With the summer upon us, our thoughts can turn to WOMAD Festival, 2018. In an otherwise congested and high octane British festival season, WOMAD offers festival-goers something unlike any other, allowing you to explore the world in the peaceful confines of Charlton Park. The outpouring of love from friends and strangers alike allows people to be taken away into the many corners and crevices WOMAD and the world has to offer. Each year you feel privileged to be a part of this vast, ever-growing and always diverse WOMAD family, and 2018 will be no different.
WOMAD 2018 will offer up a menu which will have even the most uninspired giddily excited. The arboreal sanctuary will be a sea of calm and good health in The World of Wellbeing, offering a vast selection of therapies and treatments, to soothe and ease any worldly pain. Also housed in the arboreal sanctuary is The World of Words, a sanctuary for the spoken word. The Hip Yak Poetry Shack will take you on a journey of poetic discovery. Whilst across the way you will find the always inspiring and always extraordinary, Human Books, which offer a unique glimpse into someone’s life and story. For those feeling slightly more existential and wanting to explore not just the wider world but the Universe, the Physics Pavilion offers a scientific twist to WOMAD’s already diverse offerings, with workshops available to adults and children.
If WOMAD is the Queen of UK festivals, it’s music is the jewel in the crown. WOMAD never fails to give it’s revellers a taste of nothing less than the best the world has to offer- from Celtic and West African harp duos to the late night debauchery of Molly’s bar, WOMAD has a reputation for its dedication to diversity like no other. Amadou and Miriam will headline what will be a packed out the main stage, offering up some of the finest music West Africa has to offer. Ravers young and old will be flocking to Metalheadz originator, rave evangelist and musical innovator Goldie.
Another DJ who is sure to get the whole festival moving is BBC 6 Music’s favourite Giles Peterson, famous for his eclectic selection of worldwide rhythms. The skillfully spun musings of London rapper Kojey Radical who accompanied Blue Lab Beats in 2017 will be joining us again this year, and this time in a slot of his own. Another must-see for Hip-Hop lovers will be Daara J Family who serve offer Hip-Hop infused with Afro-Cuban beats and reggae. For something a little different, get a glimpse of the man who went from part-time wedding singer to international superstar- Omar Suleyman is sure to be a hit. Once again, the music at WOMAD will be the jewel in the crown of the Queen of festivals.
Where ever you find yourself at this year’s WOMAD, make sure to seize upon the unexpected, explore the unknown, and revel in the beauty the stunning grounds have to offer.
Words by Natasha Obeid
