abo ọtalaka  ku ma kọtakada lẹ chi   Helon Habila, Binyavanga Wainaina, Mona Elthahawy, Chris Abani, Véronique Tadjo, Pierre Cherruau, E. C. Osondu, Taiye Selasi, Novuyo Rosa Tshuma, kpai Nnedi Okorafor.

Oji ọla ku ma ọdọ lẹ oji ñ kakini ẹlẹ'nyo amenyu ku ma du di fọtọ, ẹne kikọ chi Andrew Esiebo kpai ọjiji kpai ọna ẹna  . gbọla , ọtakada ki Ifeoma Fafunwa kọ,  mala du chhjiwe efi Icholo lẹ 

## Fourth edition (2016)
Ẹnw ki choji ọla ọdọ 2016 ku ma chẹ ochu nolu mẹ gwaka   ọjọ 15- 16 chi,  " Ọganẹ ọrẹla Beneath this Skin". Icholo lẹ chi ẹne ki akọtakada kenyan kọ  Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o.

Icholo lẹ  ẹne ku ma dọ  Ayobola Kekere-Ekun che wa  *kpai*  Fatima Abubakar. Ẹnẹ kia  tido , ẹnẹ kia kẹli   *Iyalode ,* Brymo, Adunni Nefretiti, kpia Falana kẹli oji ede  

## Fifth edition (2017)
ma ch'icholo  le 14–18 ochu nolu mẹ gwaka efu ọdọ 2017, Ẹne ki tọgba ọtakada  ẹko chi Ama Ata Aidoo.  efi icholo lẹ mala mi inabali egba ku ma dọ ki  *[[Saraba Magazine|Saraba]]* manyu ẹdu enw alafa ñw abọ ku ma che tule Nommo awards.

## Sixth edition (2018)
The theme of the 2018 edition was "Fantastical Futures", which focused on events and conversations on the ideal future of Africa.  For the first time since 2013, Ake Festival was held in Lagos, 25–28 October 2018, at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Ikeja. The 2018 Festival celebrated Africa's art in photography and art exhibitions of young African artists like Abdulkareem Baba, Eloghosa Osunde, Isma'il Shomala, and Roye Okupe.

## Seventh edition (2019)
The seventh edition was themed "Black Bodies and Grey Matter". It featured about 120 guests, over 500 attendees, seventeen panel discussions, twelve book chats, one art exhibition, *Eat The Book*, and the launch of *Waterbirds on the Lakeshore*, an African young adult anthology by the Goethe-Institut (published by Ouida Books).

## Eighth edition (2020)
The eighth edition of the festival, themed "African Time", took place in Lagos, 22–25 October 2020, and was held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival featured Wana Udobong, a Nigerian poet, and included performances from talented poets from South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Jamaica, the United Kingdom, Uganda, Senegal, Sudan, Kenya, and Algeria. The poets in attendance at the 2020 edition include Jubir Malick, Vanessa Kissule, Titilope Sonuga, D'bi Young Anitafrika, Samira Negrouche, Ndukwe Onuoha, Sitawa Nawahe, Yomi Sode, Poetra Asantawa, Vangile Gantsho, Afura Kan, and Ola Elhassan.

During the festival, a documentary was shown in honor of Maryse Condé, titled *The Wondrous Life of Maryse Condé*. Condé is the author of numerous novels and a distinguished academic; she retired from Columbia University as a professor of French language. She also taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and UCLA. There was also panel discussion centered around the responsibility of the media to tackle disinformation. The panel was chaired by Yinka Adegoke, and its members were Yemisi Akinbobola, Wale Lawal, and Chude Jideonwo, who spoke on "The Media and Their Duty to Africa's Youth".

## Ninth edition (2021)
The theme of the ninth festival was "Generational Discordance" and took place 20–30 October 2021.

## The ''Aké Review''
The *Aké Review* is the official publication of the festival. It is published in three official languages: English, Yorùbá, and French.

The 2014 *Review* was co-edited by Oyebade Dosunmu and Lola Shoneyin.

The 2015 *Review* was co-edited by Kola Tubosun and Kolade Arogundade. Each edition features a series of 10 questions answered by Aké Festival guests. In addition, the publication has interviews, short fiction, poetry, photography, and art. In the 2015 edition of the *Aké Review*, there was an in-depth interview with the poet and teacher Niyi Osundare, who also appeared on the cover, as well as an interview with the 2015 Caine Prize-winner Namwali Serpell.

The 2016 *Review* was edited by Molara Wood. Its cover featured the famous Kenyan writer Ngũgĩ was Thiong'o, who was also a headliner at the festival. It included interviews with Ngugi (conducted by Mọlara Wood), Mahamat Saleh Haroun, and Odafe Atogun (both conducted by Lola Shoneyin).

The 2017 *Review* was edited by Molara Wood, with the headliner of that year's event Ama Ata Aidoo on the cover. It included three interviews: Diane Awerbuck interviewed by Geoff Ryman, Ama Ata Aidoo interviewed by Molara Wood, and Ayobami Adebayo interviewed by Kola Tubosun. There was also an uncredited interview with Jude Kelly, artistic director of London's Southbank Centre and a founder of the Women of the World Festival (WOW).

The 2018 *Review* was edited by Molara Wood, and featured that year's festival headliner Nuruddin Farah on the cover.

The 2019 *Review*, edited by Molara Wood, had Tsitsi Dangarembga on the cover. It also included an interview with Tsitsi Dangarembga who was the headliner that year.

## References

## External links
* Aké Festival website
* ''Aké Review'' web page