Imidiwan Festival Utrecht

Name: Imidiwan Festival Utrecht
Start: 2026-10-10
End: 2026-10-11
Location: Imidiwan Festival Utrecht

took place · 10 Oct 2026

Imidiwan Festival Utrecht, Utrecht

festival culture outdoor

Foto: Spotify

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Description was written before the event

On Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 October 2026, TivoliVredenburg presents Imidiwan Festival Utrecht, a two-day festival dedicated to North African desert blues.

Artists from the desert regions of Algeria, Mauritania and Mali come to Utrecht to perform and share the stories behind their music and culture. The line-up includes Imarhan, Tamikrest, Songhoy Blues, Samba Touré and Noura Mint Seymali.

Line-up

About: Imarhan

Two decades after forming in the Algerian Sahara, Tuareg quintet Imarhan take their fourth album 'Essam' ('lightning' in Tamasheq) on the road - a record that for the first time pairs electronic textures with their signature desert grooves.

studio albums released (2016-2026)

announced concerts on the current world tour

What's new

jan 2026
Imarhan released their fourth album 'Essam' on January 16, 2026 via City Slang, featuring electronic elements in their sound for the first time.
jan 2026
For 'Essam' they collaborated for the first time with producer Maxime Kosinetz and electronic musician Emile Papandreou, who sampled live instruments via a modular synthesizer.
mrt 2026
Imarhan appeared as a guest musician on 'Hoggar', the tenth album by Tinariwen, which was released in March 2026.

Tour

ManchesterLeedsLondonCardiffMontpellierMarseilleGroningen

Tracks

Tahabortsingle from 2015, one of their earliest known songs

Azzamansingle (2017), from the album 'Temet'

Ehad Wa Daghfrom the album 'Temet' (2018)

Derhan N'Oulhinelead single from 'Essam' (2026)

Essamfourth studio album (Jan 2026), featuring electronic influences for the first time

Recent shows

Sep 23, 2026 Plaça de Catalunya, Barcelona (ES)
Sep 21, 2026 Dabadaba, San Sebastian (ES)
Sep 20, 2026 Sala Villanos, Madrid (ES)

About: Tamikrest

From the Sahara to stages worldwide, Tamikrest pairs Tamasheq tradition with electric guitars and psychedelic rock, giving voice to the Kel Tamasheq people. Their sixth studio album Assikel (2026) opens a new chapter in a career spanning two decades.

87K

monthly listeners on Spotify

Metacritic score for Tamotaït (out of 100)

What's new

2026-05
Tamikrest released their sixth studio album Assikel on May 15, 2026 via Glitterbeat Records, recorded on analog tape with the band live in the studio.
2026-05
The single 'Adagh Oyantid' was released in early 2026 as a precursor to the Assikel album cycle.
2026-05
On Assikel, Tamikrest collaborates with Ibrahim Ag Alhabib from Tinariwen.

Tour

ParisGlasgowLeedsLondonManchesterAmersfoortHaarlemMartina Franca

Tracks

Chatmathird album (2013), Songlines Award for Best Album of the Year

Tisnant An Chatmaone of the most famous songs from the album Chatma

Tamotaïtfifth album (2020), with guest appearances by Hindi Zahra and Japanese musicians

Adaghdebut album (2010), produced by Chris Eckman of Dirtmusic

Assikelsixth album (May 2026), recorded on analog tape; with Ibrahim Ag Alhabib (Tinariwen)

Recent shows

Aug 22, 2026 Mountain Stage, Crickhowell (GB)
Jun 27, 2026 Onze Lieve Vrouwekerkhof, Amersfoort
Jun 16, 2026 The Hope and Ruin, Brighton (GB)

About: Songhoy Blues

Rooted in the Songhoy traditions of northern Mali and shaped by forced exile, this Bamako four-piece turns pentatonic scales and rock rhythms into a live force their fans call 'Timbuktu Punk'. Their 2025 album Héritage takes a more acoustic, tradition-rooted direction.

75K

monthly listeners on Spotify

32K+

fans follow the band via Songkick

What's new

2025-01
Héritage, the fourth studio album by Songhoy Blues, was released on 17 January 2025 via Transgressive Records - an acoustically reimagined take on their desert blues sound featuring guests from the Malian music world.
2025-03
World Music Central published in March 2025 an extensive career overview of the band, emphasizing their role as WaterAid ambassadors and their performance at the UN climate summit.
2025-05
Songhoy Blues performed in May 2025 at the Wychwood Festival in Cheltenham, as part of the Héritage tour.

Tracks

Music in Exiledebut album from 2015, released via Transgressive Records

Soubourearly single, appeared on the compilation Maison des Jeunes (2013)

Sahara (feat. Iggy Pop)collaboration with Iggy Pop, one of the band's most famous songs

Toukambelaopening track of Héritage (2025), cover of a Malian classic from 1970

Héritagefourth studio album, released on January 17, 2025

About: Samba Touré

Guitarist and singer Samba Touré grew up in the Tombouctou region and has spent over three decades shaping his own take on West African desert blues - schooled by Ali Farka Touré, yet long since grown into a voice with its own sharp social edge.

highest position on the World Music Charts Europe (album Gandadiko, 2015)

Best Artist of the Year, Songlines Music Awards 2021 (album Binga)

What's new

jan 2025
Samba Touré released his new album Baarakelaw (The Workers) on January 24, 2025 via Glitterbeat Records, recorded in Bamako during an energy crisis with frequent power outages.
apr 2025
Songlines gave Baarakelaw four out of five stars and praised Touré's social commentary and his distinctive guitar playing, supported by ngoni, calabash and bass.
sep-okt 2025
Samba Touré toured through the United Kingdom, Netherlands and Belgium in September and October 2025, with performances in, among others, The Hague (Paard) and Nijmegen (Doornroosje).

Tour

BristolManchesterLondonUtrechtGroningen

Tracks

Crocodile Bluesinternational breakthrough album from 2011, awarded the Tamani d'or for Best International Album

Gandadikoalbum from 2015, reached #2 in the World Music Charts Europe

Bingaalbum from 2021, earned Touré the Songlines Award for Best Artist of the Year

Baarakelawnewest album (Jan 2025), tribute to the workers of Bamako

Songhaï Blues: Homage to Ali Farka Touréfirst international release (2009), compilation of his early Malian albums

About: Noura Mint Seymali

Raised in a griot family that helped shape Mauritanian musical history, Noura Mint Seymali plays the ardin and sings classical Hassaniya poetry - driven by her husband Jeiche Ould Chighaly's psychedelic guitar lines and a tight rhythm section. Her album Yenbett (2025) and the WOMEX Artist Award she received that same year confirm her standing as one of the most significant voices in contemporary world music.

7.4K

monthly listeners on Spotify

tracks on album Yenbett (2025)

What's new

2026-07
Noura Mint Seymali performed in July 2026 at the WOMAD festival and at the Jazz Café in London, as part of a British tour.
2026-07
On 4 July 2026 she performed at the Openluchttheater Hertme in the Netherlands.
2025-11
On 7 November 2025 Yenbett was released via Glitterbeat Records, her first studio album in nine years, recorded in her hometown Nouakchott.

Tour

HertmeFalmouthLondonBrusselsNijmegenHamburgGothenburgStockholmTampereBreitenbach am Herzberg

Tracks

YenbettAlbum from 2025, first studio album in nine years, recorded in Nouakchott

GuérehFirst single from Yenbett (2025), a traditional wedding dance song

TzenniInternational debut album (2014) via Glitterbeat Records

ArbinaAlbum from 2016, praised for fiery vocals and unconventional instrumentation

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