Glastonbury day three, as it happened: Friday with Stormzy, Rosalia, Lewis Capaldi and George Ezra
Grime star became the first British rapper to headline the music festival in a set that featured appearances from Chris Martin, Dave and Fredo
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Your support makes all the difference.Stormzy made history with an explosive headline set on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury 2019.
The grime star became the first British rapper to headline the world-famous music festival on Friday 28 June, with a performance that included guest appearances from Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, and fellow MCs Dave and Fredo.
As expected following an announcement by the BBC, Stormzy’s set was uncensored and included a stand-out line from his single “Vossi Bop”: “F*** the government and f*** Boris.”
Elsewhere, he sampled a speech by Labour MP David Lammy, who responded with a tweet: "Stormzy using his headline spot at #glastonburyfestival2019 to speak out about the injustice of young black kids being criminalised in a biased and disproportionate justice system. Humbled and inspired that he sampled my speech. Salute #Merky."
Stormzy also featured a gospel choir for his song “Blinded By Your Grace”, dance troupes, and a special shout out his fellow artists, from established grime pioneers such as Wiley and Skepta to future stars including AJ Tracey, Ms Banks, Yxng Bane and Stefflon Don.
“This is the greatest night of my entire life. Who’s got energy today?” he asked the thousands of people watching his show.
For his grand finale he closed on “Big For Your Boots”, the track from his Brit Award-winning, record-breaking debut album Gang Signs & Prayer.
The liveblog is now closed
See all the best pictures from Glastonbury here.
Bastille just played an infectious, frenetic set on the Pyramid Stage. A whirling dervish in a smiley face T-shirt, frontman Dan Smith leapt and stalked and spun across the stage as if his life depended on it, tossing aside his cap before the first song – "Quarter Past Midnight", the lead single from their new hit album Doom Days – was even finished. Rationale joined the band on stage, during which the pair bounced as if in competition for who could bounce the highest. Later, for "Send Them Off!", a brass band, resplendent on a revolving platform, took centre stage. In what was perhaps a nod to Pride month, Smith's socks were rainbow-patterned, as was one of Woody's drums.
Report by Alexandra Pollard
"Are you drinking enough water? this festival and this weekend are our favourite weekend in the whole f*cking year. I know it's a cliche and everyone says it, but this is the best festival in the whole world. I came here and spent the whole day at this stage watching bands I didn't give a sh*t about because I wanted to see Amy Winehouse and Jay-Z. I'm sorry if we're that band for you." - Dan Smith, self-deprecating as ever
Blimey, it's a busy day for Lewis Capaldi. First a secret set, and now he's joined Bastille on the Pyramid Stage.
Dan Smith might not claim to be the best dancer, but he is undoubtedly the bounciest frontman in British music.
Next up on the Pyramid Stage will be Ms Lauryn Hill, one of the Independent's 20 acts you shouldn't miss. Meanwhile, Alexandra Pollard has just headed off to watch the supremely talented Rosalia. Review to follow later.
Mark Ronson sporting a rather fetching wig in homage to King PrincessMark Ronson joined King Princess on The Park Stage; he was introduced as her "father and a King Princess impersonator on the weekends".
Stormy will be the first black British artist to headline Glastonbury's iconic Pyramid Stage.
"I take my hat off to him for his attitude, for being the person that doesn’t always do what people expect of him. Whether that be speaking out against racial profiling, making fun of vegans or creating a scholarship for Black students at Cambridge and being an advocate for academia."
Julie Adenuga, a presenter on Beats 1, Apple's 24/7 radio station as part of Apple Music, explained why his headline slot this year is so important in this article.
Lauryn Hill is about to start on the Pyramid Stage, at least in theory; she is, after all, notoriously tardy. Hill, who was the heart and soul of Nineties hip-hop band Fugees, is not only an accomplished rapper, but has one of the best singing voices of her generation. Live, she performs tracks from that band’s two brilliant albums, as well as from her seminal 1998 solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, a heady melange of R&P, hip hop, soul and reggae. Her performances, though, tend to be a bit hit-and-miss. Let's see how this one pans out.
Hearing that King Princess's set on the Park Stage was brilliant. "She started by saying, 'Any gays in the house?' and the whole front section cheered." Few artists have hit the ground running quite like King Princess, the first ever signing to Mark Ronson’s Zelig Records. The 20-year-old’s debut single, “1950”, was an exquisite, minimalist declaration of young queer love, and earned the singer an almost immediate cult following. Since then, she’s proven her staying power with the equally sublime “Talia”, the flirty, sneering “Upper West Side”, and the unashamedly horny banger “Pussy is God”. She doesn’t even have an album out yet, and already that’s a pretty wonderful festival setlist. She'll be worth watching on BBC later on.
Rosalia has just got her set under way on the John Peel Stage. Here's what Alexandra Pollard said about her earlier:
"One of the shortlisted artists for the BBC’s Sound of 2019, the Spanish singer puts a modern spin on old-school flamenco, singing almost entirely in Spanish and bringing the ancient sound of her homeland to a global, 21st-century audience. Having worked with the likes of J Balvin, Pharrell and James Blake, the 25-year-old is destined for very big things indeed. Catch her before she blows up."
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