- Title: MOROCCO: Stevie Wonder closes 9 day music festival in Rabat, Morocco
- Date: 25th May 2009
- Summary: RABAT, MOROCCO (MAY 23, 2009) (REUTERS) MEDIUM SHOT OF STEVIE WONDER PLAYING ON THE PIANO MEDIUM SHOT OF THREE FEMALE DANCERS AND TWO MUSICIANS FROM THE BAND MEDIUM SHOT OF STEVIE WONDER SINGING AND PLAYING ON THE PIANO CLOSE UP OF A PERCUSSIONIST PLAYING ON THE DRUMS CLOSE UP OF THE DRUMMER WIDE SHOT OF STEVIE WONDER PLAYING ON THE PIANO
- Embargoed: 9th June 2009 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Morocco
- Country: Morocco
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA4PG3GSCMRCTVTXIRSXXTXI5EL
- Story Text: Stevie Wonder talks to Reuters Television about his first ever performance in Morocco.
In front of an ecstatic audience of thousands in Rabat, legendary American soul singer, song writer, and musician Stevie Wonder made a grand finale to the 9 day Mawazine festival on Saturday (May 23).
It was the first time ever that Stevie Wonder, who has a big following in Morocco, played live in the country.
Wonder talked exclusively to Reuters Television on the eve of the concert.
"First of all, I am happy here to be in Morocco and to be invited to be part of this great occasion that represents a balance of music, culture, various rhythms throughout the world, people coming together in the spirit of what Morocco represents and for them to have invited me to be part of that, I feel highly honoured," he said.
Wonder, who will be sixty next year, sang many of his greatest hits for delighted fans. While enjoying live concert tours he also spoke to about his current project - an album in memory of his mother.
"In 2006, on 31 May, only a couple of weeks after my birthday (13 May), I lost my mother and one of the promises I made to her was that I would do an album of inspiration. She wanted me to do a gospel album and I am working on a project called 'Gospel Inspired by Lula'. Lula was my mothers name and I am doing this project. It is not just the traditional gospel music. It is going to be gospel in spreading the words of goodness of God, but it is not about religion but about relationship. The songs represent everything, every person who gives praise to the most high. We may be doing some song may be in Arabic, something in Spanish, something in English in various rhythms. We may do something in Indian rhythms, just a lot of different things. We will be going to do celebration," he told Reuters Television.
Stevie Wonder among the biggest names to grace this year's Rabat festival. Other stars included Kylie Minogue, Alicia Kays, Ennio Morricone, Johnny Clegg and Al De Meola and also many big names from the Arab world such as Cheb Khaled and Warda Al Jazayiria (Algeria), Kadem Saher (Iraq) and Sherine Abdelwahab (Egypt).
Wonder had many highlights over his distinguished career of more than 45 years.
"One of the blessings and highlights I had was meeting president Mandela, by being alive to sing the first African American president, a man of spirit, President Barak Obama, by having the chance to go to Africa to visit various countries, a chance to come to Morocco and meet the people here, the opportunity of receiving Grammys and meeting all the various artists I've met, a chance to be at the Oscars when I never thought I will never receive an Oscar and to actually say that I accept this award in honour of Nelson Mandela, to be part of making a national holiday as we did for Dr Martin Luther King Jr. birthday," he said.
The Stevie Wonder concert ended the Rabat Mawazine festival that was staged on no less than 9 scenes with more than one hundred concerts.
But elsewhere at the festival, eleven people were killed in a stampede at another stadium when thousands of spectators hurried to leave at the end of a concert early on Sunday (May 24), police and local officials said.
They said a fence gave way, killing five women, two teenagers and four men. Forty other people were injured.
The victims were among 70,000 spectators at a concert by Moroccan pop star Abdelaziz Stati at the Hay Nahda soccer stadium in Rabat. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: Audio restrictions: This clip's Audio includes copyrighted material. User is responsible for obtaining additional clearances before publishing the audio contained in this clip.