Rhythm And Alps 2026 First Lineup Announced - Dimension, BENEE, Fat Freddy's Drop, MPH, Shapeshifter + More

Aotearoa's southern summer festival tradition, Rhythm and Alps is returning to Cardrona Valley near Wānaka with an absolutely gigantic bill for the two day New Years Eve extravaganza's sixteenth edition. Festival favourites abound on this years first lineup drop — from both abroad and around the motu — headlined by UK drum and bass king Dimension, Aotearoa roots innovators Fat Freddy's Drop, pop sensation BENEE, local electronic icons Shapeshifter, UK Garage don MPH, Irish electronic dance phenomenons Belters Only, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Scope out the full first lineup details revealed today below, look forward to even more major acts to be announced for Rhythm And Alps 2026 in the coming weeks, and start making plans for a massive New Years...

RHYTHM AND ALPS 2026
Wednesday 30th December to Thursday 31st December - Cardrona Valley, Wānaka

DIMENSION
BENEE, FAT FREDDY’S DROP, MPH, SHAPESHIFTER
BELTERS ONLY, BORDERLINE, CHARLI BRIX, ELY OAKS, FAT PAPI, FLAVA D, FLOWIDUS, [IVY], LEE MVTTHEWS, NO CIGAR, WAX MUSTANG
BARI, CHRIS KEENE, DEEP NOTION, FREDSTA, HYAN, INMOTION, MIKEYY, PIXIE LANE, SOUL WUN, SUUNE, TOUGH BREAK, WHERE’S JAI
BAD BIRDS, BENTHAMISM, CHARLIE C, COMMUNICATE, CONNOR TOMOANA, HARPERR, HELIX, INDECISIVE, INERTIA, JASPER CALI, KNOX, LIBBY K, LJ GROOVE, MANTIS, MAXX GUNN, MCNILLA, MISS JANE, NICK MUNDAY, OPTICS, PARRY, POWDER CHUTES, RUPERT POWELL, SPACELLA, STEADY, WHEELS
+ more to be announced

Tickets are on sale now via rhythmandalps.co.nz, with festival-goers able to lock in a Full Festival Ticket for both days or choose a Single Day Ticket for either December 30th or 31st

Here's Dimension's 2025 anthem 'Guardian Angel' featuring Karen Harding...

Uplift your Wednesday with Fat Freddy's Drop's classic 'Blackbird'...

Revisit BENEE's 2020 APRA Silver Scroll-winning 'Glitter'...

Peep the official Rhythm and Alps 2025 15th Anniversary Aftermovie...

Press release:

Rhythm & Alps is turning up the heat with a huge 2026 lineup, bringing together one of the most stacked collections of talent to hit the festival this summer. Drum & bass powerhouse Dimension leads the international charge, alongside MPH, the rising producer and DJ at the forefront of the new wave of UK garage and bass music, and Irish dance duo Belters Only.

This year’s bill also puts New Zealand music firmly centre stage, bringing together established Aotearoa heavyweights and some of the country’s most exciting emerging names. Fat Freddy’s Drop, Shapeshifter, BENEE, Lee Mvtthews, NO CIGAR, Wax Mustang and more lead a huge homegrown contingent spanning drum & bass, electronic, indie, hip-hop and beyond.

From the first act of the day to the final set of the night, there’s always something worth being in front of the stage for. It’s a lineup built to be explored - packed with proven favourites, rising talent and the kind of discoveries that become festival highlights.

That commitment to Aotearoa runs deeper than the lineup. Rhythm & Alps is 100% locally owned and operated - built here, by Kiwis, with money, opportunities and energy flowing back into the artists, crews, suppliers and communities that make New Zealand’s live music industry what it is.

It means every ticket supports more than three days of music in the Cardrona Valley. It supports an independent Kiwi festival backing Kiwi music on a world-class stage.

Big sounds. Big summer. And a massive lineup at the helm for one heck of a New Year in the Southern Alps.