Tramlines, Sheffield’s award-winning inner-city music festival, has announced the first wave of artists for its 2016 event, which will take place across multiple venues and outdoor stages in the city’s centre from Friday 22nd to Sunday 24th July.
Renowned for its eclectic lineup, festival organisers have again delivered a genre-spanning spread of names, with confirmations including headliner Dizzee Rascal, as well as the likes of Young Fathers, Dawn Penn, Goldie MBE, Toddla T, Norman Jay MBE, Amy Becker, Mumdance, Field Music, Hinds, Gwenno, C Duncan, Randall and many more. Now in its eighth year, Tramlines remains one of the most diverse music festivals around, bringing a unique selection of international and UK talent to Sheffield.
The 2015 event saw Tramlines move its Main Stage to a new site, with capacity doubled to 15,000, as the city saw over 100,000 festival-goers arrive to enjoy an unforgettable weekend with performances including Basement Jaxx, The Charlatans, Buzzcocks, Sugarhill Gang, Martha Reeves, Slaves, Billy Bragg and more. After scooping awards for ‘Best Medium-Sized Festival’ and ‘Best City Festival’ at the Festival Baby Awards, and being shortlisted for ‘Best Metropolitan Festival’ at the UK Festival Awards, 2016 looks set to be the biggest and best Tramlines ever, with the first announcement of hugely talented artists delivering a statement of intent.
The organisers are thrilled to announce Dizzee Rascal as Friday night’s Main Stage headliner. A groundbreaking and critically-acclaimed UK talent whose music spans grime, UK garage, bassline, British hip hop and R&B, Dizzee Rascal’s energetic live sets are legendary.
Elsewhere, fellow Mercury Prize winners Young Fathers have also been announced, and will deliver their unique brand of UK hip-hop, while cult art-pop heroes Field Music - a.k.a. brothers David and Peter Brewis - will show off the best indie rock Wearside has to offer. Legendary Jamaican singer Dawn Penn will be touching down in Sheffield to wow the Tramlines crowds with her classic hit, ‘You Don’t Love Me’ and more, while former Pipettes vocalist Gwenno will showcase her stylish, Welsh Music Prize-winning brand of indie-pop.
With a keen commitment to showcasing new and breaking artists, Tramlines has once again sourced some of the best emerging UK talent. Acts include acclaimed rapper Little Simz; Madrid four-piece Hinds; 2015 Mercury Prize nominee C Duncan; former Racehorses frontman Meilyr Jones’ new solo project; breaking singer-songwriter Rukhsana Merrise; Liverpool psychedelic trio All We Are, and Sheffield slacker-pop outfit Trash.
The electronic offering at Tramlines is always a major talking point, and 2016’s lineup again mixes up a selection ranging from house through to grime, from feel good tunes to underground techno. Local hero Toddla T returns to the festival to head up a takeover at the O2 Academy where he’ll curate an unmissable lineup. Elsewhere on the festival site is Metalheadz don and D&B royalty Goldie MBE; purveyor of ‘Good Times’ and soul grooves Norman Jay MBE; 1Xtra Daily Dose Mix resident Amy Becker; and experimental grime/techno producer Mumdance, performing a B2B set with Pinch for the first time in Sheffield.
Tickets for Tramlines Festival 2016 are now on sale and, as ever, they remain seriously good value. A full weekend ticket (covering all stages from day until night) comes in at the bargain price of just £42 +bf.
The 2016 ticketing system brings with it some changes, with the introduction of Day and Night tickets now making it easier for festival-goers to catch their favourite bands. From £23 +bf, fans of bands, new music, and those for whom watching the headliners is a must, can opt for a Daytime Ticket, providing access to all outdoor stages and various venues. For fans of dance music of all kinds, from techno to D&B and everything in between, a Night-time Ticket is available for £20 + bf, permitting entry to clubs on Friday and Saturday night, or from £5+ bf if Sunday is the night to stay out!
Tramlines Festival Director Sarah Nulty commented: “We are really excited to return with Tramlines, for what is now our eighth year. Having Dizzee to headline the Main Stage on Friday will be an incredible way to start the weekend.
We listened to feedback from last year and realised people needed more choice when it came to buying tickets to help them catch their favourite acts. So far, the new options have been well received, and early-bird tickets have already sold out. We’ve got some great headliners yet to announce plus a great mix of international and local talent still to come and we’re all looking forward to sharing what is set to be our biggest year yet.”
Published on 01 February 2016 by Ben Robinson
