This summer, Roskilde Festival is expanding its lineup to include a more diverse range of global sounds. The legendary Danish music festival, known for curating lineups that span continents and genres, is welcoming a wave of artists from Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon to its 2025 edition.
Running from 28 June to 5 July in Roskilde City, the eight-day sonic marathon will also host major names like Stormzy, Doechii, Tyla, and Charli XCX.
Among the standout Middle Eastern acts is Egyptian experimentalist Nadah El-Shazly, who is set to perform on the festival’s genre-bending Gloria stage on 5 July. Known for her avant-garde arrangements, El-Shazly will be joined by a full band, bringing her signature fusion of traditional Arabic sounds, free jazz, and synth-driven electronics to the Danish crowd.
She will share the lineup with a slate of forward-thinking regional talents, including Palestinian acts Saint Levant, Shabjdeed, and Al Nather; Lebanon’s electro-shaabi duo Bedouin Burger, and Syrian rockers TootArd, whose Golan Heights-born sound dips into psychedelic, funk, and reggae territories.
With artists bridging continents and redefining what it means to make regional music, this year’s Roskilde marks a meaningful shift toward stronger representation from the Middle East, a region too often sidelined in global festival lineups.
Arabic music has been steadily gaining international traction, highlighted by Egyptian star Mohamed Ramadan’s headline-making debut at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. The momentum follows a landmark moment in 2023, when Palestinian singer Elyanna became the first artist to take the Coachella stage with Arabic music.
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