Entertainment

MALKERNS– Planning for the milestone 20th edition of the MTN Bushfire Festival has officially commenced, with the dates for the 2027 showcase locked in.

MTN Bushfire co-founding director Jiggs Thorne confirmed that the festival will celebrate its two-decade anniversary from 28 to 30 May 2027.

Thorne stated that preparatory work for the landmark event is already underway. He encouraged returning festivalgoers to secure their arrangements early, noting that booking both accommodation and travel well in advance is essential to avoid logistics constraints.

He also revealed that they have scheduled the initial release of tickets, with early-bird sales confirmed to open in two weeks.

Relevance, consistency and authenticity fuel MTN Bushfire evolution

MALKERNS – For Jiggs Thorne, the co-founding director of the MTN Bushfire festival, the spectacular growth of the internationally acclaimed event hinges entirely on two non-negotiable principles.

Reflecting on an extraordinary journey that spans 19 years , Thorne noted that the dream has fully manifested itself and continues to expand far beyond its original scope.

What is now a massive three-day global cultural event initially anchored at the iconic House on Fire performance venue. Founded in the late 1990s as a creative hub for local multi-disciplinary arts, House on Fire spent its first seven years nurturing a hyper-local creative spark. As the vision grew, that initial spark transpired into the full-fledged MTN Bushfire festival, establishing a world-class platform for music, arts and cultural activism in Eswatini.

Today, Thorne regards the phenomenon after 19 years as a ‘Wild Fire’ an unstoppable, organic movement that spreads positive social change, creative expression and economic opportunities across the region.

Looking back at the trajectory, he expressed immense pride in how the original vision has grown and adapted without losing its core identity which is remaining authentic.

The biggest event in the country MTN Bushfire festival now attracts multi of thousands of global participants in Malkerns Valley annually. Beyond the diverse musical line-up that celebrate genres from Afro-Pop to World Music, the festival serves a greater purpose. Under its famous ‘Bring Your Fire’ creative advocacy campaign, the event also gave birth to other events that take place before the actual event including EU Bushfire Schools Festival.

Offering words of wisdom to aspiring creatives and entrepreneurs, Thorne advised that long-term success requires a deeply personal foundation. He emphasised that motivation should always be based on what truly inspires you and your genuine passion, rather than mere commercial gain, basing this from a question he says he was asked by a young artist on Saturday asking him ‘Jiggs how do you get rich?’.

Co-founding Director of the MTN Bushfire Festival Jiggs Thorne