Beyond The Music: Second wave of artist announced for 2026

SECOND WAVE OF ARTISTS ANNOUNCED FOR 2026 EDITION OF GREATER MANCHESTER’S GLOBAL MUSIC & CREATIVE INDUSTRY CONFERENCE & FESTIVAL.

TOM A SMITH, ALT BLK ERA, JAYAHADADREAM, GANS, SILVERWINGKILLER, MOUTH ULCERS, CODY FROST, THE SLOW READERS CLUB, SCORCHER, BAWO, BEX, LADY ICE, CHE3KZ + MANY MORE ADDED TODAY.

NEXT GENERATION TALENT PLATFORMED TO THE GLOBAL CREATIVE INDUSTRIES, WITH CURATION FROM SXSW, BBC INTRODUCING, THE LINE OF BEST FIT, AMAZON MUSIC +44, NOTION, CHRIS HAWKINS AWESOME FRIENDS + MORE.

THREE DAYS OF VITAL POLICY-SETTING CONVERSATIONS, LECTURES, NETWORKING EVENTS, KEYNOTES AND MORE
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THREE NIGHTS OF BREAK THROUGH MUSIC SHOWCASED ACROSS MEDIACITY AND SALFORD SPACES

6TH – 9TH OCTOBER 2026
MEDIACITY, SALFORD, GREATER MANCHESTER

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

Beyond The Music has revealed the second wave of artists to perform at its upcoming third edition. Taking over MediaCity, Salford in Greater Manchester, the groundbreaking music and creative industry conference and accompanying music showcase festival will take place 6th – 9th October at MediaCity, Salford in Greater Manchester. 

Carefully curated by Oli Wilson, co-founder and lead music programmer of Beyond The Music, the festival’s pledge to find, book and nurture talents both new and established has quickly seen it defined as one of the UK’s most diverse and immersive showcases; pledging a 50/50 gender split across its lineups and ensuring underrepresented and undersupported genres, scenes and individuals –particularly those from Greater Manchester– are offered equal opportunities to grow their fanbases and professional networks regardless of their level of experience within the music industry.

For 2026, Beyond The Music has also welcomed an eclectic slate of brand new stage partners, with the likes of Amazon Music +44, SXSW, BBC Introducing, Notion, The Line of Best Fit, Chris Hawkins Awesome Friends, Dot to Dot Festival, Focus Wales, Louder Than War, Rock and Metal Alliance, NQ and many more set to present their own range of curated lineups throughout the week.

Announced today, the next group of artists confirmed to perform at Beyond The Music 2026 include Sunderland singer-songwriter Tom A. Smith, who will also be speaking at the festival’s accompanying creative industry forum; Walt Disco, the Scottish art-rock outfit in the midst of a self-described “re-birth”; and the rapidly rising London goth-rockers Mouth Ulcers, fresh from signing to Manchester label LAB Records. 

Manchester’s own talent will shine in the form of Cody Frost, who returns to the festival for a second time, having sprung into the industry spotlight with a major label signing since debuting at Beyond The Music in 2023; Spinny Nights-signed audio-visual duo Another Country $$$$ and British/Chinese pairing SILVERWINGKILLER will offer a glimpse into the city’s uncompromising, experimental electronic underground; and further corners of the region’s genre spectrum will be showcased via the likes of Holly Head, Boo Kickz and TELESHOPPING.

Elsewhere, today’s announcement also includes Ch3ekz, a dynamic Manchester artist praised for her dedication to championing individuality and her fellow female artists will perform a blend of grime, hip-hop, bassline and DnB; BBC Radio 1Xtra tipped rapper JD Cliffe; the introspective rap of hometown artist Migraine Mowgli and British-Jamaican artist, producer and rapper Superlative, blending hip hop, soul, jazz and electronic influences.

For those looking for something heavier, there’s ALT BLK ERA’s blend of rap, rock and DnB; 80’s inspired hardcore of Bruise Control and the progressive metal of Manchester’s 40,000 Leagues; plus many more still to be announced in the coming weeks. See below for the full lineup so far.

Beyond The Music will transform a number of venues and spaces across MediaCity and Salford into a hub for musical discovery, redefining the meaning of “grassroots” and embracing creativity with the repurposing of TV studios, outdoors spaces, bars and more; building on Greater Manchester’s new music boom by expanding beyond its city centre.

Festival tickets, delegate passes and Festival day and single show tickets are available to purchase now, for more information see: https://www.beyondthemusic.co.uk/

Beyond The Music 2026

Music Lineup (A-Z)

40,000 Leagues // ALT BLK ERA // Another Country $$$$ // Bawo // Beam Noir // BEX // Blood Dealer // Bloodworm // Boo Kickz // Bruise Control // Che3kz // Cody Frost // Conduit // cruush // Cutscene // Dekaytah // Ewan Sim // Freya Beer // GANS // Gen and The Degenerates // Georgian // GETNER // Hana Lili // Holly Head // Jayahadadream // JD Cliffe // Lady Ice // Lei Hope // LIINES // Loren Heat // Marie Franc // Max White // Migraine Mowgli // Mouth Ulcers // Naomi Kalu // Nessa May // Nico Harmony // OneDa // Roukaya B // Ruby Duff // Scorcher // SILVERWINGKILLER // SpaceAcre // Superlative // Sweet Gene // Swivel // TANA // Teleshopping // The Slow Readers Club // The Small Fortunes // The Wran // The Zangwills // Third Kulture // Tom A. Smith // Treks // Venkappa // walt disco // Yetti Tabai

By day, the 2026 edition of Beyond The Music’s acclaimed conference programming will combine leading figures from across the music, creative and political industries for a series of vital, change-making and challenging conversations dedicated to protecting and developing the right to protection and ownership of the arts. By identifying music as the glue that ties the content sectors together, the programme will ask the most influential voices to come together in order to find solutions and shape a cohesive strategic direction.

Alongside an exclusive premiere of the 24th Anniversary edition of 24 Hour Party People;  the debut launch of Billboard UK’s 40 Under 40 list and three days of panels, keynotes and debates themed around Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of Happiness,  a core element of the 2026 programme will be a first of its kind global All Content AI Summit convened by Andy Burnham, Prime Minister of the UK and founding member of Beyond The Music; bringing the leading practitioners and policymakers from every content industry together to align on a shared, rights and integrity-first position for AI – identifying practical routes to licensing, provenance, attribution and enforcement in order for innovation to grow and flourish without eroding trust, livelihoods or lawful commerce.