PREPARATIONS are in high gear for the second edition of KigaliUp festival, slated for July 7 - 8,  at Kimihurura Park in Kigali. Fans are already making their count down to the event.If all goes according to plan, this year’s festival will be the largest ever held in Kigali, as the organisers confirm that the two stages will feature live performances by local and 30 international artistes, whose music celebrates Africa’s deep, diverse musical traditions and the modern music that has grown from those roots.Beautiful sounds will be created as traditional; Hip-hop, Afrobeat, Blues, Rumba, Funk and Reggae artistes carry out concerts and collaborations. Poets, comedians, dancers and a marketplace with African food and crafts, beer garden and family zone will complete the festivities.Juno Award-winning Rwandan-Canadian artiste Mighty Popo is the brain behind Kigaliup, whose dream of creating a unique festival in his homeland grew out of his immigrant experience, Canadian folk festival performances and frequent trips home. He, along with festival and arts industry veterans from across Canada and Rwanda, comprise KigaliUp’s volunteer team.The festival aims at enhancing the local music industry by training sound and stage technicians while helping emerging local artistes advance their careers; develop high quality recordings, stage plots and marketing materials. It is the first national music festival in Rwanda that promotes its own artistes, artisans and businesses. The first edition of KigaliUp festival on September 10, 2011, in Kimihurura Park, was a groundbreaking event that featured over 30 artistes from Rwanda, East Africa, Canada and France performing on two stages to a diverse audience of more than 2500 people.