CJMY
The Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) will physically return from 23 to 25 June 2023 at the Sarawak Cultural Village, Kuching, after being held virtually in 2022 due to the pandemic.
The annual festival, organised by the Sarawak Tourism Board (STB), will feature 199 musicians from 12 countries across more than three continents performing a diverse range of music genres. It is expected to attract over 20,000 visitors.
The line-up will include international performers like Grammy Awards winner Gipsy Kings from France, distantly derived from traditional flamenco and rumba genres, Big Mountain from Jamaica, Safi Theatre from Tanzania, Rastak from Iran, Fasylive from Maldives, Afriquoi from the UK, Chatusram from India, Rizal Hadi & Folk from Indonesia and Thai Fusions Sound Band from Thailand. The line-up will also include performers from Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Reflecting on the course of events 26 years ago, the STB CEO Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor said that she is glad that STB had undertaken the task and is proud to witness and be part of the growth of RWMF – from its humble beginnings to being recognised as a music festival of international stature.
“We look forward to reflecting on the next 25 years as we move towards making the RWMF a platform for Sarawak to push on sustainability and ecotourism for the next generation of music lovers,” she added.
The Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts, Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, said: “While the international performers are undoubtedly the highlight of the event, we must also acknowledge the exceptional local performers and bands who have thrived as a result of RWMF over the years. They are a testament to the transformative power of music and culture in positively impacting our communities.”
The festival’s theme this year is ‘REFLECTIONS’. The minister invited the audience to reflect on the humble beginnings of RWMF, with merely 300 spectators for its first-ever concert back in 1998. The event has now grown to be Sarawak’s ‘Star Festival’ and internationally renowned platform, recognised as one of the 25 best International Festivals, placing Sarawak in a position to be the target.
Sharzede added that the RWMF’s international recognition had expanded from an acclaimed world music platform to being acknowledged as Sarawak’s keystone festival that strongly advocates Responsible Tourism in its quest to become one of the world’s most sustainable, eco-friendly festivals.
In previous editions, Sarawak had taken proactive measures towards creating and implementing a sustainable, eco-friendly festival, including banning single-use plastics, encouraging upcycling of used materials, exploring innovative solutions to waste management, and providing shuttle buses to ferry festival-goers to alleviate carbon emissions.
Ticket sales for the RWMF 2023 will open on 15 April 2023. For further information, visit the festival’s official website www.rwmf.net. STB invites visitors from Malaysia and worldwide to RWMF for a holistic experience and emotion of the festival, which promises harmony, diversity, and culture connected by music and dance.
