Rolling Loud Rotterdam is hosted by Woo Ha! and will kick off in the summer of 2023 at the Rotterdam Ahoy venue, located in the heart of what is The Netherlands’ second largest city and one of Europe’s primary seaports.  With the announcement of more acts to follow, the Rotterdam event is schedules to take place on June 30th – July 1st, 2023.  You can check the line-up as it stands so far, and grab pre-sale tickets, here.

Travis Scott will go on to headline Rolling Sound Portugal, which, this year, takes to the picturesque beaches of Portimao on the Algarve coast as a venue.  With announcements of the full lineup for the event to follow soon, presale tickets are currently available here.  The festival will take place on 5th – 7th July, 2023.

2023 looks to be a busy year for Rolling Loud’s organizers, as in addition to the Rotterdam and Portugal dates, Rolling Loud has events planned for Thialand in April, and California in March.  The California event will be headlined by Travis Scott, Future, and Playboy Carti.  July will also see the eight annual Rolling Sound flagship event returning to Miami on July 21st – 23rd.

Check out footage of Travis Scott performing “Stargazing”, live at Miami’s Rolling Loud in 2019.

Since its inception in 2015 by founders Matt Zingler and Tariq Charif, Rolling loud has earned global acclaim from critics and festival-lovers alike, with Variety calling the event “The biggest hip-hop festival in the country”, and Forbes describing it as “a lifestyle brand. They are more than just the shows. They have built a community with their consumers and are building new channels to maintain continuity”.  The festival’s 2022 headliners in the flagship Miami event included the likes of Kid Cudi, Kendrick Lamar and Future.  September 2022 brought the first ever Rolling Loud Toronto, where Future was joined by Wizkid and Dave, and Rolling Loud New York, where Nicki Minaj, Asap Rocky and Future took headlining slots.

For full details on all of Rolling Loud’s upcoming 2023 events, check out their website here.

Hailing from South London, the producer and multi-instrumentalist has been contributing his beautifully nostalgic and smooth brand of saxophone playing to a growing list of highly prominent artists around the globe for a while now. Having laid down some emotive riffage on “Alarm Clock” from Burna Boy’s Grammy Winning Album Twice As Tall in 2020, and also contributed to Wizkid’s “Starboy” and Beyonce’s “Ja Ara E”, Venna has become a hot ticket to collaborate with in the studio and fast become one of the most sought after producers and sax players in town.

With the release of his debut EP Venology though, Venna steps out on his own with a brand new solo project. The EP, put out by Hillside Records, is a collection of 6 songs the artist has written and produced himself with collaborations from the popular rapper Knucks, producer Marco Bernadis, and artists JVCK JAMES, JADA, and emil. It’s a wonderfully eclectic mix of jazz, hip hop, grime, and R&B, with Venna’s sax sounding throughout to create a warm and idiosyncratic world all of his own.

Speaking recently about his ambitions for the EP with NME, Venna said “I wanted this to be the biggest thing ever. I wanted the music to touch as many people as it could. Not in an arrogant way, but I know how special the music is. Before then, I’d worked with loads of people, and I appreciate everyone who’s brought me in and helped me get to where I am now, but there’s nothing more rewarding than finally doing it for yourself.”

Going on to explain his plans for 2022 and his recent collaboration’s with Yussef Dayes he explained “I’m running around the world with Yussef right now, which is a dream. We’re touring Australia, then New Zealand. His album’s coming out as well, and we’ve worked hard on it. And just my next project… I think I’ve got the track list, but I change things a lot. I’m very picky with my music. Anything I’m heavily involved in, I take my time. But I try not to put too much pressure on it. I am music, so music’s gonna come to me regardless. I don’t even stress about it no more.”

It seems like going with the flow is Venna’s style both in his productions for other artists and for his own solo project, and judging by his recent success we don’t blame him. An artist full of originality and honest authenticity I’m sure this laid back and grateful attitude will take him a long way, and we here at MXDWN UK are all to happy to witness it.

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The festival is moving on to its second year after offering many disappointed Londoners an alternative following the cancellation of the Notting Hill carnival for the second year, with the festival celebrating African and Caribbean food, music and culture.

With the likes of Davido, Beenie Man, Kehlani, Koffee and NSG all gracing the stages of last year’s festival, the organiser had to go even bigger this time around. The star of the show will be Nigerian superstar Wizkid whose year has seen him win a grammy, sell out 3 nights at the London 02 and become a global superstar with the impact of his track “Essence” featuring Tems. Fellow Nigerian C Kay will also grace the stage, having risen to stardom with his viral track “Love Nwantiti” which spread over the social media site Tiktok. British-Nigerian Naira Marley is another headliner he first came to the limelight in the UK rap scene in 2014 with his cult classic “Marry Juana” since then he has gone on to become an international superstar moving back to his home country Nigeria and becoming a major name in afrobeats scene.

The rest of the artists to have been announced include Nigerian singer Flavour, Congolese artists Fally Ipupa, rising British star Gabzy, Ghanaian drill artists Black Sheriff, East London rapper Shasimone who featured on Dave’s chart-topping album We are all alone in this together, as well as these stars Yam’s carnival announced that more artists are yet to be announced.

The festival will be hosted by Eddie Kadi and Shopsydoo and will feature sets from a number of differing DJs.

Tickets for the festival are set to go on pre-sale on the 2nd of February at 10 am with a general sale starting on the same day at 1 pm. Tickets are available to sign up for here.

Presenting his afro-swing style, Kojo Funds brings through the feel-good vibes with this track as we come to the end of summertime. The melodic chorus sees Kojo expressing his adoration for a female, providing her with the option to call when she needs. As Wizkid supplies his trademark vocalised flow, he keeps to the lustful theme “Baby call me when you’re lonely, say I’m liking your body girl put it all on me.”

Directed by Dir. Lx, the visuals see the two artists posted in a luxurious villa at an unknown exotic location. Equipped with an indoor pool and a scenic beach view, they are accompanied by a diverse group of bikini-clad models, which represent the aesthetic of this summer banger. Edging away from the traditional excessive alcohol and jewellery, Dir. Lx captures the singers dripped in high-end designer fashion in this minimalist video.

Be sure to catch Kojo Funds performing live at the following locations this year:

21/09/19 – Tokyo World Festival – Bristol
15/11/ – O2 Academy – Glasgow

You can watch the video for ‘I Like’ below.

In partnership with Croydon Council, the brand new music and food festival, expects to host 15,000 music fans, at Croydon’s Lloyd Park. The festival will make it’s debut, this summer, and the first series of names that have been announced look set to electrify Croydon.

Among the first series of artists to be announced and the first confirmed artists to headline The Ends festival, which will take over Croydon’s Lloyd park this May and June, is Nas; Wizkid; and Damien Marley.

Couldn’t cop tickets for Wireless? London’s coming through with a brand new festival. Don’t miss @TheEndsFestival in Croydon this month! pic.twitter.com/Fo6hpbJlMQ

— Wireless Festival (@WirelessFest) May 3, 2019

Kicking the festival off will be hip hop artist, Nas, who will take to the stage, on Friday the 31st of May,  followed by Nigerian singer Wizkid, on Saturday the 1st of June 2019, and Damian Marley – son of the legendary Bob Marley – on Sunday the 2nd of June 2019, to close the final night of the festival. Further acts are to be announced in due course on the official website.

The following name are also on the bill, and joining headliner Nas, on the main stage, on Friday, will be De La Soul; Ghetts; Nadia Rose; A2; Kojey Radical; and Rachael Anson. Meanwhile, that acts hitting up the Ends & Friends Stage, on Friday, will be SAINt JHN; Ama Lou; K-Trap; House of Pharoahs; Tiana Major9; Jgrrey; and Koder.

Joining headliner Wizkid, on Saturday the 1st of June 2019, will be Maleek Berry; Kranium; Donae’o; Wande Coal; Kojo Funds; Teni The Entertainer; Juls; and Eddie Kadi. While, over on the Ends & Friends Stage is NSG; Sneakbo; One Acen; DJ Spinall; Alicai Harley; Kenny Allstar; and P Montana.

Concluding, the three-day bonanza with headliner Damian Marley, on Sunday the 2nd of June 2019, will be  J Balvin; Nao; Masego; Burna Boy; Mansur Brown; The Compozers; Jaz Karis; and Croydon FM. Meanwhile, over on the Ends & Friends Stage there will be performances from the like of IAMDDB; Seani B; DJ Ace; Benjiflow; Che Lingo; Amber Olivier; and Miraa May.

Last week, we announced our Future Stage in partnership with @yourcroydon and @CroydonMusicArt.
Check out the line-up below!
Tickets: https://t.co/H6cRACNN5h pic.twitter.com/qpgCGehkXu

— The Ends (@TheEndsFestival) May 4, 2019

Meanwhile, over on the Future Stage, fans will be kept occupied by performances from the likes of AK, Alora, Amaka, Aria Grey, Badside, Croydon Young Musicians, Desta Zion, Endurance Steel Orchestra, Flintz, Gharial, Ilianna, Jegz, Marc Jones, Nipah, Nokwamz Kaio, Pins, Rap Club, See Our 7, Tricey.R, and Yung R.