Today, WOMADelaide has announced the first lineup of 47 artists for its 2025 festival – at Adelaide’s lush Botanic Park/Tainmuntilla from 7-10 March – featuring PJ Harvey (UK), Nils Frahm (Germany), Mariza (Portugal), Goran Bregović & His Wedding & Funeral Band (Serbia), Cie Yoann Bourgeois (France) and Bangarra Dance Theatre (Aus) joining the recently-announced Khruangbin (USA).
For over 30 years, WOMADelaide has unequivocally been one of the most eclectic celebrations of culture in Australia. Showcasing a rich assortment of music, arts and dance from across the globe – unearthing new talent and programming some of the world’s most admired and accomplished musicians – year after year, audiences flock to Botanic Park to discover, dance, and immerse themselves in the ‘world’s festival.’
Returning to Australia for the first time in eight years, legendary multi-instrumentalist and two-time winner of the Mercury Music Prize, PJ Harvey (UK) brings her live show and full-band experience – performing songs from the Grammy-nominated tenth studio album I Inside the Old Year Dying and her remarkable back-catalogue for the festival’s opening night.
No-one is better known for defining the space between classical and electronic music than the acclaimed pianist, composer, producer, and celebrated performer, Berlin-based Nils Frahm (Germany). Since his breakthrough album Felt in 2011, the exceptional instrumentalist has become renowned for his unconventional approach to the age-old instrument, the piano, garnering him international acclaim for his live shows and albums.
Born in Mozambique and raised in Lisbon’s Mouraria district, Mariza (Portugal) is a global superstar and one of the most acclaimed Fado singers of our time. With a career spanning over 20 years, 30 platinum albums, and countless accolades, Mariza has performed around the world, and has shared stages with musical legends such as Sting, Gilberto Gil, Lenny Kravitz, Cesária Évora, and Tito Paris.
Known for his dynamic fusion of Balkan folk, rock, and classical influences, Goran Bregović & His Wedding & Funeral Band (Serbia) has forged a unique sound that is both universal and unmistakably his own with iconic anthems such as Bella Ciao, Kalashnikov, and In the Death Car.
Musician, producer and composer, Nitin Sawhney CBE (UK) is a formidable talent across many genres – from his own brand of British electronica and fusion, to his compositions for orchestras and film and artists such as Paul McCartney, Sting and Akram Khan – Sawhney returns after being unable to travel to the 2024 festival.
A pioneering voice in the renaissance of British jazz, Shabaka (UK) transcends conventional notions of genre and draws from a vast palette of cultural influences, which has seen him become one of the most celebrated jazz musicians of the decade. Releasing his first solo album Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace in 2024, Shabaka’s wide-ranging career has also seen him lead influential bands Sons of Kemet, The Comet is Coming, and Shabaka and the Ancestors.
After performing at the 2016 festival to huge acclaim, 47SOUL (Palestine/Jordan) return with their message of equality for the world. Melding hip-hop, electronica and R&B with the sounds of Dabke (the traditional music from the Levantine region), the group created their own music genre ‘Shamstep’, a sound for the people of the Sham region (Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria).
Queen Omega (Trinidad & Tobago) is of the biggest female stars on the international dancehall-reggae scene. Since the 1990s, she has been blazing a trail for other women artists through her powerful performances and conscious messages.
Having wowed audiences at Adelaide Festival’s popular Red Square club in 1996, the exceptional taiko drum ensemble and masters of this ancient traditional percussion artform, from the village of Ota, O.TA.I.KO ZA MYOJIN (Japan) return.
Intertwining the haunting sounds of a single zither with two distinct voices, Duo Ruut (Estonia) craft a minimalist yet imaginative musical tapestry. Their contemporary songwriting is deeply influenced by diverse cultural beliefs, reflecting an emotive journey that resonates and captivates audiences worldwide.
Founded in the mid-1950s by visionary Sun Ra in Chicago, Sun Ra Arkestra (USA) stands as a force in the realms of synthesiser innovation and free jazz, with a mission to spread positive vibrations and elevate the universe through music. While Durand Jones & The Indications (USA) – loved for their dual lead singers, thoughtful songwriting, and joyous and energetic performances – push beyond the boundaries of funk and soul and reach for inspiration in vintage disco vibes.
Sydney-based artist Ngaiire (PNG/Aus) – from the Eastern Highlands and New Ireland provinces of Papua New Guinea – premieres her new project PAIA, a spectacular live-performance and visual experience. Known for her captivating fusion of electronic neo-soul, gospel, and pop, she has shared stages with artists such as Sufjan Stevens, Alicia Keys and Flume.
A storyteller who brings an evocative and expressive voice to Australia’s blues and roots scene, 2024 multi-ARIA award nominee Emily Wurramara (Aus), a Warnindhilyagwa woman from Groote Eylandt, sings in both English and Anindilyakwa language. While the Arnhem-Land-based eight-piece funk band – led by the shy-but-extravagant, blind, keytar-wielding Yolngu Elder – Andrew Gurruwiwi Band (Aus) serves up high-energy infectious grooves.
Since forming on Invasion Day in 2022, First Nations trio 3% (Aus) – made up of hip-hop MCs Dallas Woods, Nooky, and Angus Field – released their debut album KILL THE DEAD this year, which impressively has been nominated for four ARIA awards. ‘We’re not just 3% – we’re 100% black magic,’ they say.
An Australian premiere and coup for the festival, Yoann Bourgeois Art Company (France) brings The unreachable suspension point, a captivating work comprising a revolving staircase, trampoline and dancers exploring weightlessness and the spiralling themes of life. Breaking down the barriers between dance, theatre, music, visual installation, and audio-visual art, Bourgeois has worked on film projects with artists such as Coldplay, Harry Styles, FKA twigs and Pink.
Australian leading performing arts company, Bangarra Dance Theatre (Aus) – comprised of dancers, storytellers and fire-makers – presents its first main-stage cross-cultural collaboration, The Light Inside. The breathtaking performance work, created by Māori choreographer Moss Te Ururangi Patterson and Bangarra alumna Deborah Brown, explores cultural forces that bind us together, across oceans and the First Peoples of the Oceania region.
Elsewhere in Botanic Park, WOMADelaide 2025 will see the return of the WoMarkets – a shaded hub of more than 40 retail stalls, in the tradition of a marketplace where different cultures share their wares – along Plane Tree Drive.
Also returning is The Studio, a theatre space created within the Adelaide Botanic High Gym, where a range of performances have been presented since 2022. This year the festival welcomes Adelaide’s own Restless Dance Theatre in Seeing Through Darkness and actor/theatre-maker Dorcy Rugamba’s musical reading Hewa Rwanda: Letter to the Absent.
The festival will again host a plethora of taste-tempting international food stalls; the tranquil fine-dining experience of The Sanctuary Restaurant at Adelaide Zoo; the three-day conversational forum Planet Talks and KidZone – where adventure meets education for young festivalgoers.
Quotes:
WOMADelaide Festival Director, Ian Scobie AM
‘WOMADelaide is when Adelaide throws its arms around the world to welcome, share, discover and celebrate music, arts and dance and today’s announcement of 47 groups from 28 countries demonstrates why it truly is the world’s festival.’
Minister for Tourism South Australia, Zoe Bettison:
‘True to WOMADelaide’s roots, this impressive line-up showcases the best of music, dance, art, and thinking from every corner of the world. We know for more than 30 years WOMADelaide has attracted music lovers and festivalgoers from across the state, country, and world to the heart of our city – and with this diverse line-up, 2025 will be no different.
‘This is exactly why the State Government has committed to supporting WOMADelaide for the next five years, to help ensure the festival continues to bring world-class acts, attract visitors, and fill hotel rooms. Now is the time to start locking in your March long-weekend plans in South Australia, to discover why Adelaide is the nation’s only UNESCO City of Music.’
WOMADelaide is proudly supported by the State Government through the South Australian Tourism Commission.
Tickets and more information can be found at womadelaide.com.au
Artists announced:
• 3% (Aus)
• 47SOUL (Palestine/Jordan)
• Ana Carla Maza (Cuba)
• Andrew Gurruwiwi Band (Aus)
• Bala Desejo (Brazil)
• Bangarra Dance Theatre – The Light Inside (Aus)
• Bonny Light Horseman (USA)
• Chris Kamu’ana Rohoimae – Pacific Break winner (Solomon Islands)
• Cie Paris Benares – Chamôh (Camel) (France)
• Delgres (France)
• DJ Paulette (UK)
• Dream Engine – Heliosphere (UK)
• Duo Ruut (Estonia)
• Durand Jones & The Indications (USA)
• Ela Minus (Colombia)
• Eleanor Jawurlngali – (Aus)
• Elsy Wameyo (Kenya)
• Emily Wurramara – (Aus)
• Etran de l’Aïr (Niger)
• Goran Bregović & His Wedding & Funeral Band (Serbia)
• Hewa Rwanda (Rwanda/Senegal)
• John Grant (USA)
• The Joy (South Africa)
• Khruangbin (USA)
• Lindigo (Réunion)
• The Lofty Mountain Band (Aus)
• Majnun (Senegal)
• The Mande Spirit (Aus)
• Mariza (Portugal)
• Miss Kanina (Aus)
• Ngaiire (PNG/Aus)
• Nils Frahm (Germany)
• Nitin Sawhney (UK)
• Norsicaa (UK/Aus)
• O.TA.I.KO ZA MYOJIN (Japan)
• PJ Harvey (UK)
• Queen Omega (Trinidad & Tobago)
• Restless Dance Theatre – Seeing Through Darkness (Aus)
• Satish Vyas & U Rajesh (India)
• Shabaka (UK)
• Silent Observers (Aus)
• Sun Ra Arkestra (USA)
• Talisk (Scotland)
• Trio da Kali (Mali)
• UPK Allstars (Aus)
• Wrong Way Up (South Sudan/Aus)
• Yoann Bourgeois Art Company – The unreachable suspension point (France)
WOMADelaide’s next program announcement will be in November.
For more information visit: womadelaide.com.au
