THE MUSIC
Newly announced and taking to the stage for this year’s 50th anniversary festival is British rapper and activist Lowkey. Best known for his radical reportage with Mint Press and outspoken support for Palestinian liberation, catch him on Sunday. Singer Cat Clyde will be performing on Friday bringing her very own spellbinding style, blending folk and new country. Heading over from LA, is painter and hip-hop artist, Chali 2na, who joins this year’s bill. Bringing the energy throughout the weekend is Lee Bains III with his fiercely inclusive, liberative Old Time Gospel Hour and deep south righteous rock; and techno-trance DJ, Andy Hunter, will be raising the roof with his devotional digital show, ‘The Prayer’ on the main stage on Sunday.
Three must-sees include headliners Laura Mvula on the main stage on Saturday with her spiritual, soulful party music; critically-acclaimed American singer-songwriter Ezra Furman, as she shares her songs of community and acceptance across a dreamscape of lush indie rock on the Sunday; and the multi Grammy-winning duo, Indigo Girls, on the Friday.
BIGGER THAN MUSIC Greenbelt has always offered more than just music, each year it strives to deliver a festival rich in diversity. Its ethos to create a space that is inclusive and representative is at the heart of the festival’s programming, and this year is no exception. Here’s what’s on offer outside the music arenas.
IDEAS & ACTIVISM Former prime minister, Gordon Brown; motivational speaker and podcaster, Jasmin O’Hara; and theologian Eve Poole join this year’s prestigious line-up of activists and campaigners.
Gordon Brown will be appearing on the main stage on Friday discussing poverty, in particular looking at moral choice and failure that poverty exists to the extent it does in a country as wealthy as the UK. He will also be leading a panel exploring whether charity really does begin at home; how can we continue to give against the backdrop of the current cost of living crisis and how has global charity-giving been affected as a result.
Jasmin O'Hara is founder of Asylum Speakers, a media platform amplifying voices on those impacted by displacement. Jaz will be discussing the current refugee crisis and telling the stories of those voices that are often lost. Her team is dedicated to challenging the fear-based narrative of today’s media and society and do so through film, talks, podcasts and most recently the ‘Asylum Speakers’ book.
And Dr. Eve Poole joins this year’s line-up to talk about her book ‘Robot Souls’ and the implications of Artificial Intelligence for the way we work. Eve offers a fresh and illuminating discussion around the ethics of AI; its developments, the debate on consciousness, and the idea of the soul. She will also be joining Beth Singler from the University of Zurich to delve more deeply into this fascinating issue. Together they will explore the social, ethical, philosophical and religious implications of advances in AI and robotics.
Each year Greenbelt actively encourages festival-goers to engage in some of today’s most pressing issues and topics. Other brilliant thinkers to look out for include economist Ann Pettifor, theologian Cole Arthur Riley, and musician and campaigner Brian Eno.
PERFORMANCE, THEATRE & COMEDY
The festival also showcases some of the most exciting new performance, theatre, comedy on offer. Expect to see comedy’s Josie Long delivering her new set as well as chatting about her new book, ‘Because I Don’t Know What You Mean and What You Don’t’; and don’t miss the must-see show by Stan’s Cafe Theatre Company, ‘All Our Money’ - a creatively brilliant deep-dive and alternative take based on the budget and financial documents published by Birmingham City Council. Each year Birmingham City Council spends £3bn. Where does it all come from and where does it all go? In 50 minutes, using 7,000 golden dominoes, starring a human-sized bear, this fast and funny theatre show explains it all.
There’s also a chance to see ground-breaking physical theatre shows like ‘The Chosen Haram’, an incredible story about holding onto faith and sexual identity; as well as the joyful, witty and poignant, ‘Casting Off’ by A Good Catch, billed as ‘a truly extraordinary piece of feisty feminist circus that is fabulously funny to boot’ (TotalTheatre.org.uk). And finally, the Prince of Puns, Milton Jones, will be performing his new show ‘Attenborough’ “as you’ve never heard him before”.
HOW DO I GET A TICKET?
Greenbelt Festival’s pay-what-you-can ticketing model
This year Greenbelt Festival has launched a revolutionary and inclusive ticketing pricing structure where those who can pay - do - and those who can’t - have the opportunity to pay what they can.
Greenbelt’s radical pay-what-you-can model means that adult weekend tickets start from just £150 for those who choose the Supported price, and purchases can be spread gradually over monthly interest-free payments.
Greenbelt has also scrapped its usual, tiered ticketing deadlines and replaced it with three simple price-points for adult tickets. The price will stay the same across the year: Supported, Standard and Supporter. That means that a Standard ticket price of £190 is now cheaper than an adult ticket was at this stage last year. You are completely free to decide which option suits you best, and can spread the cost in interest-free instalments.
There’s also the ‘open festival scheme’ where Greenbelt gives away free tickets. And through its partnership with Citizens UK, Greenbelt welcomes groups of people from deprived areas where Citizens UK are actively working to get people to come to Greenbelt who otherwise could not afford to attend. You can find out more about Greenbelt’s ticketing structure here: and get your tickets here.
Greenbelt also offers day tickets. Adult day tickets are £68, concessions are £35, under-18s are £20 and under-5s are completely free.
