As always, the event will see hundreds of thousands of people flock to the St Kilda foreshore and beyond for the best in live music, market stalls, community groups and more. So what’s on offer for Big Festival Sunday this year?
Punters will be met with the Main Stage, which will feature some of the biggest names in Australian music, including the likes of electronic icons Bag Raiders and genre-defying pop extraordinaire Mallrat. They’ll be joined by artists such as Budjerah, Thandi Phoenix, 1300, and Aussie music royalty Mark Seymour, who performs with his band The Undertow.
The Main Stage will also host Julian Munyard, who was last year crowned the winner of the New Music Competition. Of course, the New Music Competition also makes a return this year, with 10 finalists in the comp each allocated a 40-minute set on the New Music Stage presented by JBL. The winner will walk away with a cool $5,000, and the none-too-shabby invitation to perform on the St Kilda Festival Main Stage in 2025.
St Kilda Festival
- Saturday 17 – Sunday 18 February 2024
- FREE – no tickets required
- St Kilda Foreshore and surrounds, St Kilda
- stkildafestival.com.au
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This year, the ten finalists represent a diverse variety of sounds – from electronic jazz rock, rock n’ roll, alternative pop, dance, hip-hop, R&B, to groove-heavy indie rock – with Mulga Bore Hard Rock, Brekky Boy, Good Pash, Jewel Owusu, Lewis Coleman, Mathilde Anne, MUDRAT, Romanie, TAB Family, and Winten all joining the lineup. Needless to say, it’s a rare opportunity to get in on the ground floor for a number of talented artists.
Over on the Triangle Stage, audiences can find familiar names like Australian Music Prize-winners RVG, Platonic Sex, Cool Sounds, Chikchika, The Slingers, and Big Words, while over at the Locals Stage at Acland Plaza, you’ll be able to see showcase performances from JHM, Bailey Judd, Tanya George, The Miffs, and plenty more.
Exclusively for the 18+ audience, the Cointreau Summer Stage at Catani Gardens will feature performances from Northeast Party House, Gut Health, J-MILLA, Forest Claudette and more.
Meanwhile, over on the O’Donnell Gardens Stage, the festival will be pulling double duty. Kicking off the day with family entertainment for its first half, you’ll be able to find the likes of Riot Baby, Team Dream, Woody’s World and more. After 3pm, the stage shifts gears and welcomes all music lovers to the fold, featuring a stacked-lineup presented by FReeZA, which includes acts like The Heights, Adam Noviello, Telenova, and more.
This year also features the return of Singing Our Futures, which is supported by the Archie Roach Foundation on both Saturday and Sunday. A mentoring program that supports First Nations emerging artists on their songwriting and recording journeys, Singing Our Futures aims to foster new First Nations talent, and will likely be the starting point of a few future St Kilda Festival performers.
All told, you won’t be left wanting when it comes to music: more than 60 acts will be featured across the day. Additionally, you’ll also be able to find roving performers and buskers throughout the precinct between 10am and 10pm.
Of course, that’s just the music side of things. We’ve not even touched on the extensive range of entertainment that’s on offer, along with the other events and festivities, including dance performances, workshops, sports demonstrations, community group activities, food and market stalls, and roving entertainment. While plenty of those specifics are available on the festival’s website, many of these are also best discovered by you on the day, simply adding to the fun of the affair.
The full program is available at stkildafestival.com.au
Beat is an official media partner of St Kilda Festival.
