Sydney Road Street Party returns to Brunswick on 1 March with six hours of live music, roving performances and cultural celebrations.
The annual street festival transforms one of Melbourne’s most iconic thoroughfares into a sprawling open-air celebration, kicking off Brunswick Music Festival’s 38th year with a day that captures everything the neighbourhood has become synonymous with.
Four stages will host a wildly diverse lineup spanning surf-punk to South African jazz, Turkish classical to youth Pasifika harmonies, while iconic local venues throw open their doors for intimate sets and surprise appearances.
Sydney Road Street Party
- 1 March
- 12pm to 6pm
- Sydney Road, Brunswick
- Free
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Four stages, one very big day
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The Birum Djerring Stage on Albert Street anchors proceedings with a lineup that reads like a snapshot of Melbourne’s boundary-pushing music community. Máquina Peligrosa opens the day before making way for The Kismet Project, Immy Owusu & Sensible J, and Laura and the Hellcutz. AFROSPACE Interchange closes out the stage with what promises to be a suitably joyous, globetrotting finale.
Over at the Engakeng-end (Song) Stage on Glenlyon Road, the program leans into Brunswick’s multicultural heartbeat. Liona Tatafu + Friends and Candice Lorrae warm things up before Pese Mai, a youth Pasifika choir, takes the stage for what’s shaping up to be one of the day’s most talked-about performances. Voice of Lele round out the afternoon.
The Tonberang Ngarrga Stage on Weston Street belongs to the next generation. Dedicated entirely to youth acts, the stage hosts In Her Palms, Chromatin, Your Last Words, Illan Kaapan, Out Of Spite and Heat across an afternoon designed to spotlight Brunswick’s emerging talent.
Meanwhile, the Sparkly Bear Stage at Barkly Square offers something slightly more eclectic with Mana Duet in collaboration with Setareh Nematollahi, Quality Used Cars and Cantrips. Over at Michelle Guglielmo Park, Kiss FM broadcasts live from their own rave stage.
The venues join the party
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Street festivals are one thing, but Sydney Road Street Party wouldn’t feel complete without Brunswick’s beloved venues getting involved. The Bergy Bandroom runs an all-day marathon from midday until late, hosting Sundreamer, The Balls, The Maggie Pills, Boggle, China Beach, effe, Uglieboy, The Antics, Stimpies and Public House across a schedule that doesn’t let up.
Brunswick Ballroom presents a similarly stacked lineup featuring Rowena Wise, Grace Mitchell, Grace Robinson, Fenn Wilson & The Weather, Wrong Way Up, Public Figures, a yet-to-be-announced special guest, Dad Fight and The Meanies. The Retreat offers sets from Be Kind to Other People, Isabelle Skye, Ramona Sky, Brown Spirits, Gracie Sann, Hot Machine and Frenzee.
Co-Conspirators hosts Sista Sara, Kenji, Sisterdeep and Baba Noir. Stay Gold welcomes Great Australia Bank, A Gazillion Angry Mexicans, Tench, R.U.B, Grim Rhythm and The Tarantinos. Joey Smalls brings DJ Stuckey + Crew, while Bar Spontana runs Milfort and Desi Rascals sets throughout the afternoon and evening.
Howler hosts MUDRAT at 4pm, bringing Naarm’s formidable punk and hip-hop hybrid to the party. The rapper, singer and writer blends metal aggression with politically charged lyricism, earning inclusion in NME Magazine’s 100 Essential Emerging Artists of 2025.
Meanwhile, Correspondences studio offers something gentler with This Way, That Way, a community making session with exhibiting artist Ravi Avasti and curator Emma Thomson. Presented in partnership with Melbourne Art Fair’s PROJECT ROOMS initiative, the afternoon invites attendees to create within an exhibition inspired by Edwin A. Abbott’s eccentric 1884 sci-fi novella Flatland.
Between the stages
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Part of what makes Sydney Road Street Party feel different from your average festival is everything happening between the main stages. Street performances pop up across Victoria Street and Brunswick Road, with Nick Keogh, Tyra Lewis, Meiwa, Amadou Suso, Cle Morgan’s Unplugged Series and Con Kalamaras offering acoustic moments for anyone needing a breather from the main action.
Roving performances weave through the crowds throughout the afternoon, including Camille El Fehgali’s Tabel w Zamer bringing movement and spectacle to unexpected corners of the precinct. A skate jam takes over the park at Sydney Road and Wilson Avenue from 2pm.
For those seeking something quieter, the Counihan Gallery offers a chill-out space, while Next Wave presents an installation by multidisciplinary artist Leon Rodgers at the Mechanics Institute.
For more information, head here.
This article was made in partnership with Brunswick Music Festival.
