Europe’s festival-goes and music lovers rejoice! Metronome Prague 2024 will soon be upon us, a three-day music and art extravaganza providing a unique experience right in the centre of Prague. And like previous years, they’ll be hosting top international stars, local acts, and a wide selection of art forms from 20th-22nd June.
This one-of-a-kind festival takes place right in the city centre, in wonderful park surroundings, and at a time of the year perfect for enjoying three days of top-notch entertainment. No wonder Metronome Prague aims to be the number one city based music festival around.
2024 marks the seventh event in the festivals history, and as in previous years, it continues to be hosted in the grand and historic settings of Prague Exhibition Grounds (built in 1891), located right next to one of the largest parks in the city (created in 1804)… ideal for some amazing summertime fun.
As the first international music festival to be held in Prague, Metronome has always promised top quality international artists, in the past hosting Kraftwerk, Primal Scream, Liam Gallagher, Morcheeba, Sting, Iggy Pop, Foals, Chemical Brothers, Kasabian, Tom Odell, Ella Eyre, and Massive Attack. But local acts have also featured prominently, including Ohm Square, Floex, Ille, Tata Bojs 30, David Koller with Katarzia and Sexy Dancers
And this year it’s building on that legacy with arguably one of the best line-ups yet, featuring BRIT award winner Raye, international stars Milky Chance and Michael Kiwanuka, and recent Coachella and Google I/O performer Marc Rebillet. With such an amazing list of talent, it’s a good thing plenty of people will be able to witness it first hand, given in 2022 and 2023 nearly 22,000 visitors were completely absorbed by superstars Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Jamiroquai, Beck, ZAZ, M83, Underworld, and more.
But the festivals organisers are also responsible for creating other moments of Czech musical history, including music party NÁROD SOBĚ (Nation To Itself) in February 2021, when over 40 musical acts performed in one evening at the National Theatre during strict quarantine measures.
The venue itself was without an audience due to COVID restrictions, but over 1.5 million viewers watched the live broadcast on Czech Television. Then, in 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine, Metronome helped to organise the ‘Concert for Ukraine’, which demonstrated and echoed much of the worlds solidarity with the Ukrainian people.
So clearly the Metronome people know how to host an awesome event, and as alluded to, 2024’s festival in Prague will be no exception, especially when it includes top-class headliners like Michael Kiwanuka! The British singer-songwriter, winner of the coveted Mercury Prize and BRIT, MTV and Grammy award nominee brings tracks from his gold selling number one albums to Prague, putting his soulful tones and heartfelt lyrics front end centre for all to hear and appreciate.
Fridays headliners will be German rock band Milky Chance. Originating in Kassel, and consisting of vocalist and guitarist Clemens Rehbein, bassist and percussionist Philipp Dausch, plus band members Antonio Greger and Sebastian Schmidt, their first single, “Stolen Dance”, was released in 2013 and topped the charts in several countries.
Additionally, their debut album, Sadnecessary, was released later in 2013 and peaked at number 14 in German. The band have notably made some big internal appearances in the past, including popping up on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in October 2014, as well as performing at venues like the House of Blues and festivals such as Coachella.
And the cherry on the cake when it comes to headliners is topping the agenda for Saturday, multi-BRIT award winner Raye! Building on what is an amazing year for the British singer-songwriter, her set is sure to include many tracks from her recent album My 21st Century Blues, to which one of her BRIT awards was earnt for… namely ‘Album of the Year’ – this was one of numerous wins and nominations, earning her the record for the most in a single ceremony!
Before Raye became the star we now all know, she was a very successful writer, creating songs for Beyonce, Little Mix, Rihanna, David Guetta, John Legend and Ellie Goulding. No doubt she’ll also include references to her social-media hits “Escapism” and “Prada”, both of which viral successes on TikTok.
So with headliners like these, how could you not have an amazing time? Three top artists from a variety of genres ready to provide top quality entertainment. But they’re just the start! Co-headlines for each day of the event match their quality and provide even more artistic diversity.
First up, Bristol based electronic music masters Kosheen. This unique dance group, with chart successes and a catalogue filled with lyrically complex tracks love performing live, and will surely light up the Prague stage.
And someone else likely to light it up even more is the charismatic and eccentric Marc Rebilet! This American musician is renowned for his improvised funk, hip-hop and dance tunes.
An online sensation, known for publicly live streamed events, has had an awesome 2024 to date, already performing at Coachella and the Google I/O event, having previously also been at Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits and Lollapalooza to name but a few (let alone his ‘Quarantine Livestream’ Tour, where he sometimes topped 1.5 million viewers). The Exhibition grounds will be another feather in his cap for 2024 indeed.
Next up is English singer Tom Grennan, initially finding fame via a feature on Chase & Status’s “All Goes Wrong”, following this up with chart topping solo albums and singles galore, as well as more features (including tracks with Calvin Harris and KSI)… Tom is clearly a talented artist in demand, someone perfect to captivate the Czech crowd in June.
The final co-headliners over the weekend are The Blaze, an ambient electronic dance duo heralding from Paris. Known for producing both sounds and visuals live, they’ve graced the festival stages of Coachella, Lollapalooza, Parklife, Lovebox, Reading, Leeds and more, astounding those in attendance with tracks from across their albums and EPs, including “Lonely” which was recently featured on sporting game juggernaut EAFC 24!
As you can tell, this is building up to be an awe inspiring list of artists to fill out three days of good times, great music and fun for all… but that’s just the start! Metronome will also include:
Ghetts, a BET award nominated British grime legend, famous for his hard hitting rhymes, who has toured internationally and is sure to bring the vibes to Prague.
The Last Dinner Party, Indie-rock Londoners who, although only formed in 2021, have already scored a number one album and top 20 single in the UK, alongside multiple award nominations.
Dadi Freyr, Icelandic pop royalty who rose to prominence internationally when his initial Eurovision appearance in 2020 was delayed due to the pandemic, and replaced with a fourth place finish at the 2021 event a year later with track “Think About Things”. He returned in 2023 in Liverpool to cover “Whole Again” (by Atomic Kitten) during the interval, in his own unique style, guaranteed to get the masses dancing if it’s repeated in Prague.
Joshua Curran, a young Czech-Irish singer and instrumentalist, who echoes his influences such as The Arctic Monkeys, The Kooks, and Inhaler. Joshuas debut album is set to release alongside his Metronome appearance in June 2024, so ticket holders will be some of the first to hear the album tracks live!
And still this is barely scratching the surface of the Metronome line-up over a full three days in the Czech capital. Such a collection of performers and artists will mean some really tough choices for plenty of people in attendance… how will they choose who to see and who to miss? A decision I don’t envy them for having to make!
But whatever they end up seeing, it’s also a fair chance they’ll discover some new favourites and true stars of the future, with Metronome having a great track-record of hosting acts that are only at the start of their stellar rise (and plenty who are already there!).
And apart from the music, there’ll be over 500 square metres of food offerings from local specialties and international flavours, as well as a host of other entertainment offerings. All of this amongst a friendly, energetic and electric atmosphere which only gets bigger year on year.
Anyone choosing to visit Metronome in 2024 will have every chance of having one of the most memorable festival experiences around, well worth a visit regardless of where you’re from.
One and three day Metronome Festival 2024 tickets, including VIP options, are available here, with the festival taking place over the 20th to 22nd of June.
Words by Andrew Roast
