Spanning five days, the neo-culture festival will spotlight regional creatives and global talents alike.
The inaugural edition of BRED Abu Dhabi came and conquered, as evidenced by It’s Our Time. Featuring participating artists from the 2023 edition, the premiere of the documentary marked the neo-culture festival’s return to Yas Island from 24 to 28 April. Filmed in six locations across the region by Palestinian director Ashraf Dowani, It’s Our Time follows six artists that embody neo-culture in their work and daily lives.
The screening culminated with the announcement of what’s in store for the upcoming edition: BRED Abu Dhabi 2024 will showcase art, music, fashion, and neo-culture through a contemporary Middle Eastern lens. The five-day event invites visitors to experience a packed entertainment line-up that includes live performances by hip-hop and grime artists alongside exclusive drops by regional and global fashion brands, basketball showdowns, interactive experiences, street food and more. More details around programming are yet to be announced.
Featuring insights from each artist, It’s Our Time presents neo-culture as a way of life, underlining how individuals communicate through varying artistic mediums, creating a dialogue through different forms of creative self-expression. On the roster are British-Lebanese DJ Saliah (who mixes music inspired by the various cultures she was exposed to growing up), Saud G (an Emirati rapper and producer redefining the way hip-hop is portrayed in the region), and Ahmad Makari (an art curator who works with artists of various backgrounds).
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Also featured in the film are Midos (a Tunisian fashion designer known for creating a brand that highlights aspects of Tunisian and Arab life), Tareq Qaddumi (a creative director bringing together all aspects of neo-culture in his work), and Zayed Al Haddar (a Scottish-Emirati photographer who chronicles street life in his city). It’s Our Time speaks to what inspires these artists, emphasising how their individual exposure to different cultures paved the way for their unique talents to take hold and ultimately gave rise to the phenomenon now known as neo-culture.
Conceptualised and produced by homegrown experiential collective Brag, in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi and contemporary culture platform Hypebeast, the festival was named after the ‘born and bred’ idiom and the glory of ‘Black and Red’ sneakers. Giving rise to the emergence of the neo-culture phenomenon in the capital, BRED Abu Dhabi was created to showcase the influence and impact of neo-culture on all things music, fashion, art, sports, and food.
DSCVR: BRED Abu Dhabi. Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. @bredabudhabi
