United Souls will not be at the Rio Loco creators’ market this year… but the lucha libre figures can still circulate there.

As summer begins, if there's one festival that sets the tone, the pulse, and the colors for the festivities in the Pink City, it's Rio Loco.

A world cultures festival in Toulouse, Rio Loco this year, from June 11 to 14, invites the rhythms and imaginaries of Insulae to the banks of our local river. From the Prairie des Filtres, one of the most beautiful spots to admire Toulouse, Rio Loco continues to embody this popular, festive, and open-to-the-world gathering.

Created in 1995 and organized by Le Metronum, the festival blends contemporary music, world music, concerts, shows for young audiences, visual arts, and DJ sets. With its popular and generous spirit, Rio Loco has long reflected the diversity and richness of cultures from here and elsewhere.

United Souls and Rio Loco: a Toulouse story

Since the 2022 edition, where United Souls and ART Weapon took over the Cours Dillon, many Toulouse festival-goers ask me every year:

"Jacques, will you have a stand at Rio Loco this year?"

And this year again, I regret to answer: no, United Souls will not be present at the Rio Loco creators' market.

To remain politically correct, I will not delve into the reasons for this absence here. Let's just say that some things require time, dialogue, patience, and a little perseverance. So, bear with me: we're working on it.

But the absence of a stand does not mean the absence of a spirit.

Bringing figures of struggle to Rio Loco

Rio Loco is a festival that connects Toulouse to the rest of the world. And if there's one place where United Souls' figures of struggle truly belong, it's amidst these musics, these narratives, these memories, and these imaginaries that cross borders.

So, if you wish to circulate the faces of Frantz Fanon, Patrice Lumumba, Fela Kuti, Thomas Sankara, Cheikh Anta Diop, Malcolm X, Maya Angelou, Wangari Maathai, Nina Simone, or other figures who carry our memories and our struggles at Rio Loco, know that it is still possible to order your t-shirt.

If you place your order on unitedsouls.fr before Monday at 10 AM, your t-shirt can be delivered on Thursday, the opening day of the festival.

The perfect opportunity to wear, in the heart of the Prairie des Filtres, more than just a garment:
a memory, a struggle, a legacy.

An appointment before Rio Loco: Tuesday, June 9, at Utopia Borderouge

For those who prefer to avoid online shopping, I will also have the pleasure of having a stand on Tuesday, June 9, at the Utopia Borderouge art-house cinema, as part of a Pan-African Cine-Mix centered around the documentary film 100% Garanti.

This unique screening is offered by the Decolonial Film Festival and will be followed by a discussion with Avotcha, a Franco-Malagasy Reunionese stand-up comedian, and Norah Firoaguer-Pelc, from the podcast FANM, dedicated to culture, art, identities, and feminisms.

Starting at 7 PM, I will also have the pleasure of hosting a DJ set in the Utopia restaurant.

Before or after the screening, you can therefore come and pick up your summer and festival t-shirt, while supplies last.

Models available at the stand

For unisex cuts, you can find some models featuring figures such as:

Frantz Fanon, Patrice Lumumba, Fela Kuti, Thomas Sankara, Cheikh Anta Diop, Malcolm X.

Some items will also be available in a loose women's fit, particularly featuring:

Maya Angelou, Wangari Maathai, Thomas Sankara, Fela Kuti, and Nina Simone.

Tote bags will also be offered in limited quantities.

And for tote bags: consider partner bookstores

If you wish to find some United Souls tote bags, you can also visit our partner bookstores in Toulouse, including:

Terra Nova, which will also not be present at Rio Loco this year, replaced at the festival by the Ombres Blanches bookstore,
as well as L'Autre Rive, the Cartoucherie bookstore.

United Souls will not be at Rio Loco, but its figures can be

This year, United Souls will therefore not have a stand at the Rio Loco creators' market.

But the figures of struggle, they can continue to circulate.

On your shoulders.
In the festival aisles.
On the banks of the Garonne.
In this pink city which, every early summer, looks a little further than its own bricks.

United Souls is more than a brand: it's an artistic and humanist endeavor.

And sometimes, even without a stand, an idea continues to make its way.