For the first time in its 54-year history, Glastonbury Festival will be headlined by two female acts, British artist Dua Lipa and US artist SZA. The other 95 acts announced in the first iteration of the line-up include Glasto stalwarts Coldplay, Afrobeats star Burna Boy and indie favourites The National.
As ever, the annual shindig covers a dizzying array of genres, from reggae and disco to rap and folk, although this year seems to be dominated by young pop acts. If you’re lucky enough to be heading down to Worthy Farm at the end of June, here are the 10 artists who we’d wade through the mud to see.
Dua Lipa
The British-Albanian singer will perform the biggest show of her life when she headlines the Pyramid Stage on Glastonbury’s opening night on Friday June 28. Dua Lipa’s third album Radical Optimism comes out the month before, and she has festival-reader bangers in her back pocket in the shape of Levitating and One Kiss. It’s a huge moment for her. At 28, Lipa is roughly a third of the age of last year’s headliner Elton John. Slightly bafflingly, Lipa didn’t turn up to duet with John last year on their track Cold Heart. Was she saving Pyramid glory for this year?
Little Simz
The UK’s most exciting rapper will make her Pyramid stage debut, performing on the Saturday night just before headliners Coldplay. It’s a richly deserved slot and marks the continued ascent of Little Simz, real name Simbiatu Ajikawo. The Brit and Mercury-winning artist headlined the smaller West Holts stage in 2022, which in itself was a huge step up from her previous appearance on the smaller-still Park stage. Simz is an absorbing performer of kaleidoscopic music who radiates warmth. “See you next time on the Pyramid!” she said as she left the West Holts stage in 2022. She couldn’t have known back then. But mission accomplished.