Love to be… is back for an all-day celebration of house music at The Stray in Harrogate on Saturday, 6 September 2025. Building on the success of last year’s sellout debut, this edition returns with a bold line-up, spectacular production and 11 hours of non-stop music across two stages and a VIP area from legends and pioneers including Armand Van Helden, The Shapeshifters, Ultra Nate (Live), Gok Wan, Marshall Jefferson, K-Klass, Trimtone, Juliet Roberts, Jon Pleased Wimmin and many more.
Love to be… is an influential and long-running house music brand that first formed in Sheffield in 1994. Over three decades in, it remains a flag bearer for unrivalled house music events, with its 30th anniversary taking in 30 dates around the world from Miami to Ibiza and across the North of England. As well as a syndicated radio show and rebooted record label, the Love to be… events are a carefully curated, multi-generation celebration of all forms of house music, staging illustrious names as well as newer contemporaries now leading the charge.
Last year’s debut festival in Harrogate brought something the town had never seen before, and this year, Love to be… levels up once more. The main stage has been redesigned and features an all-new structure, while sound systems have been tweaked for maximum power and quality.
Headlining the Main Stage is Armand Van Helden, the New York star who has shaped the house sound for 30 years, dropped countless classics and continues to turn out number-one tunes all with his raw, swinging signature groove. He will be joined by fellow global chart toppers The Shapeshifters, Ultra Nate, who plays live, with Trimtone, Carly Wilford, Tom Wainwright, Stuart Pilling, Keex and Sinclair also covering all forms of house.
In the Music Factory Classics Big Top, named after Love to be’s original home in Sheffield, is Chicago innovator Marshall Jefferson, who is behind seminal house anthem Move Your Body. He is joined by enduring house icons K-Klass, TV star turned party-starter Gok Wan, Juliet Roberts who will perform hits Needin You and Caught in the Middle live, plus plenty of mainstays of the scene such as Jon Pleased Wimmin, DAYL, Mark Robinson, Scott Harris, Mister Jones, Electric Emma and Bongo Dave.
Meanwhile, the VIP area sees takeovers from LGBTQ+ advocates funkyLove and Leeds’ Funk My Life, featuring exclusive sets from the face of funkyLove, Soraya Vivian who plays live, plus Nick Ellerbeck, Love to be… founders Tony Walker and Marc Dennis, Mister Jones, Marmajam, Bri Buckle, Aimee, Jonas Max and Sutty. VIP guests can expect a revamped new look with a premium bar, posh toilets, pamper room and queue jump on entry.
One of Harrogate’s best-known landmarks, The Stray, is 200 acres of grass parkland encompassing the town centre, giving the town a uniquely green and spacious feel. Love to be… will convert the space into an adult wonderful for one day only with a full food village, an array of fairground rides, colourful and vibrant entertainers, stilt walkers, fire breathers and epic audio-visual production, all adding extra sensory elements to the whole experience.
Love to be… is a cashless festival and a unique opportunity to experience some of house music’s most legendary talents in a gorgeous setting in North Yorkshire.
