Rebirth Feb17 Music Festival

Posted on November 1, 2011 by v1d

“After traveling through the East, I now see Libya with different eyes. It’s as if a volcano of artistic expression erupted in front of me. And I’ll tell you, it’s ripe for the most rockin’ music festival on the Mediterranean.” -Matthew Milan

Rebirth: 17 of February Music Festival is an exciting new initiative: the first annual music festival in a liberated Libya, and soon to be the most epic music event in North Africa and the Middle East. It will be held on the one year anniversary of the uprising, and will run for three days (Feb.17th, 18th, 19th, 2012). It is the brainchild of filmmaker and music lover Matthew Millan, who traveled to the East of the Libya in April and May of this year to Libya to document the uprising. Within hours of entering into the country from Egypt, he became horrified at the level of devastation and neglect wrought upon the East of Libya by the Gaddafi regime. From the forgotten ruins near Shahhat to the half-erected buildings of Bayda, the East appeared to be remnants of an abandoned civilization. Yet amidst the dust of war, he soon discovered something extraordinary being born out of the spirit of Libyan people. From the sophisticated art of Bayda to the thriving music scene in Benghazi, a nuclear explosion of the arts had occurred, covering its plume throughout the East of the North African country. And while exploring the ruins of the ancient Greek philosophical center of Cyrene, it occurred to him that a music and arts festival would be the perfect foil to highlight this blast of creativity, and in one of the most beautiful regions he has ever seen.

The idea was borne not only out of a strong desire to highlight to the rest of the world the rebirthing of the Libyan cultural identity amidst the chaos, but to raise money to help rebuild the decaying infrastructures that plague Libya. In September of 2011, Matthew Millan will return to Libya to secure the location for the festival, and to take care of the local logistics. The difficult process of bringing the festival to life in a war ravaged country will then be made into a feature length documentary, a singular event that encapsulates the Libyan Phoenix rising out of the ashes of the old regime.

The Impact

Rebirth will give travelers and locals the opportunity to enjoy incredible, rarely-seen live performances in a stunning location of huge historical significance at a unique festival in a country where outdoor concerts and festivals are infrequent. International and Libyan artists will gather for a musical, social and cultural exchange creating collaborations between artists from different parts of the world that will inspire new forms of music.
Rebirth will bring to the world Libya’s fast evolving Renaissance of art, music and culture. The festival will develop a market, local music infrastructure and industry plus bridge the gap between old and new, rural and urban.

The Festival will be an economic stimulus to Libya, providing employment and an injection of capital to the local population, artists and local businesses. Further, it will help launch Libyan and other artists’ careers. And finally, the proceeds are for the Libyan people, and will go to causes of their choosing.

It will also give visitors an opportunity to witness the positive evolution of a country that is overcoming 42 years of brutal oppression, and 7 months of bloody war. The East of Libya holds many other attractions: pristine white beaches, the stunning Green Mountains, and a region rich in Classical history.