From 23 to 27 June, the Creative District will be transformed into the District of Peace, with a series of exhibitions, debates, and lectures by the most important contemporary thinkers, focusing on reconciliation at the regional and European levels. In the well-known, visually transformed space of the District we will deal with current political and social issues through the music of four provocative activist bands: TBF, Zoster, Helem Nejse, and Obojeni Program.
The first day of the District of Peace closes with a unique combination of rap, hip hop, rock, funk, soul, and reggae sound through which the band TBF from Split has been questioning the dominant social structures for three decades. Recognisable by socially engaging lyrics and their visual expression in the form of short films, The Beat Fleet utilises its original performance to invite the audience to action, public criticism of the political situation in the region, and speaking out against all forms of discrimination. So far, they have recorded 7 studio albums for which they have won a total of 17 awards from the audience and critics, and the citizens of Novi Sad and guests of the European Capital of Culture will witness their talent on 23 June at 10.30 p.m.
The next evening, 24 June at the same time, the cašpija of the Sarajevo band Helem Nejse will provide the audience with a specific view of love and other universal topics, looking back without hesitation on personalities and events from their immediate surroundings. In addition to three notable studio albums, the hilarious ‘Helem Nejse Radio Show’, a video podcast and the cartoon series ‘Bruca braca bruda brada’, the guests of the District of Peace stand out as activists in United Nations campaigns, the most important of which are ‘Listen to the Child’ and ‘Choose Your Words’.
On Saturday, 25 June at 10.30 p.m., love will be intertwined with messages of tolerance and peace in the songs of the band Zoster, which since its beginnings in 2000 in Mostar has recorded four albums and has completed dozens of solo and festival performances across Europe, proving once again that state borders are just a convention, and music is far above them. Zoster’s mission is to bring progressiveness, affirmation, and education about positive responses to the unfavourable situation in society in each city in which they perform. Reggae is their choice because ‘in this fraught region, there’s too much aggression even in music’.
Program u Kreativnom distriktu završava se u velikom stilu, koncertom kultnog novosadskog Obojenog programa, 27. juna u 22 časa. Pioniri srpskog alt-roka za četiri decenije postojanja naslovima albuma ispisali su akrostih s imenom svog grada, koji sadržajem pesama brane od svake opresije. Bend koji uvek nastupa s verom da će muzika spasiti svet simbolično će poruku Distrikta mira iz Evropske prestonice kulture uputiti čitavoj Evropi.
The programme in the Creative District ends in style with a concert by the cult Novi Sad band Obojeni Program, on 27 June at 10 p.m. Over four decades, the pioneers of Serbian alt-rock have written acrostic with the name of their city on the album titles, defending it from any oppression with their lyrics. The band, which keeps performing with the belief that music will save the world, will symbolically send the message of the District of Peace from the European Capital of Culture to the whole of Europe.
Admission to events in the Creative District is free.
Author: Katarina Kostić
Photo: Vladimir Veličković/ Promo
