2025 R&L Festival

[tomarchbold]

25 minutes ago, gfa said:

I don't care for boxing at all, fighting sports are vile.

 

Not sure how its so hard for you to grasp that they are definitely willing to book KSI whether you like it or not.

they 100% are. his music is crap and nobody is claiming they want him there

 

but he is a big name. has had high chart positions consistently

 

makes sense

[nathanh]

1 hour ago, tomarchbold said:

i just feel that it would be the absolute weirdest booking for r&l... ill believe it when i see it

Thats exactly how I feel, feels a complete departure to the direction R&L are going more to a big budget family fest- especially if Robbie was true.

[nathanh]

24 minutes ago, tomarchbold said:

they 100% are. his music is crap and nobody is claiming they want him there

 

but he is a big name. has had high chart positions consistently

 

makes sense

Atleast we might get a full set from him unlike 21 Savage. Id rather acts atleast seemed like they cared rather than whatever mess that was.

[NorthernSoul52]

Just how many big hats can you fit under the Chevron, anyway?

[charlierc]

12 hours ago, Chad888 said:

 

It's the same as the Prime hype, when a trend comes out we all want to dip our toes in to see what the hype is all about, before going back to having a Coke or sparling water like an adult, and leaving the Prime to the kids.

 

It's the same as this boxing, it's still relatively new - Fury, KSI, Jake Paul, Logan Paul. Even boxers fighting MMA stars like Pacqiou vs Mcgregor and Joshua vs Nganou (sp).

 

We watch it to see if it is as car crash as we expect, then go back to watch the adults boxing and leave the YouTubers lapping to be enjoyed by the kids.

I'm aware YouTuber boxing and this spread of it into other combat sports is growing, but I fail to see what people were expecting from a fight between two combatants with a 30+ year age gap. If they'd somehow managed a time machine that would've had Paul fighting peak Tyson, that would've been a spectacle to watch.

 

You say that, tbf, I've heard it suggested Prime actually isn't bad. Not that I've ever tried it or have any interest in it, although for the insinuations about adult drinks, I don't like unflavoured sparkling water (don't mind it with lime cordial or other flavourings).

[charlierc]

11 hours ago, tomarchbold said:

they 100% are. his music is crap and nobody is claiming they want him there

 

but he is a big name. has had high chart positions consistently

 

makes sense

Reading is in the market of appealing to young people and if he's getting high chart positions and had a previous visit to this festival in 2021, they'll think enough time has passed and enough popularity is there to do it.

[Chad888]

1 hour ago, charlierc said:

Reading is in the market of appealing to young people and if he's getting high chart positions and had a previous visit to this festival in 2021, they'll think enough time has passed and enough popularity is there to do it.

 

You can appeal to young people and still maintain a legacy that carries into the future. The teen crowd love any viral trend, but a year later think back at it as an embarrassment. 

 

KSI came under the same booking stewardship that brought Biq Shaq to awkwardly open the festival, and BBNO$. The booking team has changed now and as we saw last year, there was a push for timeless acts that appeal to the younger crowds tastes, I.e. Fred Again.. etc.

 

KSI is just a step away from the latest batch of Love Island stars, or Married at First Sight contestants to release a track, use their platform to push for streams, and then get booked by the festival before we all realise it was some crap we fell for.

[andyrhodes24]

26 minutes ago, Chad888 said:

 

You can appeal to young people and still maintain a legacy that carries into the future. The teen crowd love any viral trend, but a year later think back at it as an embarrassment. 

 

KSI came under the same booking stewardship that brought Biq Shaq to awkwardly open the festival, and BBNO$. The booking team has changed now and as we saw last year, there was a push for timeless acts that appeal to the younger crowds tastes, I.e. Fred Again.. etc.

 

KSI is just a step away from the latest batch of Love Island stars, or Married at First Sight contestants to release a track, use their platform to push for streams, and then get booked by the festival before we all realise it was some crap we fell for.

There was a time when you could see it being Molly Mae presents Reading Festival but it feels at least to me like they’ve gone back from that since 2021/22 ish. They really were dour years for the festival.

[Benj]

1 hour ago, andyrhodes24 said:

There was a time when you could see it being Molly Mae presents Reading Festival but it feels at least to me like they’ve gone back from that since 2021/22 ish. They really were dour years for the festival.

Yup, they clearly haemorrhaged audience over the two main stage era

 

While the zeitgeist kids obv make up a majority of the audience, anyone who has experienced the festival outside of that bubble, knows that there is a large percentage of actual music fans who regularly attended because it was a genuinely, very good festival for alternative music fans.

 

I don’t see KSI as a massive problem, as long as it’s doesn’t mean a whole raft of one hit wonder Tiktok moment types all over the lineup.

 

The key thing they need to do if they want keep people coming and crucially keep people coming back is maintain the legacy and as part of that help create legacy acts.

 

Strength, substance and choice throughout the day is why Reading did not go the way of Phoenix, T in the Park, V etc…

[charlierc]

24 minutes ago, Benj said:

Strength, substance and choice throughout the day is why Reading did not go the way of Phoenix, T in the Park, V etc…

Given the festival boom of the 2000s I'm surprised nobody tried to revive the Phoenix Festival branding. Well a now-closed pub near to me called the Phoenix had Phoenixbury Festival for local dad bands but it's not quite the same.

 

I thought T in the Park went because of circumstances, given they got kicked out of what was a useful site for reasons out of their control and the new site picked was crap, so the promoter just created TRNSMT instead. Maybe actual Scots have a better guide to that.

[Long Season]

2 hours ago, Benj said:

Strength, substance and choice throughout the day is why Reading did not go the way of Phoenix, T in the Park, V etc…

 

I'd have said that strength, substance choice would be the perfect words to describe Phoenix 

[Chad888]

6 hours ago, andyrhodes24 said:

There was a time when you could see it being Molly Mae presents Reading Festival but it feels at least to me like they’ve gone back from that since 2021/22 ish. They really were dour years for the festival.

 

The closest they got was having that chicken shop interview lady have a presenting role on MSE on the Saturday.

 

If they carried on that trajectory, they would have had an ice bucket challenge corner, and a 'Meet the Cast of Love Island' photobooth.

 

[andyrhodes24]

14 minutes ago, Chad888 said:

 

The closest they got was having that chicken shop interview lady have a presenting role on MSE on the Saturday.

 

If they carried on that trajectory, they would have had an ice bucket challenge corner, and a 'Meet the Cast of Love Island' photobooth.

 

One of our group saw Hozier do the ice bucket challenge on the FR stage at Leeds in 2014. Peak 2014.

[NorthernSoul52]

Wait, I've been out of the loop. We're not suggesting KSI as a credible headline option now, are we?

[nathanh]

Just now, NorthernSoul52 said:

Wait, I've been out of the loop. We're not suggesting KSI as a credible headline option now, are we?

No we havent gone that mad, a special guest or sub

[tomarchbold]

3 minutes ago, NorthernSoul52 said:

Wait, I've been out of the loop. We're not suggesting KSI as a credible headline option now, are we?

just as a sub unfortunately, dont want him anywhere near it but does make sense

 

[NorthernSoul52]

Oh, thank goodness. Thought I was going round the twist. (Again.)

 

Might as well have Gunnersaurus do a DJ set for good measure then.

[charlierc]

12 hours ago, NorthernSoul52 said:

Might as well have Gunnersaurus do a DJ set for good measure then.

I think some people would like that tbf.

 

... Arsenal fans, mainly.

[andyrhodes24]

This is a turn of events

[NorthernSoul52]

Could tie in to the start of the European shows, perhaps, but I'd say that's them off the table if they were ever a legitimate suggestion in the first place.

[fraybentos1]

20 hours ago, charlierc said:

I thought T in the Park went because of circumstances, given they got kicked out of what was a useful site for reasons out of their control and the new site picked was crap, so the promoter just created TRNSMT instead. Maybe actual Scots have a better guide to that.

Basically this. They were forced to move sites from Balado to Strathallan in 2015 and the new place wasn't suitable so it sold very badly in 2016. TRNSMT was then created and was a success so there is nothing in it for them to bring back T. It was not unpopular due to the lineups you are right

[andyrhodes24]

42 minutes ago, NorthernSoul52 said:

Could tie in to the start of the European shows, perhaps, but I'd say that's them off the table if they were ever a legitimate suggestion in the first place.

 

I can’t see any world in which Jamiroquai would play R&L, it’d be the most leftfield booking they could possibly make. If they do I’ll wear one of Jay Kay’s hats and proceed to eat it.

[charlierc]

43 minutes ago, fraybentos1 said:

Basically this. They were forced to move sites from Balado to Strathallan in 2015 and the new place wasn't suitable so it sold very badly in 2016. TRNSMT was then created and was a success so there is nothing in it for them to bring back T. It was not unpopular due to the lineups you are right

Thanks for confirming my theorem.

[charlierc]

1 hour ago, andyrhodes24 said:

This is a turn of events

I mean, this always seemed like more of a shout than R&L tbh.

[OwenG133]

Is there any rumour of when the first headliner announcement will be?