Heads up New Yorkers: An African giant will be orbiting the city for one night only.
Afrofusion megastar Burna Boy brings his massive talent to New York City’s Madison Square Garden, an historic first as he’s the first Nigerian artist to headline the famous arena. The Grammy award-winning artist joins the likes of JAY Z, Justin Bieber, Bruce Springsteen and many more performers who have played from its renowned stage.
To mark the momentous occasion—which follows Burna Boy’s electrifying shows at The Hollywood Bowl and 2021 Global Citizen Festival plus sold-out shows in London, Paris, Amsterdam—has enlisted a team of creatives to designed limited-edition merchandise commemorating Thursday night’s show. G. Thomas, art director for Warner Music Group, tells ESSENCE exclusively about the inspiration behind the designs:
“For Burna’s “One Night In Space” merch we wanted to encapsulate that larger than life energy and excitement that Burna shares with the City. With the touchdown of the African Giant in New York, we pushed on creating artwork that was loud and imaginative,” said Thomas.
He continues: “We tapped into several talented artists to create a series of cosmic illustrations that tied together the famous color combinations of New York and Nigeria. Among the artist that work on this collection were, third generation airbrush artist, Andrew Martinez (@guava_la), French illustrator, Pol-Edouard (@pol_edouard), and design firm, Precision Design Group (@precisiondesigngroup).”
Whether or not you’re attending the Madison Square Garden show in person, the “One Night In Space” merchandise will be available at Burna Boy’s webstore beginning at 6:00pm EST on Thursday, April 28. The items include shirts, hats hoodies, crewnecks, and tote bags and will range in price from $25 to $100.
“Each garment has added intensity, from glitter drops to puff inks, and larger than life prints,” said Thomas. “…making each piece a unique item to remember just like Burna’s performance will be!”
Not in New York City? Watch the live stream on April 28th, 2022 at 9:00pm EST, via YouTube.
