NEWS
The Great Escape Festival has added 120 names to its 2025 line-up and announced a spotlight show with Pete Doherty and Warmduscher.
Taking place in Brighton from May 14-17, the festival welcomes Doherty and Warmduscher for a special Spotlight Show curated by Doherty’s record label, Strap Originals. It takes place at the Deep End venue on Brighton’s beachfront.
Further additions to the festival’s weekend bill include: Jordan Adetunji, Lynks, The K’s, Donny Benét, The Moonlandingz, Black Fondu, Real Farmer, Shortstraw, Bold Love, and Namesbliss.
The festival has also shared that The Road To Great Escape, its annual showcase of events, will take place in the preceding week at Glasgow’s King Tut’s (May 9-10) and Dublin’s Whelan’s (May 12-13). Here, some of the acts who are billed for the festival will perform in their hometowns before going down to Brighton to play at The Great Escape 2025.
Last year over 125 artists boycotted the event due to its ties with Barclays Bank, who were accused of investing in a number of companies that supply arms to Israel. In October it was announced that Barclays will no longer be a partner of The Great Escape Festival in 2025.
Campaign group Bands Boycott Barclays shared on social media: “CONFIRMED: Barclays is not a partner of The Great Escape 2025! BOYCOTTS WORK!”
“After hundreds of artists and music industry professionals took collective action in solidarity with Palestine this year, Barclays are no longer in any way affiliated with The Great Escape Festival!”
Every artist that had been booked to play the 2024 opening party in Brighton cancelled their appearance, alongside more than 100 others, including Picture Parlour, Miso Extra and Alfie Templeman. Over 1,200 artists including IDLES, Squid and Massive Attack also signed an open letter addressed to The Great Escape, asking them to remove Barclays as a sponsor.
The festival has been running since 2006, and previous performers include Charli XCX, Sam Fender and Fontaines DC.
NEWS
NBA YoungBoy has faced several hardships in recent years. Along with serving time behind bars, the rapper has also dealt with mental health challenges linked to the painful experiences in his life.
His music has often given listeners insight into that pain. During a recent appearance with Funny Marco on Open Thoughts, YoungBoy opened up even further about what he has been going through.
During the conversation, YoungBoy revealed that he no longer plans to live in the United States. He confirmed that he currently resides in South Korea. Although he did not share why he chose that country, his comments suggest he is ready to leave his life in America behind.
Funny Marco asked YoungBoy whether he might ever move back to the United States. The rapper responded with “never in life,” though he admitted that he could return for a visit someday.
Before relocating, YoungBoy lived on a ranch in Utah, where local residents had gradually started becoming more comfortable with him. His new home in South Korea now places him in a completely different cultural environment.
Adjusting to such a major change may not be easy, but YoungBoy has shown his strength and appears confident about where he wants to live. After experiencing so much pain in the United States, he seemingly feels more comfortable keeping his distance.
The move also comes as he deals with serious health concerns involving his heart. The condition remains an ongoing concern, and we hope the artist receives the support he needs as he continues facing this difficult medical situation.
