25/09/2026
AWAKE has been the culmination of ten years of effort, sacrifice, tears, laughter, joy and an enormous amount of hard work. It has also been a journey of growth and learning.
When we brought AWAKE to a close, we did so on a high. We had achieved the goals we had set for ourselves and, most importantly, we believe we had created something of genuine value for the Australasian dance community.
What we will not accept, however, is misinformation being spread using the AWAKE name or inaccurate accounts of what AWAKE represented over its ten-year history.
So, for the record, let us clarify a few things.
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AWAKE began in 2015 with the goal of promoting Kizomba.
At the time, Kizomba was still relatively new and developing in Australia, and the distinction between Kizomba and what would become recognised as Urban Kiz had not yet meaningfully reached our shores.
By 2016, however, we could see that the dance was diverging in different directions, and we paid attention to that evolution.
By 2018, AWAKE was explicitly advertising two distinct dance styles: Kizomba and Urban Kiz.
By this stage, AWAKE as a brand had already been established, but our direction and objectives were still evolving. We could not change the brand name, but our values and principles evolved to reflect the education, understanding and information that became available to us over time.
From that point forward, the objective of AWAKE was no longer simply to promote Kizomba. It became about recognising the distinction between Kizomba and Urban Kiz, educating our community about those differences, and providing both styles with their own platform and space to develop.
That philosophy remained part of AWAKE through to our final event in 2025.
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โ๐ผ๐น๐ฉ๐จ๐ต ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฌ๐ณ๐ถ๐ต๐ฎ๐บ ๐ผ๐ต๐ซ๐ฌ๐น ๐ป๐ฏ๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ฉ๐จ ๐ผ๐ด๐ฉ๐น๐ฌ๐ณ๐ณ๐จโ
We do not subscribe to that position.
Urban Kiz developed from Kizomba. That historical connection is not in dispute.
However, over time, Urban Kiz has evolved and diverged sufficiently in its movement vocabulary, musical interpretation, technique and accompanying music that it deserves to be recognised and respected as its own dance genre.
That does not diminish its relationship with Kizomba. Nor does recognising the distinction diminish either style.
Quite the opposite.
Giving Urban Kiz its own identity, platform and space is a sign of respect for what it has become. Likewise, recognising Kizomba on its own terms respects the history, culture and development of Kizomba.
Since 2018, AWAKE has been very deliberate about maintaining that distinction.
We went as far as introducing a two-room party concept so that both communities could enjoy their respective music and dance environments without either being compromised.
The Urban Kiz room could feature Urban Kiz, Tarraxo, Kiz Fusion, Ghetto Zouk, Douceur and related music.
The Kizomba room could feature Kizomba, Semba, Rebita, Kazukuta, Coladeira and variations of Zouk.
For us, that was not about division.
It was about giving both styles the space and respect they deserved.
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โ๐จ๐ณ๐ณ ๐ป๐ฏ๐ฌ ๐จ๐น๐ป๐ฐ๐บ๐ป๐บ ๐ป๐ฏ๐จ๐ป ๐พ๐ฌ๐น๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฝ๐ฐ๐ป๐ฌ๐ซ ๐จ๐ต๐ซ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐บ๐ป๐ฌ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ถ๐น ๐จ ๐ต๐ผ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฌ๐น ๐ถ๐ญ ๐๐ฌ๐จ๐น๐บ ๐พ๐ฌ๐น๐ฌ ๐จ๐ณ๐ณ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ป๐ฌ๐น๐ต๐จ๐ป๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต๐จ๐ณ ๐ผ๐น๐ฉ๐จ๐ต ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ ๐ป๐ฌ๐จ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฌ๐น๐บโ
That statement simply does not reflect AWAKEโs history.
In 2015, AWAKE became the first festival in Australasia to bring two Angolan Kizomba artists to this part of the world when we hosted Mestre Petchu and Vanessa.
We also hosted the first Kizomba teacher training in Australasia, conducted by Mestre Petchu and Vanessa.
In 2016 and 2017, AWAKEโs international artist line-ups were overwhelmingly focused on Kizomba, featuring artists including Mestre Petchu, Lucia, Bruno and Caterina from ALC, Miguel and Susanna, and Eddy Vents.
In subsequent years, AWAKE always had an equal number of, if not more, Kizomba artists on its international line-up.
AWAKE was also the first festival in Australasia to bring both Angolan and Cape Verdean singers to its events.
In 2024, AWAKE became the first festival in Australasia to bring Angolan dance teachers directly from Angola, hosting Adilson Maiza and Telma.
And in 2025, as we concluded ten years of AWAKE, we brought three Angola-based Angolan dance teachers โ Adilson Maiza, Telma and Fanio De Araujo โ to Australia.
None of this is to suggest that AWAKE did not also support the Urban Kiz community.
We proudly hosted internationally recognised Urban Kiz artists including Curtis, one of the creators of Urban Kiz, and Carola, Jojo, Said and Oksana, and Albir Rojas, to name a few.
That was precisely the point of AWAKE.
We provided platforms for both communities.
But suggesting that AWAKE neglected Kizomba or failed to contribute meaningfully to the Kizomba and Semba community in Australia disregards a decade of documented work, investment and contribution.
People are entitled to their opinions. They are entitled to have enjoyed certain years, artists, styles or aspects of AWAKE more than others.
But opinion is not the same thing as fact.
And an individualโs experience of AWAKE over two years does not represent the full history of an event that operated, evolved and contributed to the community over ten.
Disagreement is perfectly acceptable.
Misinformation is not.
And using social media to attack or bully others while presenting personal opinion as historical fact does not change the record.
AWAKEโs history speaks for itself.
Ten years.
Two styles given their own platforms.
Artists representing both communities.
And a consistent commitment to learning, evolving and contributing to the Australasian dance scene.
You do not have to agree with every decision we made.
But if you are going to speak about AWAKEโs legacy, speak about it accurately.
