The original SXSW festival has run in the US since 1987, and while it also serves as an exposition of emerging technology, scientific discovery and a showcase for independent films, it’s best known for its musical component. Crossing the pond for the first time last year, SXSW London’s organisers describe it as “a festival where innovation meets imagination, blending business, tech, music and culture in one place”.

Serving as a springboard for up-and-comers and unsigned artists, the 2025 list of names saw established acts like iconic guitarist Nile Rogers rub shoulders with over 500 talents from both the UK and afar. Held in the culture-rich East London region of Shoreditch, SXSW London operates across venues, clubs and many other important sites around the area. The roster of acts involved are just as diverse as London itself – as they put it “the programme reflects the diversity of sound and community that defines the UK music landscape, while connecting it to global talent and audiences”.

The first wave of 10 acts for 2026 continues the mission to bring the sounds of the world to East London, with an international contingent headed up by two of Africa’s leading lights. Tiwa Savage is one of the biggest names in Nigeria’s Afrobeats scene, having made history as the first female to win the Best African Act award at the MTV European Music Awards in 2018. Also that year, she became the first African female to sell out London’s IndigO2 venue, and she was personally selected by Coldplay’s Chris Martin to perform at the Global Citizen Festival in Johannesburg in front of 70,000. ODUMODUBLVCK is another of Nigeria’s great success stories – his mixture of drill rap with Grime, Afrobeat and R&B which he named “Okporoko Rhythms” has made him a hero of his scene since his 2017 breakthrough.

Next up is American rapper and producer Earl Sweatshirt, a former member of bizarre hiphop collective “Odd Future” alongside Tyler, The Creator. Since going alone, his unique lyrics and style have led him to become a cult hero. He’s joined on the lineup by New York soft rock band Infinity Song, who consist of 4 siblings, bringing beautiful vibes with their family-driven harmonies.

Also there is Amaria BB, a Hackney-based, Jamaican-Guyanese singer-songwriter, who since starting her full career in 2020 has gained a large fan base for her deep themes and mixture of R&B, pop and soul music. Rachel Chinouriri, a London-born, Zimbabwean-British singer-songwriter, will be bringing her exciting indie-pop tunes too, which saw her hit the Top 20 charts with debut album ‘What a Devastating Turn of Events’ and has earned her 2 BRIT Awards nominations. An interesting inclusion is Sega Bodega, whose jouney saw him travel from Ireland, to Glasgow, settling in London to build a foothold in music, fashion and film.

South-London is represented by Shame, a post-punk band known for their live reputation and confrontational lyrical content. They’re supporting their 2025 album ‘Cutthroat’. Liverpool’s Circa Waves are familiar with the top of the charts, having scored a Top Ten album with 2015 debut ‘Young Chasers’ and its hit indie-rock singles ‘T-Shirt Weather’ and ‘Stuck in My Teeth’. English multi-award winning producer and songwriter Fraser T Smith, who had success with his involvement on Adele’s ‘Set Fire To The Rain’ and Tinchy Stryder’s ‘Number 1’ will be in attendance, and finally we have Pete Tong, one of the UK’s best-known and most beloved DJ’s, who will bring his internationally-recognised dance set to Shoreditch.

In the official press release, Adem Holness, the Head of Music at SXSW says “At a moment when technology can generate endless music, what really shapes the future are the communities and scenes where artists push culture forward in their own contexts. SXSW London brings those global scenes together in one place. From artists like Sega Bodega reimagining live electronic performance, to bands like Shame building careers on their own terms, and artists like ODUMODUBLVCK bypassing genre and fusing his cultural influences into something entirely his own. The future of music isn’t uniform.”

SXSW London Music is held across Shoreditch from the 1st to the 6th of June, with wristbands available here ranging from £25 for one-day or £79 for the full experience. For the day-by-day breakdown of the event’s schedule, as well as further information and updates, visit their website here.

Born in Kumasi, Ghana, in 1937, Osei’s musical journey began with highlife, a genre born from the fusion of African rhythms and Western jazz, which became popular under British colonial rule. With his first band, The Comets, he discovered his talent for blending genres. This skill would be the aspect of Osibisa that made them one of the most experimental acts to make it mainstream, whilst always remaining accessible to new listeners.

Osei had to work to earn his success. After moving to London in 1962, he worked as a pot washer to support himself while attending a music and drama school, alongside performing. He first picked up the saxophone when left to fill in for an absent bandmate, and continued to teach himself to play. He would play the instrument on all but one of Osibisa’s albums.

In 1969, after returning to London from a stint touring Europe with fellow students, Osei founded Osibisa. The band’s name came from the Ghanaian word osibisaba, which translates to ‘highlife’. Combining African rhythms with jazz, rock, funk, and disco, Osibisa created an ever-changing, genre-defying style that resonated with audiences across continents.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Jazz Cafe (@thejazzcafe)

Osibisa quickly gained traction in the UK. Their first two albums, produced by Tony Visconti and featuring artwork by Roger Dean, both reached 11 in the UK charts. Their track ‘Sunshine Day’ peaked at 17 on the singles chart, and charted higher than Paul Simon’s ‘50 Ways To Leave Your Lover’ and Roxy Music’s ‘Both Ends Burning’ in 1976.  

Teddy osei’s impact on uniting Carribeans and Africans in the Uk needs to be studied.

— Ya’siin. (@213yasiin) January 15, 2025

Osei’s vision extended beyond music, seeing it as a medium for hope. Osibisa played an important role in uniting African and Caribbean diasporas in the UK, and inspiring pride in African heritage. In response to his passing, one X user simply put “Teddy Osei’s impact on uniting Caribbeans and Africans in the UK needs to be studied.”

In 2000, their hit ‘Sunshine Day’ was chosen as a theme for the UEFA European Championships. In 2010, Osei suffered a stroke, but continued to guide the band, deciding what they recorded and directing the artwork that would appear on their albums. He once said, “We put [everything] in one pot and cook it,” a perfect metaphor for Osibisa.

His positivity shone through in interviews. Speaking in 1995 in an interview on Greek radio, he said, “I knew I had something to offer, to make people happy.” Reflecting on the band’s unique sound, he described it as “exploding rhythms, with excitement, getting people up and feeling good.”

Osei’s contributions extended to the literary world as well. He had input on Lloyd Bradley’s Sounds Like London, a definitive history of Black music in the UK, which was praised not only as a book, but as a piece of social history.

Teddy Osei’s impact is undeniable. His music united diverse communities and brought African rhythms to the world stage. He was admired by Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Wonder (the latter of which helped Osibisa earn a record deal), and played alongside The Rolling Stones in a Top of the Pops performance of Brown Sugar. Osei’s influence is all around us, and the music world is a little less fun without him.

The album was recorded earlier this year in Sussex and features live takes of the musician on vocals, guitar and piano and an overdubbed bass and piano part. He began writing the album after revisiting an unreleased track, ‘When Winter Comes’ Which he worked on in the 90’s with George Martin.

He told The Guardian, “It was about making music for yourself rather than making music that has to do a job,” he says. “I had some stuff I’d worked on over the years but sometimes time would run out and it would be left half finished so I started thinking about what I had. Each day, I’d start recording with the instrument I wrote the song on and then gradually layer it all up. It was a lot of fun.”

Some of the other instruments he used to record the album included his violin shaped bass guitar, used at Abby road studios by ‘The Beatles’ and a double bass that backed Elvis Presley and The Wings sessions in 1971. Many other musicians have followed suit by recording at home during the pandemic, and it felt the right time for McCartney to complete his trilogy during lockdown.

He talks about the album to Rollingstone.com saying ““Each day I’d start recording with the instrument I wrote the song on and then gradually layer it all up; it was a lot of fun,” he added. “It was about making music for yourself rather than making music that has to do a job. So, I just did stuff I fancied doing. I had no idea this would end up as an album.”

His solo album, ‘McCartney’ released in April 1970 was greeted eagerly from fans as it was his first solo work since ‘The Beatles.’ The album turned out to be heavily criticised by critics for being, ‘shambolic, primitively recorded collection of instrumentals, song fragments, experiments in what would eventually be called world music,’ – The Guardian

‘McCartney 11′ his second solo album was recorded with his 1970’2 band, ‘Wings Collapsed’ and has more of a 70’s synth based sound to it with influences of disco punk. Both of the albums were, in a sense, experimental music and very different from the melodic tunes has written.

When asked about retirement, McCartey replied, “Everything I do is always supposed to be my last. When I was 50 – ‘That’s his last tour.’ And it was like, ‘Oh, is it? I don’t think so.’ It’s the rumour mill, but that’s OK.”

McCartney was due to headline ‘The Glastonbury Festival’ this year for it’s 50th Anniversary edition but due to the coronvirus pandemic, it was cancelled in March. After a 40 year wait for the new solo album, fans are excited to hear his new music, which will complete his trilogy.