The event has been curated by the Mercury Prize winning artist.
Southbank Centre's Meltdown Festival has been curated by cultural icons from around the world, from David Bowie to Yoko Ono. Now, it will be curated by the Mercury Prize-winning rapper and Top Boy actor, Little Simz. Running from 12 to 22 June, it is now in its 30th edition.
The festival is famous for bringing together musicians from around the world. The event is also the world's longest-running artist-curated festival. Previous curators have included David Bryne, Grace Jones, MIA, Nile Rodgers, Ray Davies and Robert Smith.
Meltdown Festival 2025 kicks off on Thursday, 12 June with The Streets taking over the Royal Festival Hall. In what’s currently their only scheduled UK performance this year, Mike Skinner and crew are set to bring their signature blend of gritty realism and infectious beats to the venue — and that’s just the beginning.
The festival’s heavyweight programme continues with 2025 BRIT nominee and ‘Messy’ chart-topper Lola Young, MOBO-winning lyricist Ghetts, and Grammy magnet Jon Batiste.
Elsewhere, British-Columbian soulstress Sasha Keable joins forces with the Flames Collective, an inner-city youth music project, for a collaborative performance. And fans of experimental electronica can look forward to a solo set from Little Dragon’s Yukimi, celebrating the release of her debut album.
As tradition dictates, Meltdown wraps on a high — with a headline performance from curator Simz herself on Sunday, 22 June. Expect a genre-defying, orchestral-backed set featuring classics and new material from her upcoming album Lotus, accompanied by the trailblazing Chineke! Orchestra — Europe’s first majority BAME professional ensemble.
Little Simz explains: "I'm super excited to be the 2025 Meltdown festival curator! My team and I are preparing eleven days of art, music, workshops and more. "So many incredible artists have curated this festival so it's a true honour to be a part of it. Thank you to the Southbank Centre for having me. Meltdown 2025 the Simz way is going to be epic. I'll see you there."
Little Simz hails from Islington, London. She is best known as an actor and rapper. She has starred in the Netflix series, Top Boy. In her music, she combines rap with jazz and R&B. She has released the albums A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons and Stillness in Wonderland. The 2019 album Grey Area won Best Album at the Ivor Novello Awards and NME Awards. Her 2021 album Sometimes I Might Be An Introvert went on to win the prestigious Mercury Prize.
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GO: Visit www.southbankcentre.co.uk for more information.