A Very Big, Very Orange Weekend: BBC Radio 1's Annual Festival Triumph

We had the privilege of attending BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend, taking place in Stockwood Park, Luton. While the weather remained unpredictable throughout the weekend, you can always rely on BBC's curated lineup, with the likes of Sabrina Carpenter and Coldplay, to lighten the mood.

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Alfie Templeman opened up the Radio 1 New Music Stage on Saturday, with the setlist filled with crowd favourites such as '3D Feelings' and 'Happiness in Liquid Form'. Despite facing technical difficulties during the set, Templeman managed to keep the crowd entertained with his endearing energy during a stripped-back version of the track 'Hello Lonely'. Fans can look forward to his brand new upcoming album 'Radiosoul', coming out on June 7th, and fans got a peek at what is to come, as Alfie performed 'Beckham' (freshly released just before the festival) and 'Just a Dance', both of which can be found on the new record. Templeman's album is shaping up to be one of the most exciting releases of the summer, and this festival set acted as a welcome return to Templeman and his band ahead album promotion, including a record store tour starting next week. It's always a pleasure to watch Alfie perform within his different album eras, and seeing how each one varies from its predecessor.

Some of our personal images from the weekend, including our friends. Swipe across to see!

Another highlight, this time gracing the Radio 1 Main Stage, was Aitch. From setlist staples like 'Strike a Pose' and 'Buss Down', to new hit 'Famous Girl', he provided attendees with the opportunity to let loose and enjoy themselves while the sun shined down on the May Bank Holiday Weekend. Surprise guest Yung Filly joined him on stage for a special performance of 'Grey', to the crowd's delight. Having seen Aitch perform in both intimate settings and previous festival slots, it is clear he has a knack for making everyone enjoy their experience during his performance.

Raye gave us one of the most beautiful headliner performances we have seen in recent years. Raye's sheer honesty on the stage makes her a joy to watch; she gives all of her energy and passion to the crowd watching her set. Raye takes the time to give us an insight into the smaller details of her musical creation and decisions, such as the intention behind the track list order on her critically acclaimed album 'My 21st Century Blues'. She swiftly took us through the various moments of her music career, including a jazz-infused melody of hits earlier on in her career ('BED' and 'You Don't Know Me'). A solo-festival goer in front of us during Raye's set turned to the stranger next to her and warned her as Raye introduced 'Ice Cream Man' that she was going to cry, and gosh was she right. Raye shared her own growth to seeing herself as a strong woman, and passed the knowledge onto her audience from a big sister perspective. We were also very excited to hear the snippet from Raye's upcoming release, 'Genesis' that we previously heard at the BRIT Awards. The festival had posters plastered on its walls advertising the 7-minute song's release on June 7th, and this snippet perfectly teased her audience as to expected the unexpected of Raye's new era. Her incredible stage presence and genuine passion shining through her immense talent made this a highlight of the day, and an hour has never gone so quickly. You cannot help but root for Raye, and we cannot wait to watch her conquer the world as she did at the BRITs earlier this year.

Sunday's line-up was filled with more incredible artists, showcasing their talent in Luton - all artists brought their a-game, and magical is far from an understatement to describe the feeling of the day.

Opening up the day was supergroup, FIZZ, who are made up of solo musicians dodie, Orla Gartland, Greta Isaac and Martin Luke Brown. In a world of musicians coming together for a new wave of collaborative projects (see also boygenius and Kaytraminé), FIZZ are a really exciting addition to the current music industry sonic landscape. Having seen them perform nearly a year ago at Barn on the Farm, it was great to see how the band's onstage performance has expanded since their debut studio album was released last autumn. FIZZ was the perfect introduction to the Sunday lineup, as while the stormy weather persisted outside of the New Music tent, the band brought their typical high energy, wacky vibes, transporting their audience to the sunny Brighton seaside.

It wouldn't be a Blonde Vibrations attended event without an abundance of compliments to Declan McKenna's consistent flawless performances at festivals - he is truly the dream addition to any lineup. Declan's was a perfect combination of his three albums with an almost perfect split between them. Despite having released his music spanning from 2015 with the release of his debut single (and fan favourite) 'Brazil', up to this year with 'What do you think about the beach?', McKenna's set remains exciting and feels true to himself. The closing track of 'British Bombs' with corresponding visuals regarding our government reminds the audience of his activist stance and held a very important place during a festival in these unsettling political times.

Sabrina Carpenter knows how to pull a crowd and keep them on their toes. Dressed in a bright orange (for the town's football colours?), Sabrina is a born entertainer and it's no wonder the festival goers were cramming into the pit to get a perfect view of the show. She is the epitome of pop sensation and we absolutely love the revival of cheeky, pop girlies in the current music industry. The crowd loudly chanted the lyrics to songs like 'because i liked a boy' and the viral sensation 'Espresso', and was one of the loudest and most engaged crowds of the whole weekend. Carpenter allowed for a sensation of angst and relief, to let emotions out and have a dance all at the same time - the exact stance that Sabrina takes herself with tracks like 'Vicious'. Everyone was eager to hear the infamous 'Nonsense' outro, known to change dependent on the location of each show, but we won't go there... We, and many others in our social media comments sections, would like to have seen how she would have rhymed Luton.

An extra shoutout is due to Olly Alexander, making his first UK appearance under his own name - a performance that we had eagerly anticipated to see what was in store. Hearing songs like 'King', 'Eyes Shut' and 'Desire' from Years & Years' 2015 album, 'Communion', filled Eliz with such nostalgia and sent her right back to her teenage years. We watched Olly's set with a roast dinner (who would've thought that was a possible meal choice at a festival?), so were warmed to our cores on multiple levels by his humble but energetic performance.

Our penultimate highlight of the festival was none other than Olivia Dean - another artist we saw last festival season, but has grown and shined brightly ever since. Olivia is such a consistently flawless performer, so we knew that this would be a highlight of the weekend right away. Joined by a seven-piece band, her set really showcased her ability as a musician, as well as the intricate tracks that some newer fans of her debut album, 'Messy', may not be familiar with, like 'Echo' and 'Be My Own Boyfriend' from her older EPs. Dean is hypnotising on stage and the atmosphere in the crowd was one of the most wholesome we had seen all week, including a group of three girls in front of us holding one another for Dean's closing number of 'Dive'. Olivia only currently has a couple of UK appearances lined up this summer, but we're already looking forward to a time where we may cross paths again soon.

Closing out the whole festival was none other than Coldplay, whose music is loved by listeners spanning across generations - so this one was a special moment for day-one and newer fans alike. The touch of their synchronised light-up wristbands (named 'xylobands' on the band's 2012 Mylo Xyloto tour) also brought watchers of the set together with the matching colours bringing a collaborative element to the audience as they matched the on-stage visuals. Friends and family held one another in tears during the moving, 'Yellow' - an irreplaceable experience. Sabrina Carpenter returned to the stage as a surprise guest and this was an unforgettable moment for 'Magic' - a new version that we NEED to see added to streaming services. For the closing number, Luton locals were touched by an additional song, with the very fitting title of 'Orange' - a song dedicated to Luton Football Club. And while we could not relate to the hometown pride, as commuters to the festival, the merriness of football fans was surprisingly infectious. Coldplay were a perfect end to a very muddy, but fulfilling weekend.

Thank you to the BBC Press Team for inviting us up to cover Big Weekend 2024. We are already placing our bets as to 2025's location... If you'd like to catch up on any of the sets, and are based in the UK, they are on BBC iPlayer within the next month. We absolutely will be catching up on any sets that were clashing!

Words by Lilyemma and Eliz (Blonde Vibrations)