Tunes
For many of the acts, it was a chance to perform all their tunes that the fans know and love. However, it was also a chance for these acts to preview new songs that they may not have performed live before. One example that springs to mind is Rita Ora. Not only did she perform some of her biggest hits, such as Hot Right Now, Poison and Black Widow, she also performed new songs for the first time, such as her new song, Your Song (following the premiere of the song at the Cannes Festival) and a brand new song that had never been heard before, Girls, a collaboration with Charli XCX and newcomer, Raye.
In fact, there were so many acts performing over the weekend that I bet that it would be hard for anyone to pick their favourite song that they partied to. I myself would struggle if anyone asked me what was my favourite song out of all the acts that I heard this weekend. Was it Zara Larsson with the brilliant Lush Life? Or maybe Blossoms with At Most a Kiss? Or Bastille with Send Them Off? So many choices! Also, a special shout out to Shawn Mendes, as the Big Weekend was his first ever UK festival appearance. Among the songs that he performed was his massive hit, Treat You Better:
Comebacks
This weekend saw so many comebacks from some of the biggest musical artists. Along with Rita Ora, who I've already mentioned, there were comebacks from Kasabian, who have recently released their fifth studio album, For Crying Out Loud, Royal Blood who are set to release their new album, How Did We Get So Dark? and the sultry songstress herself, who flew out to the UK especially for the Big Weekend Festival, Lana Del Rey. All these acts performed their classic tracks as well as brand new tracks.
Of course, these guys weren't the only comebacks. The coveted headline slot went to Katy Perry who made a spectacular comeback herself. Not only did she sing her classic hits, such as Firework and California Gurls, she also had the chance to perform her new songs, Chained to the Rhythm and Bon Appetite. Welcome back Katy!
Tributes
The thing that stood out for me was the many tributes from the artists, and the festival itself o the victims of the horrific Manchester attack that happened on the Monday before the festival. Many of the acts dedicated songs to the victims and Manchester itself, such as Katy Perry, who dedicated Part of Me, Kings of Leon, who dedicated Use Somebody, and Zara Larsson, who dedicated her Clean Bandit collaboration Symphony. There was also many heartfelt speeches given, by acts such as James Arthur and Emeli Sande, with my favourite speech coming from Zara Larsson, who said this:
"Music itself, it doesn't have a religion, doesn't have a country, or an ethnicity. It's something that we do and it unites us all."
However, the ultimate tribute came in the form of a minute's silence on both days to reflect on the awful events and to remember the victims. I thought this was the perfect way to reflect and remember victims of this tragedy.
Overall, I thought the line up was great and, yes the weather was a bit questionable, but everyone had a great time. Thank you Radio 1 for putting on this fantastic festival.
Here's to next year's festival!
Em
x
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