[NEWS] STORMZY X ALL POINTS EAST ANNOUNCE LINE-UP
It’s THE show of the summer and it’s about to get even bigger at Luno presents All Points East…
The incredible Stormzy will headline his own specially curated day at All Points East on Friday 18 August for his unforgettable ‘This Is What We Mean Day’. Artists handpicked by Stormzy have been announced today: Kehlani, Sampha, Knucks, Lucky Daye, WSTRN, Ms Banks and The No Signal Stage, with many more acts still to be announced.
Tickets on general sale now via www.allpointseastfestival.com
Two-time GRAMMY Award-nominated artist Kehlani comes to All Points East for the first time. The multi-platinum singer hit the ground running in 2015 with her second mixtape, You Should Be Here, debuting at No.5 in the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Album Charts. She’s been continuing on that momentum ever since, releasing her third studio album, Blue Water Road, just last year. Having worked with Cardi B, Justin Bieber and Chance the Rapper to name a few, teaming up with Stormzy and Lily Allen for ‘Cigarettes and Cush’ on his 2017 Gang Signs & Prayer album, and with streams in the billions, Kehlani’s performance in Victoria Park is an event in itself.
One of the UK’s most enigmatic young artists, Sampha’s 2017 acclaimed debut album Process won the coveted Mercury Music Prize. Over the years Sampha has generously divided his time between solo and collaborative work, lending his talents to a whole range of standout releases – from homegrown UK contemporaries such as SBTRKT, FKA twigs, Lil Silva and Jessie Ware to world-renowned superstars like Drake, Beyonce, Solange and Frank Ocean. Also on track ‘Sampha’s Plea’ from Stormzy’s latest record, as well as featuring on Kendrick Lamar’s 2023 GRAMMY-nominated album.
Following his Nas-inspired debut mixtape Illmatic (2014), rapper-producer Knucks has since garnered widespread acclaim with his innovative sound. With over a quarter of a billion streams and a string of legendary collaborations, from Stormzy to Kenny Beats, the North London rapper is rapidly becoming a household name. His debut album ALPHA PLACE (2022), raised the bar, with Clash magazine calling him “one of the most charismatic figures in UK Rap”.
Hailing from New Orleans, Lucky Daye projects a widescreen vision of R&B. His full-spectrum view encompasses everything from the explosive funky bombast to the soulful croon of seventies favourites and the turn-of-the-century swagger inherent in mid-to-late nineties classics. As a result, the American singer songwriter comes with a signature sound of his own. Lucky has an unbelievable story from growing up in a cult, surviving Hurricane Katrina, making music in Atlanta, road-tripping across the country to Los Angeles, and finally linking up with producer and partner D’Mile to make GRAMMY-nominated album Painted (2019), as well as GRAMMY-winning Table For Two (2021) and GRAMMY-nominated Candydrip, which was released earlier this year.
West London afro swing collective WSTRN join This Is What We Mean Day. Their debut single, “In2”, went viral on its release in 2015, peaking at No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart. The next year, the trio released their debut mixtape #WSTRNSEASON, followed by DOU3LE 3AK in 2018. Proving it was no fluke, WSTRN dropped their third mixtape in Summer 2019 with WSTRN Season, Vol. 2, improving yet again on the qualities displayed and made a soundtrack to London living that combines their experiences recording between London and Jamaica. Fast forward to present day and over 400 million worldwide streams later, the trio are back better than ever.
Ms Banks is an acclaimed British rapper and songwriter from Southeast London. She began writing music at age 11 and swiftly went on to have a string of successful mixtapes as Ms Banks. Her first EP titled New Chapter EP followed in 2016. The Coldest Winter Ever and The Coldest Winter Ever Part II came in 2018 and 2019, respectively. In July last year, Ms Banks delighted fans with her latest mixtape Bank Statement. She features on the title track This Is What I Mean with Stormzy alongside Amaarae and Black Sherif, and helped bring the track to life on the music video released late last year.
Plus No Signal will be curating their very own billing throughout the day at The No Signal Stage. Founded in 2019, the pioneering online station No Signal created a space for DJs to express themselves outside of the club and have since gone on to be a viral sensation. Broadcasting daily from their studio in London with over 60 shows, their aim is to connect the various Black diasporas across the world via audio content and to serve as a window into Black music culture.
These incredible additions to the bill marks the start of this unmissable line up, with many more names to be announced for Stormzy’s ‘This Is What We Mean Day’ at All Points East on Friday 18 August.
Stormzy has three critically acclaimed #1 records under his belt, Gang Signs & Prayer, Heavy Is The Head and This Is What I Mean, and stands not only as one of Britain’s most accomplished rappers, but one of its most accomplished musicians of any genre and a cultural icon.
His highly anticipated third album, This Is What I Mean, released in November last year via 0207 Def Jam, went straight to No.1 in the UK Official Album Charts and was nominated for a 2023 BRIT Award. Featuring UK Top 10 single ‘Hide & Seek’, produced by PRGRSHN and P2J, the track features additional vocals from British singer Äyanna and Nigerian singers Oxlade and Teni, providing an emotive, soulful and ethereal offering.
Having sold out multiple shows at The O2 and a whole UK tour, Stormzy was looking for something extra special for 2023, to surpass all his live experiences so far. Featuring his favourite artists, from up-and-comers to superstars, Stormzy will be announcing a huge line-up for his very own day, in celebration of his latest album.
As narrated during the initial announcement video Stormzy states: “I was thinking what’s next, cos we’ve done 3 O2s, shut that down. I said to the team, we gotta do something bigger, something better, something different. We were having back to back meetings, bouncing ideas. Then it hit me, I started jotting down ideas thinking – live band, need a live band. August 2023, a summer time thing, outside, for the people, always for my people. So August 2023, Victoria Park, more info coming soon….This Is What We Mean Day. Hard.”
Much of the creative energy that shaped his new album emerged from a Stormzy music camp in Osea Island – a remote island in the Essex estuary that’s only accessible via a Roman Causeway for four hours a day at low tide. Surrounded by leading-edge producers and musicians, each and every morning they would eat and pray together and then spend the rest of the time driven to creative heights by each other’s talents.
Each year, All Points East delivers an epic line up of world class headliners, exceptionally curated supporting line ups and big exclusives. This year is set to be no exception… In addition to Stormzy’s ‘This Is What We Mean Day’ on Friday 18 August, one of this century’s defining rock bands, The Strokes, will return to Victoria Park on Friday 25 August, plus Californian acclaimed rock trio HAIM will make their Luno presents All Points East debut on Bank Holiday Monday 28 August for a European exclusive show. Earlier this month, it was announced that the British electronic project, Jungle, will headline on Saturday 26 August,joined by Erykah Badu and many more.
Luno presents All Points East has become the essential London event since its inception four years ago. The quality of artists runs very deep across the days with established names and those on the cusp of stardom entertaining crowds. The 2022 event featured headliners: Gorillaz, APE Presents: Field Day, The Chemical Brothers and Kraftwerk, Tame Impala, The National, Disclosure and Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.
2019 saw a flurry of awards for the new festival; Q Magazine awarded All Points East ‘Festival Of The Year’, and that same year All Points East won the award for ‘Best Festival’ at the Music Week Awards. The year before, 2018’s debut established this essential new event as one of the best festivals in the UK. Winning ‘Festival Of The Year’ at the Music Week Awards and ‘Line-Up of the Year’ at the UK Festival Awards, All Points East 2018 boasted headline sets from LCD Soundsystem, The xx, Björk, Catfish & The Bottlemen, The National and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.
East London’s beautiful Victoria Park in Tower Hamlets also hosts a hugely popular community focused event each year. In The Neighbourhood, in collaboration with Tower Hamlets Council, hosts a vibrant programme of activities and entertainment, working with the local community, businesses, organisations and suppliers. Previous activities have seen something for everyone – eco-friendly creative workshops, free yoga sessions, street food, open air movie nights, themed drag shows and film panels with Richmix. Everything is free and 2023’s programme will be announced in the new year.
A commitment to sustainability and accessibility goes hand in hand with the community elements and All Points East is proud to have been awarded Gold on Attitude is Everything’s Charter of Best Practice for our commitment to Deaf and disabled music fans.
All Points East continues to work each year with local charity the Tower Project to give volunteer opportunities to young people with learning disabilities and autism on site at the festival, as well as providing education and performance opportunities to the students of nearby ELAM arts and music school. Committing to 100% renewable energy, working towards eliminating single-use plastic from all serve-ware and programming upcycling workshops for children during In The Neighbourhood are further examples of the commitment to the local community and the park.
Local businesses are given opportunities to provide food, drink, merchandise and more so that the local community benefits as much as possible.
