MOJA Arts Festival

MOJA Arts Festival is a Festival in Charleston, SC. It is an annual, eight-day national celebration of Black arts, culture, and heritage that honors the lasting contributions of the African Diaspora. Produced by MOJA ARTS, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and the City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs, the event brings together residents and guests to explore the city’s connection to the global Black experience through music, food, and artisans.

The multi-disciplinary festival is produced and directed by the City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the MOJA Planning Committee, an all-volunteer community arts and cultural group. Guidance is provided by the MOJA Advisory Board, a group of civic leaders who assist with fundraising and advocacy, and the Friends of MOJA patron circle, which represents individual and corporate donors. Festival events include visual arts, music, food, dance, poetry, theater, storytelling, traditional crafts, and family activities. In addition to arts presentations, MOJA includes an educational outreach component with workshops in public schools and senior outreach in community centers.

Since its inception, the festival’s events have featured visual arts, classical music, dance, gospel, jazz, poetry, R&B music, storytelling, theatre, children’s activities, traditional crafts, and local foodways. The festival annually recognizes the African American traditions and cultural legacies of four selected West African and Caribbean countries. The 2026 festival will celebrate Barbados, Gullah Geechee, Jamaica, and Sierra Leone. In 2023, Grammy award-winning musician Charlton Singleton became the Festival’s Artistic Director to assist with implementation and guide artistic planning and program development. Originally established in 1979 as the biennial Black Arts Festival, the event was rebranded as the MOJA Arts Festival in 1984. The name is derived from the Swahili word for "one," representing harmony among community members.

MOJA Arts Festival holds a 4.70 rating based on 6 reviews. This Charleston festival serves as a national celebration of the artistic contributions of the African Diaspora.

MOJA Arts Festival preserves and celebrates the rich artistic legacies of the African Diaspora through a diverse array of performances and community engagements in Charleston.

MOJA Arts Festival is located on Meeting Street, situated about a tenth of a mile from the City Market Marker and The Museum at Market Hall.

BizScoreAI awarded the business a Content score of 90 out of 100, reflecting substantial and relevant website content that search engines reward with better visibility. The business also achieved a Discoverability score of 83 out of 100, ensuring AI crawlers can access every page so the business can be recommended by AI assistants.

Services:

• Coordinating multicultural performances and educational programs
• Hosting Juried Art Exhibition
• Producing and directing MOJA Arts Festival