Program Friday 29 August
These acts have been confirmed. The timetable will be announced later.
Gipsy Kings by Diego Bailardo
They took traditional flamenco styles, mixed them with Western pop and Latin rhythms, and the result was a huge success the world over. Gypsy Kings are a family band from France, but with Catalan roots. Their ancestors were gitanos (Spanish Romani) who fled Spain during the Civil War. The foundation of the group was laid when José Reyes formed a band, Los Reyes, with his sons. When he died, his boys teamed up with their cousins, the Baliardo brothers, and took on the name Gypsy Kings. After traveling around France and playing at weddings, festivals, and in the streets, the 1980s brought them fame with their self-titled third album, which included the hit songs Djobi Djoba and Bamboléo. In addition to original songs, they also covered others and made them their own, performing them in their recognizable flamenco style. Diego Bailardo was a founding member and now fronts this band, with original Gypsy Kings members as well as a new generation.
Kandace Springs
When Kandace Springs was a little girl in Tennessee, her father would play records by Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Dusty Springfield. When she was older, her own taste included the likes of Sade and Lauryn Hill; vocalists she honored on her particularly personal album The Women Who Raised Me. The fact that she is now one of the important jazz/soul vocalists is evident from the list of willing collaborators for her recording, which includes a duet with Norah Jones, a bass part by Christian McBride, and a contribution from David Sanborn on sax, although her own voice and piano playing are the mainstay throughout. Her father, singer-songwriter Scat Springs, worked on her previous album, My Name Is Sheba... before his passing in 2021. Last year saw the release of her latest record, Run Your Race.
NE-YO
NE-YO is a three-time Grammy® Award-winning hitmaker, iconic songwriter, actor, entrepreneur and philanthropist whose illustrious catalogue has generated a combined total of 23 billion streams worldwide. He’s known for global hits like Miss Independent, Closer, and his debut single, So Sick, which went quadruple platinum and topped the Billboard Hot 100. He has also penned chart-topping tracks for artists such as Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Usher. Ne-Yo released eight studio albums; the latest, Self Explanatory, was released in 2022. Most recently, he released his hit single Show Me.
Paul Carrack
“Britain's best blue-eyed soul singer” Paul Carrack is also a songwriter and musician who gained fame both solo and as a member of several well-known bands. Starting out in the mid-1970s as the frontman and principal songwriter of rock band Ace, he gained further recognition as a member of Squeeze and Roger Waters’ backing band, the Bleeding Heart Band. In the following decades, he joined Mike + The Mechanics and sang some of their biggest hits, including The Living Years. In the mean time, Carrack has also released a string of solo albums and scored a hit of his own with 1988’s Don’t Shed A Tear. He served as a recording or touring musician for Roxy Music, Elton John, and Eric Clapton, among many others. His compositions were recorded by big names including Diana Ross, Tom Jones, and The Eagles. Now in his seventies, this man the BBC dubbed “The Man with the Golden Voice” is still going strong, touring extensively and releasing albums: his latest is 2024’s How Long.
Ricky Martin
Puerto Rican singer and superstar Ricky Martin started his career young: he was appearing in commercials at age 9 and a member of boyband Menudo at 12. He began his solo career in 1991 and found international fame with his third album, 1995’s A Medio Vivir, and hits including María, La Copa De La Vida, Livin’ La Vida Loca, She Bangs, Nobody Wants To Be Lonely and many more. One of the best-selling Latin music artists of all time, Martin has sold over 70 million records worldwide. He has two Grammy’s, five Latin Grammy’s and many other prestigious awards to his name. In addition to having been credited for propelling the Latin pop music genre to mainstream recognition, Martin is also a successful actor, a philanthropist and an activist who focuses on LGBT rights and fighting against human trafficking. Serious subjects, but make no mistake: at the festival, this entertainer will turn his performance into a party like you've never experienced before!
Sheila E. and the E-Train
She is the Queen of Percussion, and so much more: Sheila E. is a percussionist, singer, songwriter, versatile session musician and actress. As the daughter of the famous jazz percussionist Pete Escovedo, the multi-talented American was born with a taste for drums and congas. Although the world got to know her mid-eighties as Prince’s artistic partner in crime, she was taking important musical steps before that, playing percussion for Michael Jackson, Herbie Hancock and Marvin Gaye, among others. In the 1980s, the collaboration with His Royal Badness led to world fame and huge success with hits such as The Glamorous Life, The Belle Of St. Mark and A Love Bizarre. Remaining part of Prince’s backing band until the early 1990s, Sheila E. collaborated with many other artists as well, such as Phil Collins, Gloria Estefan and Beyoncé. Last year she released her ninth album, Bailar, and the single Bemba Colorá, for which she was awarded her very first Grammy, for Best Global Music Performance.
