First Acts Announced For WOMAD New Zealand 2019

The first three acts have been announced for the WOMAD New Zealand 2019 festival of world music, arts and dance, celebrating their fifteenth anniversary at New Plymouth's TSB Bowl of Brooklands, Pukekura Park this coming March. Grammy Award-winning Beninese singer-songwriter, actress and activist Angelique Kidjo will play songs from this year's reinvention of the work of Talking Heads Remain In Light, alongside virtuoso global music collective The Silkroad Ensemble and golden-voiced Taite Music Prize-nominated Aotearoa soul artist TEEKS, with many more artists to be revealed. Attendees of 2018's festival are still hyped about the jaw-dropping lineup of international and local talent, we can't wait to hear what more artists will be performing at the three day event. Here are the details...

WOMAD New Zealand 2019
Friday 15th March to Sunday 17th March - New Plymouth, TSB Bowl of Brooklands, Pukekura Park
Featuring... Angelique Kidjo, The Silkroad Ensemble, TEEKS + more to be announced

Here's Angelique Kidjo's re-imagining of Talking Heads' 'Once In A Lifetime' from this year's Remain In Light...

Watch footage of The Silkroad Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma playing a dazzling rendition of 'Arabian Waltz'...

Watch the video for TEEKS's soulful hit 'If Only'...

Press release:

WOMAD New Zealand - the world's festival, is a three day festival of world music, arts and dance, known for its exciting, diverse and discoverable line-up. Now is in its 15th year WOMAD New Zealand is being held once again in the stunning TSB Bowl of Brooklands, Pukekura Park, New Plymouth.

Still on a high from the 2018 festival which was dubbed "one of the best yet", today WOMAD New Zealand announced three stellar artists to perform in 2019.

Grammy Award-winning Angelique Kidjo is a Beninese singer-songwriter, actress and activist. The "Africa's premier diva" will perform tracks from her 2018 release Remain In Light - a celebration of the genius of Talking Heads.

The Silkroad Ensemble is a collective of virtuoso musicians from over 20 countries. The performers take time off from their roles in the world’s best orchestras and as pre-eminent academics at some of the leading music schools across the globe to tour with the supergroup.Their repertoire includes popular jazz; traditional Vietnamese, Chinese and Kazakh music; Finnish folk song; Jugalbandi and much more.

From Aotearoa, WOMAD New Zealand are ecstatic to present the young soul-sensation TEEKS. "The 23-year-old Maori soul singer who performs with the poise and grace of someone who has woken up every single day of his life and eaten a combination of Motown and Frank Sinatra records for breakfast." - New Zealand Herald

All three artists are set to become festival favourites and WOMAD New Zealand 2019 is already promising to be a very special weekend.

WOMAD Event Director and NZ Programme Manager, Emere Wano says, "Our goal is to sprinkle the landscape with experiences that exist beyond our own. Our hope is that everyone will discover something new, something that moves them and we can't wait to deliver and celebrate another diverse and exciting festival in Taranaki".