2021 Headliners

[Matt42]

Less and less “heritage” or “bona fide” headliners are doing European summer festivals every year, and the ones that are get criticised for being repeat bookings. 
 

The newer headliners are then criticised for being too small or too premature.

Setting some awfully narrow parameters for the festival to survive within.

[chazwwe]

7 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

Less and less “heritage” or “bona fide” headliners are doing European summer festivals every year, and the ones that are get criticised for being repeat bookings. 
 

The newer headliners are then criticised for being too small or too premature.

Setting some awfully narrow parameters for the festival to survive within.

I mean i think 1975 can headline. Billie. George ezra. Im not against new bookings just being realistic in think Dave wont headline next year when all 3 are pencilled in. 

[zeppelin]

2 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

Less and less “heritage” or “bona fide” headliners are doing European summer festivals every year, and the ones that are get criticised for being repeat bookings. 
 

The newer headliners are then criticised for being too small or too premature.

Setting some awfully narrow parameters for the festival to survive within.

All artists should have to pass a test before they are classified as a "headliner" and can be booked to do as such. This will take a full day and comprise of multiple elements including:

- a written paper outlining why they deserve to be a headliner;

- providing evidence that enough Mum's know who they are so they can be classed as relevant;

- demonstrating their commitment to a green future and preventing climate change (Note that this must be through interpretive dance); and, 

- an interview on social media where every response must be an obscure hint to the answer. 

 

This will be reviewed on a 3 year cycle to ensure artists cannot rest on their laurels.

[Matt42]

1 minute ago, chazwwe said:

I mean i think 1975 can headline. Billie. George ezra. Im not against new bookings just being realistic in think Dave wont headline next year when all 3 are pencilled in. 

Ok fair enough and I respect that. I think Dave will headline R&L first, so we are a bit off a ‘serious’ discussion of him headlining. However I do believe it will happen one day.

George Ezra and/or Billie Eilish will probably headline first.

Also with the “three pencilled in” comment. It doesn’t necessarily mean a giant band.

Emily said 2 headliners were booked for 2020 in 2017. Looking back, she was probably talking about Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar both probably promising to headline on their next tour.

George Ezra could definitely be one of those three. He’s completely sitting out of 2020 which makes me think he has plans for 2021 pencilled in. There is a bit of ambiguity as to whether one of the headliners has just played before or headlined before. I’d actually be surprised if Glasto booked two headliners who have never played before. I can’t actually think who that might be as there isn’t many of them left.

George Ezra, Ariana Grande, Fleetwood Mac?

 

[Hugh Jass]

57 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

Ok fair enough and I respect that. I think Dave will headline R&L first, so we are a bit off a ‘serious’ discussion of him headlining. However I do believe it will happen one day.

George Ezra and/or Billie Eilish will probably headline first.

Also with the “three pencilled in” comment. It doesn’t necessarily mean a giant band.

Emily said 2 headliners were booked for 2020 in 2017. Looking back, she was probably talking about Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar both probably promising to headline on their next tour.

George Ezra could definitely be one of those three. He’s completely sitting out of 2020 which makes me think he has plans for 2021 pencilled in. There is a bit of ambiguity as to whether one of the headliners has just played before or headlined before. I’d actually be surprised if Glasto booked two headliners who have never played before. I can’t actually think who that might be as there isn’t many of them left.

George Ezra, Ariana Grande, Fleetwood Mac?

 

Current acts who have never played the festival but could potentially headline:

• Madge
• Reg
• Fleetwood Mac
• Guns n Roses
• Iron Maiden
• Robbie Williams
• Arianna Grande
• Eminem
• Queen ft Adam Lambert
• Green Day
• Pearl Jam
• The Strokes
• PlayCold

Obviously some of these acts are more realistic than others for a variery of reasons.

[Hugh Jass]

3 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

Current acts who have never played the festival but could potentially headline:

• Madge
• Reg
• Fleetwood Mac
• Guns n Roses
• Iron Maiden
• Robbie Williams
• Arianna Grande
• Eminem
• Queen ft Adam Lambert
• Green Day
• Pearl Jam
• The Strokes
• PlayCold

Obviously some of these acts are more realistic than others for a variety of reasons.

 

[stuie]

2 hours ago, Matt42 said:

Hun isn’t this what I said? Yeah they had success before they headlined, just like all of the newbies have - but their biggest commercial success happened after they headlined Glastonbury.

Sadly, that's where they went a bit w*nk as well.

Because of the times was a number one album (and the last decent one they made too)

[Hugh Jass]

9 minutes ago, stuie said:

Sadly, that's where they went a bit w*nk as well.

Because of the times was a number one album (and the last decent one they made too)

First three KOL albums were all great, then they just went flying off a cliff.

[The Martini Police]

31 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

Current acts who have never played the festival but could potentially headline:

• Madge
• Reg
• Fleetwood Mac
• Guns n Roses
• Iron Maiden
• Robbie Williams
• Arianna Grande
• Eminem
• Queen ft Adam Lambert
• Green Day
• Pearl Jam
• The Strokes
• PlayCold

Obviously some of these acts are more realistic than others for a variery of reasons.

We're talking about playing at all, right?

 

[Matt42]

You forgot Rihanna but Rihanna isn’t a “likely” suggestion. She keeps telling her fans she doesn’t want to make music and tour and they won’t listen.

[Mouseboy11]

Don’t personally see Dave ever getting to headline level, Stormzy is far more pop than he is.

Dave is much more of a critical darling as much as I do like him.

[Hugh Jass]

Just now, The Martini Police said:

We're talking about playing at all, right?

 

Robbie has played before? Missed that.

[Guest]

33 minutes ago, Mouseboy11 said:

Don’t personally see Dave ever getting to headline level, Stormzy is far more pop than he is.

Dave is much more of a critical darling as much as I do like him.

Don’t really get this. Dave had a number one single before Stormzy and before his debut even came out. They’re both very commercially successful.

[CaledonianGonzo]

He even popped up to do Funky Friday during Stormzy's set 

[FloorFiller]

Stormzy was given the headliner gig in a really weird year for festival headliners where there seemed to be fuck all about that Glastonbury hadn’t already had headline recently. In hindsight it looks like a great move, but nobody was predicting it to happen, and I don’t see the festival just repeating that same trick so soon with another breakout hip hop artist. It’d be nice if Stormzy’s booking and success paved the way for more acts to get bumped to headliner so quickly, but it’s not something I see happening on the regular - I’m sure the festival would much rather stick to their safe headliners like they have been for the past decade. 2021 isn’t gonna have a bunch of new acts topping the bill, unless you still consider The 1975 new.

[Mouseboy11]

1 hour ago, SomeoneListeningIn said:

Don’t really get this. Dave had a number one single before Stormzy and before his debut even came out. They’re both very commercially successful.

I just think a lot of his hype is coming from him taking on what I suppose is a more ‘mature’ subject on his album with mental health/race. He did have the number one with Funky Friday but he didn’t have any off Psychodrama and I think if he continues in that vein he probably won’t go on to headline.

A lot can change I suppose, Skepta was making similar moves a while ago and J Hus was a big hype act at one point too.

Edited February 19, 2020 by Mouseboy11

[Matt42]

Then again Stormzy was probably one of the best gambles the festival has probably ever taken.

Hes absolutely massive now. I was a naysayer which thought he had peaked with his first album. I am perfectly fine in saying that there is egg entirely on my face.

[Suprefan]

2 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

Current acts who have never played the festival but could potentially headline:

• Madge
• Reg
• Fleetwood Mac
• Guns n Roses
• Iron Maiden
• Robbie Williams
• Arianna Grande
• Eminem
• Queen ft Adam Lambert
• Green Day
• Pearl Jam
• The Strokes
• PlayCold

Obviously some of these acts are more realistic than others for a variery of reasons.

Wheres Depeche Mode

[Hugh Jass]

28 minutes ago, Suprefan said:

Wheres Depeche Mode

Forgot DM. And Rhianna.

It was not an exhaustive list.

Edited February 19, 2020 by Hugh Jass

[Alex DeLarge]

 

 

Lol

[MaxPower]

4 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

Current acts who have never played the festival but could potentially headline:

• Madge
• Reg
• Fleetwood Mac
• Guns n Roses
• Iron Maiden
• Robbie Williams
• Arianna Grande
• Eminem
• Queen ft Adam Lambert
• Green Day
• Pearl Jam
• The Strokes
• PlayCold

Obviously some of these acts are more realistic than others for a variery of reasons.

Lmao you had me googling PlayCold

[Hugh Jass]

2 minutes ago, MaxPower said:

Lmao you had me googling PlayCold

They’re fronted by a guy called Martin Christopher.

[Mattymooz]

7 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

No, you said that KOL headlined with less than what Billie Eilish or Lizzo have now. Which is clearly bollocks. KOL had three albums and had subbed the Pyramid a few years before. They had built their way up to that point.

What happened afterwards is irrelevant.

Completely agree with what you're saying, but I've cant help pointing out that Lizzo had 3 albums out before she played in 2019...

[Hugh Jass]

43 minutes ago, Mattymooz said:

Completely agree with what you're saying, but I've cant help pointing out that Lizzo had 3 albums out before she played in 2019...

Ah but she didn’t headline did she?

[StevieGed]

8 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

Really? He’s bloody huge!

He is absolutely bloody huge, but the gut feeling is that he’ll never make that final step up. 
 

8 hours ago, Matt42 said:

*me rn trying not to post the video of the crowd for shotgun during 2019*

I was there, massive and a great singalong, ideal sub on a sunny evening at the Pyramid. Just don’t think he ever makes the cut for headliner. 
 

I don’t mind him either, he’s harmless with harmless tunes, I just don’t see the next album being anything bigger or better than what’s he’s already done which will see him plateau at his current level of popularity.
 

Think same will happen with Sam Fender, Gerry Cinnamon, Lewis Capaldi etc. It’s a difficult step to make one man and his guitar shtick. Look at the rise of Jake Bugg as discussed elsewhere, Paolo Nutini (who out of all mentioned in this post I rate quite clearly above and beyond them all), James Bay, Hozier, Jamie T, Tom Odell etc etc. Although some of these may be a lot more than one man and his guitar I’m just looking at past examples where buzz was there but yet they all reached a certain height and never returned to break through that ceiling. 
 

Albeit I’d say Ezra is and was bigger than the rest of that list at this stage, maybe Capaldi aside, I just don’t see him joining the Ed Sheeran  bracket. 
 

Im also shit at this stuff so Ezra for Friday night pyramid 2021!