The list of top acts scheduled to appear at one of Suffolk’s most popular music festivals in its 10th anniversary year is growing, with comedic rappers Goldie Lookin Chain joining the line-up.
Last week, organisers of LeeStock Music Festival announced the first three acts that will appear at the event at Melford Hall this May, including singer/songwriter Newton Faulkner who will top the bill.
In addition to Faulkner, and in celebration of the 10-year milestone, American rockers Wheatus and British act Toploader are both set to return to the festival for a second time for what is being billed as a ‘greatest hits’ line-up.
The festival is held annually in memory of 21-year-old Sudbury musician Lee Dunford, who died in 2006 after a battle with cancer.
During the past decade, it has raised more than £100,000 for the Willow Foundation, a national charity that provides special days for seriously-ill young adults, including Lee shortly before he died.
Newton Faulkner shot to fame in 2007 when his first album Hand Built By Robots, topped the charts, deposing Amy Winehouse, achieving a million sales and spending a year in the Top 40.
His third album, Write It On Your Skin also topped the charts and he is now a highlight of the festival season, recently appearing at Glastonbury and the Isle of Wight Festival.
Wheatus, famous for their huge hit Teenage Dirtbag which has since been covered by One Direction on their recent tours, headlined the festival in 2012 and are returning from America to bring their electric live show. Toploader had top billing at the festival’s first year at Melford Hall in 2013 and have been announced as the headline act on the Sunday of this year’s festival.
The latest to join the packed programme of performances is Goldie Lookin Chain. The welsh comedic rap group found fame in the mid-2000s with their comedy take on the hip-hop genre and their huge hit Guns Don’t Kill People Rappers Do which reached number 3 in the UK charts. They have had six top 40 hits in total and they bring their funky stage show to LeeStock as main support to Toploader on the Sunday.
Festival co-organiser Matt Keogh said: “We’re amazed to have made it to our tenth year and hugely honoured in that time to have donated over £100,000 to charity.
“We felt we really wanted a celebration of what all of our supporters had achieved and having seen all three acts’ live shows previously, know that everyone’s in for a treat this year.”
The festival is on May 27 and 28 and tickets are priced from £12 plus booking fee for a day ticket, with under 12s free. For full details, go to www.leestock.org or see the festival’s Facebook page.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here