It’s safe to say that it’s been a tough year for festivals so far, with cancellations, final editions and postponements announced on an all-too-regular basis. Cutting across that grain is Wild Fields, set to take place on 16-17 August in Earlham Park, Norwich.
The route to launch has not been without its challenges, with original plans for a site in North Norfolk scuppered due to escalating production costs and poor initial sales, plans were revived by a move to Earlham Park, close to Norwich city centre, the city where organisers have developed their multi-venue festival concept, Wild Paths.
Director Ben Street told us: “It was a really tough couple of weeks trying to navigate the cancellation and then pivoting and reformatting the event at a new location. We had to lean heavily on the support from local institutions, partners and our community.
“Wild Fields now feels like a bit of a unicorn as I think we’re one of the only new festivals of our size (5,000 +) happening this year. I’m just glad we could find a way to deliver the festival and bring the event back to Norwich. We’ve been running festivals and events here for the past 6 years and with the site being so close to the city-centre we’ve seen a much better response, but it’s still been a real challenge to engage audiences.”
Wild Fields Festival is billed as a family-friendly event pairing music with industry talks and climate discussions, highlighting groundbreaking new acts alongside established names, hosting stage takeovers and collaborating with regional and national partners.
Headlining the inaugural festival on Friday night will be the Mercury Music Prize-winning jazz quintet Ezra Collective. Saturday night will see Brit Award winner and Mercury Music Prize nominee Kae Tempest take to the main stage. Experimental pop pioneer and producer, SBTRKT will also bring his spectacular new show in a rare live performance, following the release of his acclaimed third studio album – his first in 9 years – The Rat Road.
The festival will also include performances from local Norfolk artists including Sam Eagle, LFay, Santa Rita, Arthur Black, Zamani Fitri and a host of other exciting regional talent
The Wild Field’s team will be collaborating with local and national partners to deliver some exclusive festival afterparties, featuring groundbreaking new DJs and electronic acts at secret city locations.
Wild Field’s official charity partner is Climate Live, a youth-led climate education movement which uses music to engage, educate and empower.
Speaking on the themes and content, Street told us: “Wild Fields will be a truly unique event with a varied and progressive musical line-up paired with climate discussions, industry panels and immersive performance. There’ll be a plethora of ground-breaking bands and DJs to keep even the most seasoned festival reveller entertained and inspired.
I was born and raised in Norwich, so it’s so nice to be able to bring something like Wild Fields to the city.
We’ve always looked to cultivate a sense of inclusivity, providing safe spaces on site and opportunities for women, ethnic minorities and LGBTQ+ performers. As proud signatories of the 50/50 Key change Pledge we’re committed to shifting the tide within the events industry and providing platforms for a truly diverse range of festival performers.
Wild Paths is moving out to Earlham Park and we’re bringing our favourite bands and DJs, industry pros, chefs, panellists, immersive performers and so much more… and everyone’s invited!”
www.wildfields.co.uk
