By Yemi Adeleye
Cultural experts and Órüpézá Festival Director, Edi Lawani, says celebrating culture is investing in the Nigeria’s future.
Lawani, made this remark in a statement on Monday in Lagos to unveils Freedom Party Week 2025.
The cultural enthusiast, who noted the need to builds on cultural tourism legacy, said festivals remained germane not only in preserving heritages but also to boost boost tourism and economy.
“As Nigeria grapples with questions of cultural diplomacy and soft power, Órüpézá Festival may well be showing the way: that to celebrate culture is also to invest in the future.
“Festivals are more than fleeting moments of spectacle; they are cultural testaments to memory, identity, and aspiration,” he said.
According to him, the Órüpézá Festival, which returns in 2024 in partnership with Freedom Park Lagos, is fast emerging as one such testament.
Lawani said that Freedom Party Week 2025, billed to hold between Sept. 28 and Oct. 1, sought to position Lagos as a hub where heritage and contemporary expression meet in powerful dialogue.
He recalled that the 2024 edition, themed “Celebrating Freedom, Art, and Unity” transformed Freedom Park into a kaleidoscope of sound, colour, and conversation.
He added: “With more than 15,000 participants, it affirmed the festival’s growing stature as a cultural marketplace where tradition embraces innovation.
“Beyond the music, art exhibitions and culinary journeys, the 2024 outing underscored a broader truth—that festivals are not mere diversions but engines of cultural diplomacy and tourism, shaping how communities see themselves and how the world sees them.”
According to him, the choice of Freedom Park as anchor venue is rich in symbolism.
Lawani said: “Once a colonial prison, the site has evolved into a sanctuary for memory and creativity, a living metaphor of transformation.
“For the festival organisers, this partnership is no coincidence. “Órüpézá Festival embodies the very spirit of Freedom Park—transforming history into a gathering point for resilience, freedom, and identity,”
He said that what distinguished Órüpézá remained “its commitment to cultural freedom—a curatorial ethos that refuses to treat heritage as static.”
According to him, instead, Órüpézá insists that tradition can dance with the modern and that history can inspire contemporary expression.
“This year’s Freedom Party Week will feature cultural parades, fashion showcases, live concerts, film screenings, intellectual panels, and a curated marketplace of artisans and culinary innovators.
“Órüpézá is not just a festival; it is a reclamation of narratives, an assertion that African culture is dynamic, youthful, and globally resonant.
“Freedom Party Week 2025 deepens that vision—inviting communities to celebrate, question, and reimagine culture together,” he said.
According to Lawani, projections suggest that the attendance at the Órüpézá 2025 Festival may exceed 20,000 visitors, from local enthusiasts to international tourists.
“For Lagos, it is both an economic opportunity and a cultural calling card—reinforcing the city’s reputation as a creative capital.
“For the public, it is a reminder that festivals remain a stage where identity is negotiated and freedom is performed,” he added.
