By the time Shimza took the decks, Thorn Park Polo Club had stopped being a festival ground and become one big sing-along.
The fourth NetOne 263 Culture Fest drew its biggest crowd yet, and the day was won less by spectacle than by songs people already carried with them.
It began gently. Shaku Chante, dj I Made her Believe and Takue Made The Beat played to a thin early crowd that thickened as the afternoon went on, with plates of food from La Casa, Tiger milk, chicken hut and other vendors in hand.
Nomuzi “Moozlie” Mabena, MC for a third straight year, kept the day moving with several outfit changes and, this time, a partner in local MC Vele Vele. Their back-and-forth gave the show a warmth that carried through the long afternoon into late evening.
The mood shifted when veteran rapper K.O took the stage. “Cara Cara” had the older half of the crowd rapping along, and a detour into his Teargas days with “Mhlobo Wami” turned the lawn into a time machine.
Elsewhere, Madadido sent the dancehall faithful into “Madede” and “Haisi Give,” Sam Deep kept the amapiano flowing, and Funky OLA, in Harare for the first time, won over new listeners with his mix of two-step amapiano and Afro-tech.
Then came Shimza. Fresh from his debut on DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJs 2026 list at number 75, the South African closed with a deep house and Afro-tech set that lived up to the billing.
For the organisers, the numbers say the festival is growing. For those on the lawn, it was a day of songs they knew by heart.
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