The hottest summer festival, V Festival, is back on the 19th and 20th of August and is happening in Essex’s Hylands Park, as well as Weston Park in Straffordshire.
Celebrating 22 years of delivering only the best of live music – formerly a mainstay of indie and alternative rock, the festival has developed into an amalgamation of electronic, rock, urban and pop music and year-upon-year delivers a super-star studded lineup that this year includes headliners, Pink and JAY Z.
Sharing the coveted stage with Jay Z and Pink this year include Stormzy, Ellie Goulding, Rudimental, Jason Derulo, Madness, Steve Aoki, Sean Paul, Dizzee Rascal, James Arthur, Clean Bandit, Gorgon City, The Wombats, Ann-Marie, Hannah Wants, The Naked and the Famous, Krept & Konan, The Vamps, Jack Savoretti, Busted, JP Cooper, Ella Eyre, Example & DJ Wire, Jonas Blue, Betsy, Scouting For Girls, Raye, Calum Scott and more.
Here are the artists WPGM will not be missing at V Festival 2017:
It will be the FIRST and ONLY time you will get to see the man himself, JAY Z perform his brand-new album 4:44 live in the UK this summer. The Daily Telegraph gave his new album a perfect score, and calls it “…a highly personal work bravely opening up the artist’s very human flaws as an example to others, locating in his own suffering a path towards forgiveness, redemption and, ultimately, a better world”.
With 21 Grammy Awards already under the belt, global icon and international superstar, Jay Z has sold over 100 million records and recently been inducted into the 2017 Songwriters Hall of Fame. It’s not often you get to see one of the best-selling musicians of all time live on stage.
Ten years after her debut appearance at V Fest back in 2007, Pink is back! Since her debut in 2000, this colourful lady has sold over 40 million albums, 65 million singles and has had 14 singles in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. Pink is a mega-superstar that is not to be missed.
British Grime rapper Stormzy has taken not just the UK, but the world by storm. His debut LP, Gang Signs & Prayer, which was released earlier in February scaled the top of the UK album charts, becoming the first Grime album in history to reach number one. This was followed by a sold-out UK tour, and the album has also just been nominated for a Mercury Prize.
British singer and songwriter, Anne-Marie made a name for herself singing with Rudimental, famously featuring alongside Dizzee Rascal, and appearing solo on SBTV. She’s since carved out a place for herself on the music scene. Her sound marries modern R&B and soul, heavy electronica, with a dash of chart pop – she is hot, to say the least.
Anne-Marie has already attained five charting singles on the UK Singles Chart, with Clean Bandit‘s “Rockabye” featuring Sean Paul, peaking at number one, Rudimental‘s “Rumour Mill” with Will Heard, reaching number 67, “Do It Right”, reaching number 90, “Alarm”, reaching number 16 and “Ciao Adios”, reaching number 9. Her debut album is due for release sometime in 2017.
Grime veteran and stalwart Dizzee Rascal is credited with transmitting the raw pulse of UK grime from the London streets to the world’s ears. He is back with his first album in four years, Raskit, led by massive new single “Space”. He will be bringing his new record and back catalogue of smash hits to the V Festival stage this year!
George Ezra’s debut album Wanted on Voyage sold over 1 million copies and was one of 2014’s biggest success stories. The ‘Budapest’ star returns with a new LP this year and we are very excited to hear some of the new tunes at V Fest.
Five years ago, Emeli Sandé performed at the opening and closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics and won a couple of BRIT Awards. Her album Our Version of Events spent ten non-consecutive weeks at number one and became the best-selling album of 2012 in the UK.
She made a comeback in 2016 with the release of her second album, Long Live the Angels, four years after her hugely successful debut album. 2017 has seen her return to the stage and we’re excited to witness this special woman’s incredible range, control and impeccable vocals.
Joining her at V Fest this year is British electro-pop group, Clean Bandit, who shot to fame on YouTube with over 500 million views of their songs “Rather Be” and “Rockabye”. They are described as an electronic, classical crossover, electropop and dance-pop band that mixes electronic music with classical pieces by composers such as Mozart and Shostakovich. Clean Bandit has sold over 13 million singles and 1.6 million albums worldwide.
We also get to witness frequent Clean Bandit collaborator Jess Glynne at V Festival this year. The singer and songwriter initially burst onto the scene in 2014 with her hit single, “Right Here”, followed by her collaboration with Clean Bandit on their two hits, “Rather Be” and “Real Love”.
She has since become a force to be reckoned with in her own right with five number-one singles in the UK, winning a Grammy and her 2015 debut album, I Cry When I Laugh going double-platinum. Her unique style draws from hip-hop, urban styles, with soul influences and gives homage to the disco era.
And finally, V Festival also has something for the comedy lovers out there, with their comedy tent this year set to deliver comedians galore, including Lee Nelson, Joel Dommett, Seann Walsh & Joe Lycett.
Tickets to V Festival this year are selling out fast, but you can still get your hands on a couple, do so here!
Words by Marianne Brits-Strodl
