Initiated in 2008 by
A'Salfo, leader of the
Magic System group (who himself grew up in the village of Anoumabo), Femua stems from the desire to offer, each year, to the village that adopted and saw the four members of the Magic System group grow up, a show bringing together the biggest stars in the world. In 2008, from the first edition, Femua lacked support and was held through self-financing. It was a success in three days of festival. In 2011, the fourth edition of the festival, which was to be held during the Easter period, was postponed due to the post-election crisis that Ivory Coast experienced. It was finally from 23 to 26 June that this happened. Over the years, Femua, which has gone from three to six days of festival, mobilizes more and more partners, then develops in terms of content and audience. In 2016, during the ninth edition, on 24 April, while he was the headliner of the festival's guest artists, Congolese singer
Papa Wemba died on the Femua stage, following a malaise. The festival was therefore stopped. A tribute vigil was held on the Femua stage the following week. On 24 April 2017, one year later, another tribute was paid to Papa Wemba on the festival grounds. The 2017 edition reached a record of over 40,000 spectators. Femua 11 was launched on 15 March 2018 by the Minister of Culture and Francophonie
Maurice Bandaman. Exceptionally, this edition did not take place in Anoumabo: it was spread over several consecutive evenings in another location in Abidjan and a closing evening in
Korhogo, in the north of the country. Only the "Femua Kids" stage is held in Anoumabo that year. The 2018 edition deals with
illegal emigration to Europe in particular, with the central theme: African youth and illegal immigration. This edition is publicly supported by the State Secretariat for Technical Education. Femua 2019, which is held from April 23 to 28, with the theme Gender and Development, is launched on March 14 in Abidjan in the presence of the First Lady of Côte d'Ivoire
Dominique Ouattara. In 2020, Femua 13, which was scheduled to be held from April 14 to 19, was postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic and took place from 7 to 12 September 2021. After the 2022 edition (Femua 14), the Anoumabo Urban Music Festival is in its 15th edition in 2023, with the theme: Food security and sustainable agriculture. == Budget and impact ==