by Emily Duff and Jess Clark
Returning again for 2024, Sheffield’s infamous Tramlines festival will be taking place between the 26th and 28th July at its home in Hillsborough Park.
Presenting one of its strongest lineups to date, festival-goers can expect to see Paulo Nutini, Jamie T, Snow Patrol, The Human League and Saltburn soundtrack contributor turned TikTok viral Sophie Ellis-Bextor.
February also saw two quality new additions; Leeds indie-rockers The Pigeon Detectives who last year returned with their sixth studio album TV Show following a career’s worth of platinum and gold accolades. And, holding a ‘Next Wave’ accolade on Radio 1’s Future Artists, are rising stars Balancing Act, set to bring their electrifying live show to Sheffield.
Not just about music, their comedy headliners include Hull’s funniest, pint-sized export, Lucy Beaumont (Friday); the oddball, carrier-bag-clutching Angelos Epithemiou (Saturday) famed for his time on Reeves & Mortimer’s Shooting Stars; and devout, cardigan-loving vegan - 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown captain, Jon Richardson (Sunday).
In 2023, Tramlines won the UK festival Award as the Best Festival for emerging talent, with the festival allowing grassroot artist to establish themselves in a competitive live music industry.
This year Tramlines also introduced a new talent scheme called Apply to Play, with an aim of enabling local and upcoming talent to gain paid opportunities to play at the Festival.
The judging panel for Apply to Play will be selected by a variety of organisations, such as BBC Introducing, Waterbear Music College and This Feeling.
The winner will ultimately be picked by John Kennedy, the Radio X host, who said “The privilege of getting to choose the winner of Apply To Play is not just discovering loads of brilliant new talents and being able to give them a leg up the ladder but seeing the positive impact the scheme can have on artists' mental health.”
The winner of Apply to Play will also receive support from Kennedy, interviews with the media on Amazing radio, £500 of studio time, as well as a paid slot at Tramlines, and £100 credit at Pirate Studios.
The shortlist just dropped yesterday, so you can vote anytime from now until Tuesday 19th via here.
Tramlines festival, in 2022, was shortlisted for “Best Medium Festival”, as well as a variety of other awards, including the “The Sarah Nulty Community Impact Award” to honour the late Tramlines director Sarah Nulty, who sadly passed away from cancer in 2018.
The festival is a wonderful, welcoming atmosphere for upcoming artists to showcase their talents to a young and vibrant audience, in a relaxed space, with the huge opportunity to expand their music to festivalgoers, and the potential of the awards from Apply to Play is hugely significant.
For everything from the biggest names in music and comedy to Leadmill club nights like Abba Party and Club Tropicana to banging festival food and fairground rides, Tramlines is set to be the ultimate summer party yet again.
All Friday tickets for Tramlines have sold out in record time. The only way to catch unmissable sets on Friday at Tramlines from the likes of Paulo Nutini, Bombay Bicycle Club and Sophie Ellis Bextor, is to purchase a Weekend ticket costing £130+bf (monthly payment options are available). But be quick, there’s only a limited number available! Saturday and Sunday tickets are selling fast but remain on sale from £45+bf. All tickets can be purchased from here.
There’s much more to be unveiled for Tramlines 2024 including stage splits, the results of the 2024 Apply to Play competition, the family-friendly area ‘Into the Trees’, a revamped offering of independent food traders, bespoke craft beer and ale, vintage clothes stores, and roaming entertainment across the site, altogether making Tramlines one of the best-value three-day festivals in the country!