First Light Festival has made its name as the ultimate showcase for creative talent, accessible to all. Since it’s inception in 2019, First Light has seen over 1890 acts perform across their festivals, 145k people have attended and the festival has impacted and supported creative talent year on year with over 70 new and emerging artists featured throughout the festivals, many of which have gone on to perform at Latitude and Glastonbury festivals, among others.
First Light Festival’s outdoor weekend programme is free, un-ticketed and for all. The full programme line-up will be announced soon but for now, we’re sharing our Top 5 for 2025!
The Sunlight Stage: Music
Nubiyan Twist
A blend of virtuosic players, skilled producers and inspired composers join forces to create a unique, infectious sound drawing on jazz, hip-hop, afrobeat, Latin, soul, reggae and dance music – expect ultra-tight musicianship and a powerful 9-piece, big band sound. Alongside their own headline tours, they’ve performed at Glastonbury, Wilderness, Green Man, We Out Here, WOMAD, Shambala, Love Supreme, Boomtown and many more. Nubiyan Twist will be taking the headliner slot at First Light’s Sunlight Stage on Saturday 21st June to close the beachfront programme whilst the sun goes down…
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Horse Meat Disco
Taking inspiration from a diverse, counter-cultural history of clubs and DJs; rooted in hedonism, rhythm, freedom and emotion, a Horse Meat Disco set reinforces everything invigorating about disco. With brand new original music on the skyline as well as a brand-new compilation coming out this year, this will be a beachfront set you won’t want to miss!
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Girls of the Internet
The electronic music artist and producer whose style blends elements of 90s rave, house, electro, and experimental electronic music. They have garnered much attention for their distinctive production style and nostalgic yet forward-thinking sound. Girls Of The Internet are part of a wave of forward-thinking, genre-blending producers reshaping the boundaries of dance and electronic music.
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First Word – Spoken word, poetry & comedy
Jackie Kay
A poet, novelist and writer of short stories, Jackie Kay has enjoyed great acclaim for her work for both adults and children. Her novel, Trumpet, won the Guardian Fiction Prize. She has published three collections of stories with Picador, including Mayday, Coorie Doon & Why Don’t You Stop Talking; three poetry collections, as well as her memoir, Red Dust Road. From 2016-21 she was the third modern Makar, National Poet for Scotland. Jackie will be in conversation with Peggy Hughes from National Centre for Writing followed by readings from her collections.
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Brian Bilston
Sometimes referred to as the Banksy of poetry, Brian Bilston has generated a huge following, drawn to his witty, powerful, and accessible work. As part of the late-night programme, his show will see him reading a selection of much beloved poems from across his bestselling collections alongside new poems, at The Seagull Theatre.? Brian has published several bestselling volumes of poetry, including You Took the Last Bus Home, Alexa, what is there to know about love? and Days Like These. His novel Diary of a Somebody was shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award. He has also written collections of poetry for younger readers and his acclaimed poem Refugees has been made into an illustrated book for children.
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