Janelle Monae has been announced as the headline act for the West Holts stage at Glastonbury Festival 2019.
The Dirty Computer musician, who is nominated for several Grammy awards for her latest, critically acclaimed album, was revealed as a major feature on this year’s lineup by festival organiser Emily Eavis.
Monae is joined on this year’s billing by fellow artists Stormzy – who is headlining the Friday night of the festival – and Kylie Minogue, who is playing on the Sunday afternoon. Monae previously played the festival in 2011.
“Visually it was just incredible,” Eavis said of her performance, which was named one of the 100 best Glastonbury sets ever. “You could have watched it with the sound off.”
During the interview on the launch of the new BBC Radio 6 Breakfast Show with Lauren Laverne, Eavis also spoke about changes taking place on the Glastonbury site at Worthy Farm.
She revealed that Arcadia are working on a new design that will be the home of a brand new show, and that Block 9 is also expanding with a “mind-blowing” new installation.
Glastonbury is apparently now “90 per cent of the way there” with the lineup, with final confirmations “going on now”.
“We’re really lucky to be able to get the bands we’ve got,” Eavis said. “As you know, we don’t pay the same amounts as others, so we’re kind of reliant on good feeling.”
Dirty Computer was named among the top five best albums of 2018 by The Independent, with praise for its production along with Monae’s address of issues of sexual freedom, self-worth, and the the oppression of LGBT+, black and minority people in her lyrics, which alternate between singing and rap.
