Funky Elephant

Funky Elephant is an annual springtime music festival in Helsinki, Finland. It's dedicated to a vast variety of styles within black rhythm music. Genres represented include funk, soul, Hip hop, jazz, Latin, reggae, afrobeat etc. Funky Elephant has been organized since 1994.

The festival is held at Tavastia Club and its smaller sub-club downstairs, Semifinal. The clubs are located in the very center of Helsinki.

During the years, the festival has had such performers as

• Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
• Roy Ayers
• Joe Bataan
• Pucho & the Latin Soul Brothers
• Tony Allen
• DJ Vadim & One Self

Plus, many highly acclaimed DJs of the genre.

Overall, the festival has had over 100 live performances and over 70 DJs.

The organizer is Funky Amigos, which is a non-profit association. Its aim is to enhance the status of modern rhythm music scene and its artists in Finland. In wider prospect, Funky Amigos also wants to encourage multi-culturality and tolerance.

Other Funky Amigos' events include

• The Funk Awards, a gala event to give recognition to those Finns who have kept the scene showcased domestically. Held annually since 2000.
• The Baby Elephant Tour, a chance for the lesser-known, up and coming Finnish artists to tour clubs around Finland.

Besides these, Funky Amigos randomly organizes other events depending on its resources. The goal is to have some kind of activity going on all year-round.

External links

• Official site