The Great Escape 2025

Every May, across Brighton, numerous venues and promoters unite to put on The Great Escape festival. First held in 2006, the yearly festival has become the place to watch regulars and newcomers alike within the music scene. This year, the festival will run from Wednesday, 14th May to Saturday, 17th May and the Sonic Hub team is excited to be attending!

With over 450 emerging artists from all over the world in 30+ walkable venues across the city and a pop-up festival site on Brighton Beach, it’s the go-to place for enjoying and getting to know emerging talent.

Alongside the main acts, the festival offers several special strands that range a wide range of genres and styles. For night owls, The Late Escape is a must-go. Hosted by two of Brighton’s iconic venues, Patterns and The Arch, this late-night event caters to fans of dance and electronic music, and takes place on Friday 16th May and Saturday 17th. Alternatively, for those keen to discover rising talent, The Alternate Escape is worth exploring. Showcasing over 150 artists, many of them Brighton-based, this strand gives promoters and labels the chance to curate their own events, with support from The Great Escape and its partners, who provide the venues, equipment, and logistics. Even better; it’s free! As the festival states, ”keeping the event free is a deliberate choice to support unsigned and emerging artists. By removing financial barriers, The Alternate Escape ensures that talent, not ticket prices, takes precedence.” Each year, the festival also curates a programme of panels, networking sessions and talks on the music industry and beyond, for newcomers to the sector and beyond.

With such a plurality of acts and programming, we are sure there will be something for you! Here are some acts the Sonic Hub team doesn’t want to miss:

Ashaine White - a London-based singer-songwriter. Ashaine focuses on authenticity in her music over trends or genres. Performing on Thursday, 15th May & Saturday, 19th May.

Catty - a rising pop artist born and raised in Wales. Catty has opened for Stevie Nicks, Dylan, and more. Performing on Thursday, 15th May.

Chloe Slater - an indie singer-songwriter born in Bournemouth and now based in Manchester. She has been writing songs since she was 13 years old. Performing on Thursday, 15th May.

James Marriott - English YouTuber and musician. The indie rock musician has previously charted at No. 17 on the UK albums chart and No. 67 on the UK singles chart. Performing on Friday, 16th May 

Luvcat -  Luvcat writes songs inspired by the dark and playful romance of Leonard Cohen, her travels, and the lovers and libertines she meets along the way. Performing on Thursday, 15th May & Friday, 16th May.

Nxdia - an Egyptian-Sudanese alt-pop singer-songwriter. They explore their own vulnerabilities in their songwriting and use these to connect with others, with many of their songs having gained a lot of social media traction in the past couple of years. Performing on Thursday, 15th May.

Rizzle Kicks - a musician duo formed over 2 decades ago. Both halves moved from London to Brighton before attending the world-famous BRIT school. Performing an already sold-out spotlight show on Friday, 16th May. Free tickets will become available to festival wristband holders closer to the date.

Zimmer90 - an alt-pop band from Germany. Their most recent single ‘What Love Is’ has gained an immense amount of traction on social media. Performing on Friday.16th May.

Tickets for The Great Escape are still available! For FAQs, artists’ set times, and more, please visit the festival’s website.

---

WORDS GRACE PATIENT