Festivals ’24: Lollapalooza, Afro Nation, Summer Sonic Bangkok
A variety of festivals have announced their 2024 lineups, including Lollapalooza, Afro Nation Detroit, Summer Sonic Bangkok, and Festival D’été de Québec, with other festivals adding names as the summer months draw near.
Lollapalooza has announced the complete lineup for its US edition, with SZA, Blink-182, and Tyler, the Creator set to lead the bill. The C3 Presents-backed programme will also see the likes of Hozier, Stray Kids, Future x Metro Boomin, Melanie Martinez, and Skrillex at Chicago’s Grant Park from 1-4 August.
Live Nation’s Afro Nation is set to return to Detroit, Michigan, with Rema, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Adekunle Gold, Ayra Starr, and Kash Doll leading the bill. The Afrobeats festival, which has several international editions, will host its second US edition from 17-18 August.
Canada’s Festival D’été de Québec, which will run from 4-14 July, is set to host Post Malone, J Balvin, Mötley Crüe, Nas, Jonas Brothers, along with The Offspring, Zac Brown Band, 50 Cent, Killer Mike, and Nickelback. The 103,000-capacity, 11-day festival will be held across five stages in the heart of Quebec City.
Summer Sonic has announced the first batch of artists for the inaugural Bangkok edition of the Japan-based festival, to be held 24-25 August at IMPACT Arena. Lauv, Yoasobi, Aurora, and Bodyslam lead the lineup, with Nothing But Thieves, Bright, Henry Moodie, and V Violette filling out the first batch.
US festival Broccoli City will return to Washington D.C., led by Megan Thee Stallion, Gunna, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Victoria Monét, Kaytranada, and Sexyy Red. The 27-28 July event will be held at Audi Field Stadium, a new venue for the hip-hop festival.
“There’s a huge variety of entertainment on offer this year”
Pitchfork Music Festival, set for Chicago’s Union Park from 19-21 July, will see Alanis Morissette, Black Pumas, and Jamie xx headline. Jai Paul, 100 gecs, Carly Rae Jepsen, Jessie Ware, Brittany Howard, and MUNA are also set to perform at the 60,000-capacity event.
The UK’s Manchester Pride Festival will welcome Jessie J and Eurovision winner Loreen to its Gay Village Party, set for 23-26 August. They’ll join Katy B, Louis III, Chinchilla, and Natasha Hamilton, along with drag stars Bimini, Ginger Johnson, Danny Beard, and Black Peppa.
“There’s a huge variety of entertainment on offer this year; a host of classic Pride favourites, emerging artists, drag royalty and well-known performers spanning a whole range of genres,” said CEO Mark Fletcher.
“What’s most important is the representation and visibility of the further marginalised LGBTQ+ people.”
Three-time Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce’s Kelce Jam is set to return to Kansas City on 18 May. The one-day lineup features Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, and Diplo, along with Irie and E-V, with the second-annual event to be live-streamed worldwide.
A variety of performers are being added to festival lineups around the world as programmes fill up.
BST Hyde Park has completed its programme, with Stevie Nicks, SZA, Morgan Wallen, and Kings of Leon joining previously announced Shania Twain, Kylie Minogue, Andrea Bocelli, Robbie Williams, and Stray Kids. The London series kicks off on 29 June and runs through 14 July.
Festival brands are continuing to expand worldwide with new editions
The Netherlands’ North Sea Jazz Festival has added Arooj Aftab, Obongjayer, Butcher Brown, and Charles Lloyd to its 12-14 July programme. They’ll join Sting, Raye, Corinne Bailey Rae, Brittany Howard, Black Pumas, and Benjamin Clementine at Rotterdam Ahoy.
Norway’s Sideways Festival have added Royel Otis, Eevil Stöö, and DJs from local bar Erottaja. They join Jungle, Peggy Gou, Fontaines D.C., Bat For Lashes, and Ladytron on the lineup for the 13-15 June event at Karri Koira Aino Areena in Helsinki.
Michael Kiwanuka, The Blaze, Soulwax’s DJ offshoot 2manydjs, and Jayda G have joined Spain’s Mallorca Live Festival, to be headlined by Blondie, Underworld, and Pet Shop Boys. The island festival is set for 13-15 June.
Additionally, festival brands are continuing to expand worldwide with new editions in different markets.
K-pop festival series Waterbomb Festival has announced its expansion, with new editions set for Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh City and Dubai in 2024. The festival series, featuring Zico, Jay Park, and Simon Dominic, will also return to Bangkok for its second year, along with a handful of stops in South Korea and Japan.
Louis Tomlinson’s Away From Home Festival is set to return for its fourth edition, this time in Mérida, Mexico on 8 June. The one-day event, which has previously been held in the UK, Spain, and Italy, has not yet released its lineup.
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Mallorca Live pilot to trial Covid-19 certificate
Spain’s Mallorca Live will hold a pilot concert later this month using the local health passport to do away with social distancing.
The show, featuring Barcelona-based band Sidonie, will take place on 25 June at Antiguo Aquapark in Calvià, Majorca, with 5,000 people, all of which will have their health status certified by the Certificado Digital Covid (Digital Covid Certificate), the Balearic Islands’ digital health ‘passport’.
To gain entry to the venue, all patrons will have had to have received a dose of the Covid-19 vaccine (interestingly, only a single dose is required), to be immune after having recovered from the disease, or to have had a negative later-flow or PCR test in the previous 72 hours.
An all-standing audience of 5,000 will not be divided into sectors, though, like at previous pilot events in Spain, they will be required to wear a mask at all times.
5,000 people will have their health status certified by the Balearic Islands’ Certificado Digital Covid
Spain’s most recent major pilot event, at the Palau St Jordi arena in Barcelona, revealed no increase in Covid-19 transmission among attendees.
Tickets for the Mallorca Live Summer event cost €26 + booking fee.
The show was previously organised as a seated, socially distanced event. Promoter Mallorca Live says for those already have tickets and aren’t comfortable being in the pilot will be offered a full refund. Other shows in the Mallorca Live Summer series include Rozalén, Morcheeba, Jamie Cullum and Don Patricio.
Mallorca Live Festival will return next summer (24–26 June) with headliner Muse.
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Primavera Sound moves to August
The 20th-anniversary Primavera Sound Barcelona will now take place from 26 to 30 August, as the festival shifts back three months to avoid disruption from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Both Primavera Sound music festival and Primavera Pro, the industry conference that runs alongside it, will take place at their original venue, Barcelona’s waterfront at the Parc del Fòrum.
The events typically takes place at the start of June – Primavera means ‘spring’ in Spanish – with organisers using the slogan: “Primavera in summer, for once in a lifetime”.
Primavera’s Portuguese sister event, Nos Primavera Sound Porto has also been postponed, moving from mid-June to 3 to 5 September.
Tickets already purchased for both festivals and the conference remain valid for the new dates.
Primavera Sound experienced record ticket sales following the release of its line-up this year, with over 10,000 fans snapping up tickets in 24 hours to see the likes of the Strokes, Massive Attack, Iggy Pop, Lana Del Rey, Kacey Musgraves, Tyler the Creator, Beck, Bikini Kill and Disclosure.
Organisers state they “will make every effort to ensure that this change affects the festival’s programme as little as possible.”
“Let’s all face this together. We will get through this together. And we will celebrate our 20th anniversary together”
Ticket sales will be reactivated once the country’s official state of emergency, declared on 14 March, is over.
“Let’s all face this together. We will get through this together. And we will celebrate our 20th anniversary together,” reads a statement from organisers.
Primavera is not the only Spanish festival to change dates due to coronavirus.
Mallorca Live has moved from mid-May to 8 to 10 October, with organisers stating that 80% of the line-up has so far been retained for the later date. The 25th edition of Viña Rock festival will also take place in October, moving from dates at the end of April.
Mad Cool festival director Javier Arnaiz confirmed his intention to continue with the 2020 festival to Spanish newspaper El País last week, saying “our aim is for the festival to go ahead on the original dates. We are positive despite the cirumstances. Suspension is not a part of our plans.” Spanish festivals including Sónar (18 to 20 June), Arenal Sound (28 July to 2 August), Bilbao BBK (9 to 11) and FIB are all currently going ahead as planned.
The approach differs from that seen in the UK in recent weeks, with the cancellation of the major events including Glastonbury Festival, Download, Isle of Wight, Parklife, Lovebox and All Points East.
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Festival Fever: latest wave of line-up announcements
In the most recent edition in a series of 2020 line-up announcements, IQ rounds up the festival billings from Rolling Loud Portugal, Jazzopen Stuttgart, Nos Primavera Sound Porto, Balaton Sound, Mallorca Live and Fest Festival.
(See the previous edition of Festival Fever here.)
Rolling Loud Portugal
When: 8 to 10 July
Where: Praia da Rocha, Portimão, Portugal
The Rolling Loud festival brand is making its European debut this summer in the Algarve region of Portugal.
The beachside festival is headlined by ASAP Rocky, Future and Wiz Khalifa, with performances from artists including AJ Tracey, Roddy Ricch, Dababy, Young Thug, Tyga, Playboi Carti, D-Block Europe and Giggs.
In an Instagram post, Rolling Loud co-founder Tariq Cherif warned that capacity is “limited” for the festival due to the beach setting, and advised fans to act quickly to purchase tickets.
Founded in 2015 by Cherif and Matt Zingler, Rolling Loud has expanded from its flagship Miami festival to take place in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, New York and Sydney, Australia. An inaugural Rolling Loud Hong Kong was called off earlier this year.
The pre-sale for Rolling Loud Portugal starts on Thursday 6 February at 8 a.m. Remaining tickets go on sale at 8 a.m. the following day here.
The Rolling Loud festival brand is making its European debut this summer
Jazzopen Stuttgart
When: 9 to 19 July
Where: Stuttgart, Germany
How many: 50,000 (whole festival)
Founded in 1994, the Jazzopen Stuttgart has hosted the likes of Quincy Jones, Bob Dylan, Lauryn Hill, Jamiroquai, BB King, Herbie Hancock, James Brown and Joss Stone over the years.
The 2020 edition will see artists including Sting, Lenny Kravitz, Van Morrison, Yusuf/Cat Stevens, John Legend, Jessie J, Jamie Cullum and Corinne Bailey Rae grace the main stage.
Staged in multiple venues ranging from 250- to 7,000-capacity, fans will be able to see acts such as Nils Frahm, Herbie Hancock, Arturo Sandoval, James Carter Organ Trio, Emmet Cohen and Rymden over the course of ten days.
“In the last 10 years we expanded the jazzopen from a regional event to one of the leading international jazz festivals with 50.000 ticket sales annually,” comments festival director Juergen Schlensog.
“This was only possible by means of a strong sponsoring. Daimler, Mastercard and Allianz accompany the festival alongside other valuable partners and brands. The UK market is of vital importance for us, as we book all major acts in direct exchange with local agents in the UK and USA.”
Tickets for Jazzopen Stuttgart 2020 are available here, with full festival passes priced from €700. Tickets for individual shows are also available for a range of prices, with some free-to-access concerts.
The 2020 edition will see artists including Sting, Lenny Kravitz and Van Morrison
Nos Primavera Sound Porto
When: 11 to 13 June
Where: Parque da Cidade, Porto, Portugal
How many: 30,000
The Portuguese sister event of Barcelona festival Primavera Sound has released the line-up for its ninth edition.
Tyler the Creator, Lana Del Rey, Pavement, FKA Twigs, Beck, Bad Bunny and King Krule are among those headlining the festival, which also features Chromatics, Earl Sweatshirt, Cigarettes After Sex and Kim Gordon.
Primavera Sound’s flagship Spanish event, which sold over 10,000 tickets in a day after announcing its line-up last month, will feature performances from the Stokes, Iggy Pop, Massive Attack, Lana Del Rey and Brittany Howard.
Tickets for Nos Primavera Sound Porto are available here, with a full festival pass priced at €120 (£102) and a day ticket at €60 (£51). Tickets for Primavera Sound Barcelona are still available here for €195 (£165).
The Portuguese sister event of Barcelona festival Primavera Sound has released the line-up for its ninth edition
Balaton Sound
When: 8 to 12 July
Where: Lake Balaton, Hungary
How many: 40,000
Balaton Sound, one of Europe’s largest open-air electronic music festivals, is back in 2020 following a record-breaking outing last year.
Over 170,000 fans attended the five-day event in 2019 to see artists including Tiesto, Marshmello, the Chainsmokers and Armin van Buuren.
The 2020 edition brings performances from the likes of Martin Garrix, DJ Snake, Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike, Kygo, Steve Aoki, Don Diablo, Sigala and Jonas Blue.
A special, Hollywood-themed VIP area will provide guests with a massage parlour, makeup lounge, exclusive pool parties and surprise shows.
Tickets for Balaton Sound 2020 are on sale now, with multi-day passes starting from €169 and going up to €325 for a five-day VIP ticket. Prices will increase on 14 February.
Over 170,000 fans attended the five-day event in 2019
Mallorca Live
When: 14 to 16 May
Where: Old Aquapark of Calvià, Mallorca, Spain
How many: 11,000
Mallorca Live festival is back in 2020 for its fifth year, with a headline performance from British electronic pop band Pet Shop Boys.
Crystal Fighters, Michael Kiwanuka, Miles Kane, Kate Tempest and Temples are among other acts performing at the festival.
Last year’s festival saw a record attendance of 33,500 people over three days, thanks to a festival site extension. A new fourth stage – Tròpic Stage – has been added for 2020, dedicated to electronic acts, featuring DJs including Marcel Dettman, dOP, Or:La and Red Axes.
Tickets for Mallorca Live festival can be purchased for €75 (£64) plus fees for the two-day pass (Friday and Saturday) and for €90 (£76) plus fees for the three-day pass here.
Crystal Fighters, Michael Kiwanuka and Kate Tempest are among other acts performing at the festival
Fest Festival
When: 13 to 15 August
Where: Silesia Park, Chorzów, Poland
Poland’s Fest Festival, one of the fastest-growing music festivals in eastern Europe, has announced the second wave of acts for its 2020 edition.
The festival’s second outing will be headlined by Mark Ronson, with performances from James Bay, Nothing But Thieves, Denzel Curry, Sigrid, Alice Glass, Sohn and Daughter.
Polish rappers Taco Hemingway and Mata have also been added to the line-up, along with local indie-rock band Sonbird.
Fest Festival was nominated for best new festival at the European Festival Awards 2019 and is up for the New Gig on the Block prize at the 2020 Arthur Awards, taking place at the International Live Music Conference in March.
Tickets for Fest Festival are available here for PLN 349 (£70), with prices set to increase on 14 February.
The festival’s second outing will be headlined by Mark Ronson
Forbidden Fruit Festival
When: 30 to 31 May
Where: Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland
How many: 10,000
Pod’s Forbidden Fruit Festival is celebrating its tenth anniversary edition in 2020 at its home in the grounds of the Irish Museum of Modern Art in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Dublin.
The line-up for this year’s festival includes headliners Jorja Smith and Underworld, along with Peggy Gou, Loyle Carner, Hot Chip and the Avalanches.
The festival is returning to its roots this year, taking place over two days, rather than the three-day format preferred in previous editions. Organisers promise plenty of “birthday surprises” for their tenth year.
Weekend tickets are available here, priced at €124.50, with day tickets available for €69.50.
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