Search: Le Mini Who?

Le Mini Who? presents the contemporary (Dutch) underground, in collaboration with independent local stores, shops and bars. It transforms Utrecht's city streets into a festival area, with more than fi...

Le Mini Who? is a spin-off festival of Le Guess Who?. It turns venues, cafes, art spaces and even a fire station of the fast-developing and creative area Cartesius into improvised venues for (mainly)...

As a spin-off festival of Le Guess Who?, Le Mini Who? transforms many of Utrecht’s local bars, restaurants, venues and warehouses into improvised venues for (mainly) Dutch underground bands to p...

Discover what De Voorkamer is all about: come along and take part in all kinds of creative 'mini' activities. These activities will give you a good impression of everything that takes place at De Voor...

Italian-born, London-based record producer, mixer, and engineer Marta Salogni is adding drummer, composer, and percussionist Valentina Magaletti (of Vanishing Twin and many more) to her laundry list o...

COSMOS: Behind the Scenes with Rắn Cạp Đuôi  In 'Behind the Scenes', COSMOS dives into local stories from across the world together with our global partners. Vietnamese experimental music collective Rắn Cạp Đuôi have been expanding their vast auditory spectrum since forming back in 2015. On their first two albums, Ngủ N...

Le Guess Who? x Kapitaal x Stranded FM present: The Official Hang-out. Through live music, radio dj-sets, talks, art exhibitions, printing and all things that scream print and sound, Kapitaal will tra...

Ever since 1982, The Wire stands out as one of the best independent, in-depth print and online music magazines. The Wire celebrates and interrogates the most visionary and inspiring, subversive and radical, marginalized and undervalued musicians on the planet, past and present.  Leading up to Le Guess Who? 2024 we're very honored to...

Le Guess Who? takes pace across 20 locations in the city center of Utrecht; ranging from churches and galleries to theaters and pop venues. Most are within walking distance from each other. Here are a couple highlighted.

Le Guess Who? will host a special lunch at LOU Oudenoord. A place for conversation, reflection, relaxation and great food. Engage in talks with your fellow festival visitors about all the things you&r...

"Spiralling outwards from the cobbled, canal-studded streets of the old town, Utrecht is an architecturally beautiful city in the centre of the Netherlands." - Crack Magazine

Thank you for your donation! With your support, we're able to continue to showcase underrepresented sounds that otherwise would not be heard. Photo: Loop at Le Guess Who?, by Erik Luyten.

Le Guess Who? 2013 Live videos from LGW13 VPRO 3VOOR12 captured live performances from different locations in Utrecht. Watch below:

In the flamenco world, Frente Abierto presents new possibilities. The group welcomes genres as diverse as metal and ambient into their realm, fusing their experimental streak with some of new flamenco’s most powerful singers.  At Le Guess Who? 2024, the Andalusian collective collaborated with Israel Fernández, a cantaor...

At De Havenloods you’ll be able to visit an art exhibition made for the Le Guess Who? Education Program. The exhibition features work made by five classes from three high schools from Utrecht: X...

Mabe Fratti’s benchmark new record, ‘Sentir que no sabes’, comes two years after her stunning Le Guess Who? performance. This year, the Guatemalan-born, Mexico-based vocalist, and ce...

The film installation 'Memory Lost' is heralded as a masterpiece in the career of photographer Nan Goldin, whose work is raw, intimate and tender, often intertwined with her own life experiences and w...

Le Feast invites you into a living room in Utrecht, to enjoy a feast together with people you don't know (yet). Would you like to join as a home-chef or guest? You can now sign up! “Le Feast is...

Presented by Le Guess Who?, Casco Art Institute: Working for the Commons, No Seat At The Table, BAK - basis voor actuele kunst, Urban Futures Studio (Utrecht University), RAUM “In urban social...

This isn’t Nídia’s first rodeo - or, rather, her first visit to Le Guess Who?. The producer is back to grace us with her take on Afro-Portuguese styles such as kuduro, batida, and t...

Regardless of where his muse takes him, electronic musician Nick León never loses sight of Miami's dance floor. The sound he curates for the club is dystopian in nature, evoking the chaos only...

COSMOS is a hybrid stage that aims to bring the Le Guess Who? experience to the world, and the world to Le Guess Who? COSMOS is a sanctuary for experimentation and inspiration, taking place from...

Utrecht's beloved independent print workshop, Kapitaal, collaborates with Stranded FM and Julian Brimmers to host the official Le Guess Who? 2022 Hangout through all things print and sound. The progra...

South Carolina-based artist Khari Lucas is a multifaceted creator. Making music as Contour is only one of his many artistic exploits, among which he includes film scoring, fashion work, radio programming, and more. Contour is a vessel for his musical research, songwriting, and production. Via soundbites and references, Contour draws in hi...

‘What Is Not Strange?’ asks Los Angeles-based performer Tashi Wada on his first solo album’s title. As its name suggests, the artist’s latest work - his most ambitious and impa...

For half a decade, Italy-hailing multidisciplinary artist and filmmaker Rebecca Salvadori has been enamored with the converging spot of performance, the moving image, and live filming. Out of this fas...

The Body & Dis Fig performed live on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024. Relive the full, overwhelming - sonically as well as physically - performance below.  A crossover between American duo The Body, who have been tinkering with noise and metal since 1999, and Berlin-based DJ, producer, and vocalist Felicia Chen (AKA Di...

London’s Lunch Money Life has gone dark; their social media displays only a stoic 2025 date. Before then, however, they will play their single show of the year at Le Guess Who?. The band is boun...

Vocalist Martin Kanja (or Lord Spikeheart), has become a nominal head in the Kenyan metal scene - first with speed-core group Lust of a Dying Breed, and later alongside Le Guess Who? alumnus Duma. Now...

French multidisciplinary artist, journalist, and producer Christelle Oyiri is Crystallmess, the fearless embodiment of a disco ball on fire. For Le Guess Who?, Crystallmess will treat audiences to a l...

Seven years after her stunning 2017 debut ‘Ahwar’ sent ripples through the experimental music scene, Montreal-based producer and vocalist Nadah El Shazly has further propelled her sound to...

Everyone is aware of the power of gospel music, but, to truly feel its electricity, one has to be charged in person. Annie & The Caldwells arrive from West Point, Mississippi to kindly and mightil...

British-Egyptian Dr. Hannah Elsisi is an award-winning social and intellectual historian with a PhD in History from Oxford University. At Le Guess Who? she presents the 13-hour durational performance...

VULVA and Acidic Male may both hail from the Rotterdam, but they are very different; whereas duo VULVA trade sludge and garage punk amongst themselves, interdisciplinary artist Acidic Male operates so...

Seven years later, Ex-Easter Island Head is returning to Le Guess Who?. When this UK-based experimental musical collective steps on stage, the electric guitar (an instrument whose possibilities someti...

Maurice Louca is one of the most talented names to have emerged from Egypt's thriving experimental arts scene. He is continuously exploring new avenues for his sound. A restless creator, Maurice Louca...

afromerm is the solo project of composer, sound artist, and poet Cecilia Morgan. Drawing from contemporary, jazz, and cinematic soundscapes, the project meshes electronic elements with live instrument...

Although they never played together at the time, Asher Gamedze and James McClure both played in bands that shared bills in the independent Cape Town music scene in the early-mid 2010s. A decade later,...

Utrecht's independent print workshop Kapitaal, once again hosts the official Le Guess Who? Hangout through all things print and sound. The program is a culmination of print, live music, DJ's, pizza's...

Partners in marriage and art, Ibelisse Guardia Ferragutti and Frank Rosaly’s ‘MESTIZX’ builds upon the sounds of their respective ancestral roots in Bolivia, Brazil, and Puerto Rico....

This year, Le Guess Who? attendees will again be treated to a performance by DNA? AND?, an Oslo-based improvisation project unlike any other. This is because the group is made up of professional music...

South London-based musical movement slash curatorial platform Touching Bass is curating a three-in-one surprise; in one booth, they are linking not one, not two, but three beatmakers. For this highly-...

For a very special, one-time performance at Le Guess Who? 2018, Circuit des Yeux's Haley Fohr enlisted an eight-piece ensemble featuring members of the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra. With this performance, Fohr further expanded the captivating compositions of her latest, acclaimed album ‘Reaching for Indigo’, which c...

Le Guess Who? 2018 features a wide variety of club & dancefloor-oriented music, which we've now brought together in one playlist for you to explore. Check out the 'Club Cuts of Le Guess Who? 2018'...

After the overwhelming response to the Reports in 2020, Le Guess Who? continued to reach out to artists, musicians, and creatives across the globe to find stories from within their local communities t...

Jagannathan Sampath, or DINfidel, is a computer programmer who makes music on his computer called DIN Is Noise. Sampath started his screen career elsewhere, as he began writing computer animation soft...

A crossover between American duo The Body, who have been tinkering with noise and metal since 1999, and Berlin-based DJ, producer, and vocalist Felicia Chen (AKA Dis Fig) was bound to make the earth s...

Rightfully celebrated for ‘Three Phase’, his 2020 LP that presented a powerful new take on the country’s Mahraganat/Shaabi sound, Cairo-based electronic booth magician 3Phaz has inch...

A masterclass in how to be unmissable, Kenyan polymath Kabeaushé’s music compels us to prick our ears, stop, and listen. 2023 was huge for the artist and producer, who emerged from it wit...

Jean-Michel Basquiat, Prince, Wu-Tang Clan, Steve McQueen; the diversity of Gaika Tavares’ (or GAIKA) influences mirror his multifarious artistic persona. The South London artist and writer, who...

Latin American music traditions Gaita and Cumbia likely would not have thrived through time without the toil of Latin GRAMMY-winning Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto, who have continuously been pushing the...

A musical hunter-gatherer, Badreddine Haouat, AKA Retro Cassetta, has spent years digging through crates in the lookout for North African music gems. His gargantuan cassette collection forms a musical...

South Korean musician and performance artist bela arrange the collision of worlds; traditional sonics withstanding the test of wild modern age Korea and grimy metal bars come together in 2024’s...

Ale Hop (Alejandra Cárdenas) is a Peruvian-born artist who began her career in Lima's underground music scene in the 2000s. Her live performances merge the physical intensity of sound with raw...

U? is the freely accessible city program of Le Guess Who?. Now in its fourth edition, U? celebrates local and creative communities based in the Netherlands, with a strong focus on Utrecht. The festiva...

U? is the freely accessible city program of Le Guess Who?. Now in its fourth edition, U? celebrates local and creative communities based in the Netherlands, with a strong focus on Utrecht. The festiva...

As part of her curation at Le Guess Who? 2024, experimental cellist and vocalist Mabe Fratti performed live at the festival together with London-based vocal group Shards. Watch the concert film of the performance, featuring the tracks Kravitz, No Se Ve Desde Acá and Desde el Cielo: With her hypnotic pieces, Mabe Fratti comb...

Every year, Le Feast invites you into a living room in Utrecht, to enjoy a feast together with people you don't know (yet). Many Utrechtian home-chefs will transform their living room into a cozy brun...

Thank you for supporting Le Guess Who?. We look forward to welcome you to our 14th festival edition, 11-14 November 2021 in lovely Utrecht.

Every year, Le Feast invites you into a living room in Utrecht, to enjoy a feast together with people you don't know (yet). Many Utrechtian home-chefs will transform their living room into a cozy brun...

Cycle or walk through Utrecht suburb Lombok's main street, and you're immediately welcomed by Turkish and Moroccan grocery stores, bakeries, the smell of kebab, and huge piles of colorful fruits sold...

Whether it’s a stage, a computer screen or a page from a book: Jenny Hval’s multi-disciplinary work aims to break beyond these confining zones to form a deeper connection with her audience...

Blazing Suns is an ever-evolving entity of artists, musicians, audiofreaks and sound explorers orbiting around it. At Le Guess Who?, the quartet of Salvador Breed, Boris Acket, Nick Verstand and Maart...

Through live interviews, listening sessions, art exhibitions with select LGW? performers and all things print and sound, Kapitaal will transform into a three-day meeting place for craftsmanship and de...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & BAK - basis voor actuele kunst Le Guess Who? and Jeanne van Heeswijk connected the Chicago-based pianist, clarinetist and composer Angel Bat Dawid with visual artist,...

On the closing night of Le Guess Who? 2018, Indian Carnatic music pioneer Kadri Gopalnath gave a mesmerizing performance, curated by Shabaka Hutchings. Listen to the full show, and watch and excerpt from the performance below.  About: Kadri Gopalnath’s life’s work is to incorporate the woodwind instrument into the cla...

The performative character of the work of painter Koen Delaere can be compared to experiencing a live music performance or to making music in which meaning evolves while listening and playing. A spont...

Photo Archive Our photo team captured a lot of special moments during Le Guess Who? 2014. Take a scroll through our 2014 photo archive:  VISIT PHOTO ARCHIVE

LGW17 Photo Archive Our photo team captured a lot of special moments during Le Guess Who? 2017. Take a scroll through our 2017 photo archive:  VISIT PHOTO ARCHIVE

Le Guess Who? curator collective CURL is made up of sonic eccentrics Mica Levi, Brother May, and Coby Sey, among others. A tightly-knit community of artists and musicians from the London underground,...

This event will hit you just as hard in the face as the rest of our program. No, you don’t have to step into the ring yourself, but you will be able to marvel at several intense boxing-matches a...

As part of her curation at Le Guess Who? 2024, experimental cellist and vocalist Mabe Fratti performed live at the festival together with London-based vocal group Shards. Watch the concert film of the performance, featuring the tracks Kravitz, No Se Ve Desde Acá and Desde el Cielo: With her hypnotic pieces, Mabe Fratti comb...

Freetekno: stories of a subculture from 1988 to 2022, is a documentary especially made for Le Guess Who? en U? by Utrecht-based photographer Juri Hiensch. To further explore autonomous spaces, there w...

Kazakh-British composer and violinist Galya Bisengalieva performed her latest album 'Aralkum' in full live at Le Guess Who? 2021, as part of the program presented by Uncloud. You can now listen & relive the entire performance.  "It has been speculated how the current environmental crisis we face will inspire musicians, the sam...

Richard Dawson has been busy time-traveling. The British folk master began his journey in 2017’s pre-medieval ‘Peasant’, continued onto the present day with ‘2020’, and h...

The work of multi-talented sound artist ZULI has spilled over Cairo's borders onto the rest of the world, garnering support from the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre. Recently, the artist released his new album Lambda; leading up to the release, the musician and producer, who is determined to uplift other Middle Eastern creative voices, p...

Le Guess Who? premieres a new format as part of its 2023 festival edition. The Anonymous Project is a new avenue for artists to present their work and for listeners to discover it. During The Ano...

COSMOS x Santuri announce first 2024 Embassy Ahead of their first-ever electronic music summit, Kilele, COSMOS sits down with Santuri co-founder and director David Tinning as well as Nairobi staples Nyokabi Kariũki and KMRU.   For a full decade, the Santuri organisation has been supporting, highlighting, and releasing a mix of con...

On ‘when the poems do what they do’, aja monet’s 2023 breakout album, the surrealist blues poet, like all the best of them, is unblinkingly honest, vulnerable, and open, but at the s...

Le Guess Who? returns 6-9 November to Utrecht, The Netherlands, taking place across different venues in and around the city. We now reveal the guest curators and the initial line-up for the 2025 festival edition. More than ever, the program creates a space where the margins become the center, where the overlooked are elevated and where t...

At eleven, Bolivian singer and songwriter Luzmila Carpio traveled to Oruro to audition for a singing radio show, where she was met with the pianist’s shouts of ‘this is what Indians sing -...

Coming from Ramallah, Palestine, Al Nather has been making waves in the Arab hip-hop scene both as a producer, DJ and rapper. Raised in Jerusalem, songwriter and rapper Shabjdeed rose to fame in the M...

What is Foodman? By the time whichever song of his comes to an end, the answer has yet to be found. Plunderphonics, footwork, ambient, house, techno, and an array of other genres coexist chaotically,...

Drones are a powerful force, capable of whisking our thinking mind far, far, away. Austin-based octet Water Damage yields the same power whenever they pick up their instruments. Veterans from other pr...

Mabe Fratti and Hector Tosta (also known as I. la Católica) are Titanic. The duo introduced themselves to the world last fall with the sprawling, mosaic-like debut album ‘Vidrio’. I...

It was in the year of 2021 that Joe Lally’s The Messthetics (his instrumental trio with former Fugazi bandmate and drummer Brendan Canty and guitarist Anthony Pirog) met their match: James Brand...

Shards’ Kieran Brunt has been singing William Byrd since his college chapel choir days, and, in a sense, had been unconsciously setting up to release ‘Byrd Song’. The London band&rsq...

As part of Calm Roots, rising London label Touching Bass is curating for this year’s Le Guess Who? a showcase of Cameroonian-born, Paris-based artist Astrønne. Astrønne’s dou...

Bedouin Burger’s 2022 single ‘Nomad’ showcases how Lynn Adib and Zeid Hamdan’s musical collaboration is pure lightning in a bottle. We are treated to the Syrian vocalist, compo...

Meshell Ndegeocello is a true multitalented and multifaceted artist: singer-songwriter, rapper, bassist, collaborator, GRAMMY-winner, neo-soul movement igniter. Yet, even when sinking seamlessly into each one of her many roles, she has always worn her artistry and identity as a proud Black queer woman on her sleeve.  You can now rel...

In 2020, Cape Town, South Africa-based drummer Asher Gamedze found himself in Cairo assembling a quintet made up of some of the capital’s finest improvisers; Maurice Louca, Alan Bishop, Cherif El-Masri, and Adham Zidan. Another Time Ensemble had come to be. In 2024, the group performed live at Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of Chromes...

As Dawuna, multi-disciplinary artist Ian Mugerwa drops his first and last name in favor of his middle name to focus on music. Calling Prince and D’Angelo, but also Jim O’Rourke and George...

For years, composer, harpist, and multi-instrumentalist Zeena Parkins and electronic music composer and drummer Ikue Mori have been the backbone of the downtown scene. Through their duo Phantom Orchar...

Interview: Ozan Tekin x IDGK “İstanbul’u Dinliyorum Gözlerim Kapalı” is the title of a poem by Turkish poet Orhan Veli Kanık. It beautifully describes a city best experienced with all senses wide open. A sentiment that our 2025 COSMOS Embassy IDGK shares so much, that they’ve borrowed their name acronym from...

Le Guess Who? announces a new ticketing strategy in collaboration with CM.com (formerly Yourticketprovider) and resale platform TicketSwap. From now on, we are implementing Ticketlock. It’s a feature that prevents fraud and increases reliability, and also means that it’s no longer possible to profit from the reselling of festi...

What if our attention was turned to the outer edges of the space we find ourselves in? - asked solo artists Nik Colk Void and Klara Lewis. After adding visual creative Pedro Maia to the mix, a new col...

Europe-based booth maverick Nazar is heading to Le Guess Who? for an impactful hybrid set. The Angolan producer coined the term ‘Rough Kuduro’ - a combative reading of the Angolan music an...

In the grassy plains of Araucanía and Patagonia persists the Mapuche, an indigenous people native to south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina. Through land disputes, cultural discriminati...

Since 2022, Le Guess Who? partners with the Nature and Environment Federation Utrecht to offset CO2 emissions from international air travel by artists and visitors. Thanks to the collaboration in 2024, we're able to support five Repair Cafés in Utrecht. These cafés are places where people can work together with volunteers t...

By blending melody and noise, London-based Mexican violinist, composer, and improviser Gibrana Cervantes has bewitched audiences in her home country and furthermore. Thanks to her metal background, Ce...

M. Takara (Hurtmold, São Paulo Underground) and Carla Boregas (RAKTA, Fronte Violeta) have been making strides in the Brazilian music scene in their regard for years, but, as a duo, they feel l...

There is something urgent about the music of Luz luz luz!, one of Mexico City’s most exciting experimental punk exports. Artists and collaborators Clothing and Emiliano Cruz pull us inward, maki...

Hizbut Jámm, the band led by guitarist and composer Raphael Rogiński, came together in a different, pre-pandemic world. Ironically, even back then the group, formed by musicians deriving from d...

Ill Japonia, the trap/bass music alter-ego of Bo Ningen's frontman Taigen Kawabe, collaborates with movement artist Masumi Saito. They blend London's eclectic music scene and Rave culture with Masumi'...

Often titled an 'Asian guitar army', CHELA performed live during the closing day of Le Guess Who? 2024, curated by Bo Ningen. Relive the full performance below, with the duo performing music from their 2023 album Diagonal Drift. Made up of long-time friends and collaborators Ajay Saggar (Bhajan Bhoy) and Kohhei Matsuda (Bo Ningen), CHE...

Melbourne foursome Tropical Fuck Storm's fiery flavor can be savored through a string of releases dating back to 2019 - but there is nothing quite like devouring the thunderous delicacy live, as we experienced again at Le Guess Who? 2024. Watch the concert film below. The group's new album 'Fairyland Codex' is out now via Fire Records.&nb...

Sheherazaad’s namesake is the legendary Persian queen and storyteller of the frame narrative of ‘The Arabian Nights’. Tracing this kind of creative lineage would be too audacious for...

Chuck Strangers fell in love with hip-hop in 2005; for his thirteenth birthday, he was gifted an Akai MPC2000, the iconic workstation immortalized by the likes of J Dilla, Kanye West, and many more. F...

This Sierra Leone-born artist’s approach is threefold; Lamin Fofana is as much a DJ and music producer as he is a philosopher of sorts. His work’s socio-cultural depth cannot be understate...

Musician, producer, composer, educator, speaker, entertainer, and overall self-described ‘musical polyglot’ Jowee Omicil has achieved prominence for blending African rhythms, Haitian spiri...

On lead single ‘Cociage’ - a preview of her 2023 debut album of the same name, released on Nyege Nyege - the voice of Ghanaian-French producer and vocalist PÖ, stacked on top of thick...

Since 2022, New York vocalist Yaya Bey has graduated from promising R&B talent to a full-fledged supersonic star. This year’s ‘Ten Fold’ album picks up where her impactful debut,...

Born to Congolese artists in Paris, ‘Afropean’ (Europeans of African descent) hybrid artist Natisa Exocé Kasongo’s work focuses on Afro-Cosmicism, always. Walking in the foots...

‘Learning To Swim On Empty’ is South London vocalist and musician Wu-Lu’s third venture into music-releasing, and, similarly to past outings, his newest EP resists being put in a box...

When Sydney’s Party Dozen (saxophonist Kirsty Tickle and percussionist Jonathan Boulet) settled in Marrickville to record a new album ‘Crime In Australia’, they found the suburb&rsqu...

Putrid, drug-fueled gutter rock; this is how New York’s Couch Slut best describes their sound - and we can picture that writing in blood. Described by Spin as ‘one of the best bands of 202...

Enigmatic would be one word to append to this mysterious British contemporary producer and singer-songwriter. As a Black, Caribbean-British musician, Florence Sinclair’s music is like a flower w...

Before the release of her first record a decade ago, Quebecois musician Myriam Gendron was busking in Paris, singing Leonard Cohen songs. In a striking full-circle moment, the artist’s newest re...

In this concert, two virtuosos of ancient instruments unite to display their exceptional talents and introduce us to otherwise perhaps unheard musical gems. This crossover, however, is not new; Irania...

Hopeton Overton Brown picked a perfect alias for himself. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, the ingenious recording engineer became known for delving into his practice, tinkering and practicing in order to f...

By 2015, this dubstep-loving collective already had a club night under their belt; however, inspired by their UK sound system peers, they decided to make their own.  Nearly ten years and four sta...

James Massiah may now master multiple channels of artistic expression - producer, rapper, DJ and radio host are some of the hats he wears - but his first love, he says, is poetry. This passion is crys...

With his second album, ‘THE REBELLION’, Durban’s DJ LAG announces a new era. Born and raised in gqom’s place of origin, the South African DJ has always kept the sound system-ha...

Fera is a wild and adventurous new work that Egyptian artist Maurice Louca wrote over a four-year period. It was performed live at Le Guess Who? 2024 together with Ayman Asfour as part of Chromesthesia, curated by Hannah Elsisi. Below, you can watch Barĩy from the captivating performance and listen to the full audio of the show. ...

Istanbul’s one and only wildflower Haossaa’s music will hit you like a ton of bricks. The spirited three-piece will make everyone in attendance want to scream, mosh, and pick up a guitar t...

Ramallah, Palestine-based artist Julmud’s 2022 debut album ‘Tuqoos | ط​ُ​ق​ُ​و​س’ showcases his multifaceted talents: music producer (a.o. for Haykal and Al Nather), researcher, soun...

Rightfully celebrated for ‘Three Phase’, his 2020 LP that presented a powerful new take on the country’s Mahraganat/Shaabi sound, Cairo-based electronic booth magician 3Phaz has inch...

U?, the freely accessible city program of Le Guess Who?, returns 8 & 9 November to Utrecht for its fifth edition. Through public programming, U? aims to connect people and foster personal encounters. U? is dedicated to celebrating local and creative communities based in the Netherlands, with a strong focus on Utrecht. On Saturday, 8...

What does tradition turn into when flung into the future? The answer may lie in Merope, the duo centered around singer and kanklės player Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė. Their music is dug out of ancient Lithua...

‘A fundamental thread through the fabric of London's underground art scene’, wrote Fact Magazine about Cõvco as early as 2022. The British artist and DJ is one of the city's most or...

For more than four decades, Adrian Sherwood has been consistently breaking new ground, and has developed a cult-like following via his experiments in dub, reggae, punk, post-punk and bass music. As th...

For the Brazilian-born producer and vocalist Lyzza, boundaries are something to be scoffed at. Since the tender age of sixteen, the unfearing creative has established herself as a force to be reckoned...

From Utrecht to the world, CARISTA is more than just a DJ. Tapping into her talent for whisking listeners on faraway dancefloor journeys, the magnetic music producer and curator genre-hops effortlessl...

The artist formerly known as D-Ribeiro has, over the years, learned to embrace new disciplines. Namely, the otherwise well-known DJ has been deepening his identity as a harpist, composer, and stage pe...

Nearly fifteen years after bursting on the scene with debut ‘Splazsh’, Darren J. Cunningham, AKA Actress, is still pulling the wool over our eyes. This year, our earbuds are blessed with &...

At the age of 27, Anderson do Paraíso - or ‘queridão’, meaning ‘the dearest’ - has made himself a legend in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The seminal artist is known fo...

A new wave is washing over Gnawa, the traditional North African music genre started by the Gnawa people of Morocco. Despite being an essential part of the tradition, only now female bands are appearin...

Songpoet is what American folk artist Tucker Zimmerman identifies himself as on the cover of his 2006 album, home to the acoustic folk gem 'She’s an Easy Rider.' Zimmerman is one of America&rsqu...

One of our favorite unlikely duos, the virtuoso jazz singer Greetje Bijma and left field techno producer Oceanic, come to the stage with their first fully-formed full-length project ‘Sykheljende...

Xitsonga, the Bantu language spoken by the Tsonga people of South Africa, is a dialect ripe with oral tradition - folktales, proverbs, and songs. South African rapper, singer, songwriter, actress, and...

Something was afoot at last year’s SOUNDSET series in Madrid; so much so that, when Abul Mogard (AKA Guido Zen) and composer, record producer, and mastering engineer Rafael Anton Irisarri serend...

Interview: Seyðisfjörður Community Radio Seyðisfjörður Community Radio (SCR) is a shared digital and analogue broadcasting platform located in the fisher town of Seyðisfjörður. The platform is hosted, nurtured and initiated by an open-ended international community inhabiting various conditions and p...

Somnia is an interdisciplinary audiovisual dance performance created by Mexican contemporary dancer and choreographer Alejandra Metztli and Dutch immersive digital artist Jaco Schilp. It explores the...

COSMOS is Le Guess Who?’s worldwide, ever-growing music community for which we collaborate with eight different partners (‘Embassies’) from across the globe each year. Through films,...

Devotional pop polymath accurately starts to describe Paris-based singer, songwriter, producer, and director Yasmine Dubois, AKA KUKII. The beguiling artist of Egyptian and Iranian descent’s mus...

PL3TH0RA is a DJ, producer and performance artist based in Rotterdam of Surinamese and Dutch descent. Breaks, kicks and bass are the core of her sets while exploring breakbeat, raggatek and dubstep, a...

In an richly textured blend of sound and re-imagining of the poetic music traditions of the Xhosa people of South Africa, Dumama joins forces with saxophonist and synth artist Pachakuti, and drummer-v...

The future-soul sound of queer, Detroit-based artist Na Bonsai blends lush analog arrangement with prophetic messages exploring freedom, rebirth, and nature, while aiming to dismantle oppressive syste...

Since 2021, Berlin’s Refuge Worldwide has grown into an important community radio and cultural hub, spreading cutting-edge music with a clear mission of solidarity and social activism. As such,...

Since 2021, Berlin’s Refuge Worldwide has grown into an important community radio and cultural hub, spreading cutting-edge music with a clear mission of solidarity and social activism. As such,...

Mount Eerie has released his new live album '(after)', which was recorded in full at Le Guess Who? 2017. The performance was curated by Perfume Genius for the festival, and took place at the Jaco...

Saxophonist Gary Bartz is a jazz master who has shaped the history and evolution of the genre since the 1960s. One of the best purveyors of what he calls “informal composition” (as opposed...

Kelman Duran presents‘To The North II’ is an experimental documentary by Dominican producer, multimedia artist and filmmaker Kelman Duran. It is the follow-up to ‘To The North I&rsqu...

At last year's Le Guess Who?, British jazz stalwart Shabaka Hutchings performed with free jazz futurists The Comet Is Coming. This time around, Hutchings seeks out ghosts of the past with his South Af...

We're revealing the time schedules for Le Guess Who? 2017. Even though some things are best kept a surprise... Find out more here. You also have the option to create your personal schedule, and t...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Centraal Museum James Merry is a visual artist, originally from Gloucestershire in the UK, who is now based in Iceland where he has been living and working with Bj&ou...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Centraal Museum  Initiated in 2015, Elegy is a long-term commemorative performance project by South African artist Gabrielle Goliath. Staged in various locations...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver The directorial debut from Boots Riley presents an alternate reality of present-day Oakland, California, when telemarketer Cassius Green finds himself in...

Indian classical pioneer Kadri Gopalnath has devoted a lifetime to integrate the saxophone into the classical Indian genre of Carnatic music. We trace down the roots of this boundary-breaking art...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver The Burial Of Kojo follows the story of Esi, as she recounts her childhood and the tumultuous relationship between her father, Kojo and her uncle, Kwabena...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver In this genre-defying film, Zerzura follows a young man from a small village in Niger who leaves home in search of an enchanted oasis. His journey leads h...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver Following the footsteps of Islamic mystics on the Indian subcontinent of Pakistan, the Swiss director Annette Berger managed to document the spiritual eve...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver Part film, part baptism, in Black Mother director Khalik Allah brings us on a spiritual journey through Jamaica. Soaking up its bustling metropolises and...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, it's a synth-driven song by singer-songwriter Devendra Banhart, with nonchalant nods to disco. ...

Meant to perform at last year’s LGW OFF event, in 2021 Gebroeders Dieleman van Eeckhout join the main line-up of Le Guess Who?. This project is carried out by unorthodox duo Colin H. van Eeckhou...

Sons of Kemet’s latest record, ‘Black to the Future’, was released in May – mostly recorded after the murder of George Floyd. For The Guardian’s Kitty Empire, the album f...

After earning her stripes on the Tunis scene, Deena Abdelwahed came to Paris, set on new musical inquiries. Since her arrival, the DJ and producer has been showered with praise from outlets such as Pi...

For every record he spins, Pedro Ricardo takes on new challenges. The artist, who will be doing a DJ set at Le Guess Who?, relies on the strength of the grooves he plays, bringing forth a feeling of i...

Few have a bond as vital with Le Guess Who? as Irish psych master DJ Fitz. Only having missed the festival's very first edition in 2007, he has been a recurring presence at the event ever since. Thus,...

Khorshid Dadbeh is an Iranian instrumentalist, improviser and composer based in Rotterdam. She presents her music by performing Tanbour, Tar, and Setar. Tanbour music belongs to the category of mystic and Sufi music that has more than five thousand years of history behind it. She learned this music from the masters who formed a bridge bet...

Bala Desejo is one of Brazil’s most coveted bands, and smash hit ‘Passarinha’ proves why. The young group, made up of Dora Morelenbaum, Julia Mestre, Lucas Nunes, and Zé Ibarr...

Once, John Coltrane described himself, Pharaoh Sanders, and Albert Ayler as ‘the father, the son, and the holy ghost’. Throughout his decade-spanning career though, Sanders often embodied...

Linangan and Arts of Resistance are hosting a multi-media exhibition combined with a public program in Bibliotheek Neude, Utrecht as a part of U?, the free program connected to Le Guess Who festival....

Leave it to Dominican-American booth wizard Kelman Duran to surprise listeners at every turn. The LA artist, musician, visual artist, filmmaker, and academic’s electronic abstractions derive fro...

At the invitation of Chromesthesia, another special collaboration takes the stage at this year’s Le Guess Who?. Betsayda Machado is an iconic Venezuelan folk artist who has been initiating liste...

Sary Moussa weaves his work slowly, patiently, allowing for the textures for which it is known to take shape little by little. The Lebanon musician, sound designer, producer, and engineer, who is a fi...

Abdullah Miniawy, who previously graced the LGW stage with Le Cri du Caire, is an Egyptian expressionist, writer, singer, composer, who has performed worldwide at renowned venues and festivals, includ...

We're very excited that this year, Le Guess Who? will coincide again (for the first time since 2018) with the Mega Record & CD Fair (November 13 & 14 in Utrecht), which is Europe’s biggest record fair. As a preview for both the festival as well as the fair, we're collaborating with The Quietus on a new series where we...

Free jazz improvisation: check. Punk approach: check. Sound art extravaganza: check. Mopcut is the extraordinary trio consisting of experimental vocalist and electronic musician Audrey Chen; one of Eu...

Merope’s roots lie deep in the soil of Lithuania’s folk songs, vividly evoked through the resonant sound of the kanklės (a traditional string instrument) and their ancestral singing. Joine...

A genre-defying force in the world of rap and electronic music, producer DJ Haram is equally celebrated for her bass and club music heavy DJ sets, detail oriented analogue sound design, electronic-fol...

When Blueberry Boat (2004) was released, Pitchfork described it as “a record for the overgrown part of our brain that craves engrossing complexity”. At the time, The Fiery Furnaces, consis...

Julianna Barwick stretches, loops and layers her voice into a delicate web sound that blends seamlessly with the surrounding instrumentation. Her career counts collaborations with various visionaries...

Poet, musician, actor and director Saul Williams is the groundbreaking artist who introduced the world to the slam poetry movement–with the film Slam (1998)–and a vital voice in alternativ...

Under supervision of surrealist filmmaker and spiritual guru Alejandro Jodorowsky, King Khan and Game of Thrones-designer Michael Eaton created ‘The Black Power Tarot’. The cards are depic...

Maâlem (or ‘master musician’) Houssam Guinia is the son and successor of the late Mahmoud Guinia, an emblematic figure in the practice of West-African Gnawa music. Gnawa is an extens...

Charles-André Coderre is a Montréal-based filmmaker dedicated to working with analog techniques. Coderre is a member of the Montreal collective of experimental cinema Double Negative and...

Madensuyu have always been charmed by the mysterious and esoteric, the notion that two mortal souls can inhabit a stage and conjure something bigger than themselves. Their angsty, sprawling brand of n...

In Utrecht’s suburb Lombok, you're immediately welcomed by Turkish and Moroccan grocery stores, bakeries, the smell of kebab, and huge piles of colorful fruits sold in the streets. The impressiv...

Beverly Glenn-Copeland’s 1970 album, reissued by Super-Sonic Jazz this year, is a lush folk-jazz album in the vein of peers such as Tim Buckley and Joni Mitchell. After a twenty year absence, th...

Beverly Glenn-Copeland’s 1970 album, reissued by Super-Sonic Jazz this year, is a lush folk-jazz album in the vein of peers such as Tim Buckley and Joni Mitchell. After a twenty year absence, th...

FRKWYS is a series initiated by Brooklyn-based independent record label RVNG Intl.; aimed at an ambitious and unique pairing of modern artists and their musical predecessors for the creation of a coll...

FRKWYS is a series initiated by Brooklyn-based independent record label RVNG Intl.; aimed at an ambitious and unique pairing of modern artists and their musical predecessors for the creation of a coll...

Joe Coleman is a performance artist, collector and painter whose hyper-detailed works depict celebrities, historical figures and artists with the same graceful iconography as the Gods and prophets of...

Every year, Le Feast invites you into a living room in Utrecht, to enjoy a feast together with people you don't know (yet). On Sunday November 12, many Utrechtian home-chefs will transform their livin...

This year, Le Guess Who? will host a special collaboration between Chicago-based songwriter and accomplished fingerstyle guitarist Ryley Walker and Japanese psych-rockers Kikagaku Moyo. With both arti...

Before our very eyes, the mysterious Yves Tumor suspends set expectations of music and performance into a vortex of sheer disbelief. His unforgettable show at last year’s Le Guess Who? was a bre...

Armed with a twenty-two stringed Kora (a West African cross between lute, bridge and harp), troubadour Sourakata Koite uses this traditional instrument to interpret his Senegalese roots. Moving to Par...

The Daily Indie, een van de mediapartners van Le Guess Who? dit jaar, deelt hun allereerste talkshow: een gesprek met Kurt Overbergh, artistiek directeur van AB Brussel; Peter Reen, programm...

Hidden among the rabble-rousing tourists and historic canals, Red Light Radio (RLR) is an online seminal DIY radio booth squat and international music platform based in the middle of Amsterdam’s...

An intimate portrait of the circumstances surrounding the creation of Jerusalem In My Heart’s live recording of “Wa Ta’atalat Loughat Al Kalam” (The language of speech has brok...

While the festival’s numerous performances spread all over the city of Utrecht, there will be one moment we all come together, and that is at the afterparty. The line-up will feature dub-king Ke...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver Lutz Gregor’s documentary Mali Blues takes a vivid look at the West-African nation’s rich and diverse musical fabric, following folk star Fato...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver This heart-warming road movie, directed by Philippe Godeau, follows the titular protagonist, the 13-year-old Senegalese Yao, in his quest to meet his hero...

Le Guess Who?-curator Patrick Higgins, visual artist Matthew Schreiber and choreographer Monica Mirabile will present the European premiere of their awe-inspired audiovisual project DOSSIER X, immersi...

In cooperation with Gaudeamus AEAEA is the new duo from composers and performers Patrick Higgins and Nicolas Jaar. Utilizing instrumental performance and live digital resampling, the aim of the group...

Having become somewhat of a mainstay in Utrecht, Stranded FM celebrate and share music from all over the globe, becoming the city’s bastion for discovering fresh sounds. During their four-year r...

Hidden Musics Christopher C. King’s relationship with the folk traditions of Epirus, a mountain region connecting Greece with the southern parts of Albania, occupies a special place in his hear...

Deerhoof is one of those fantastic beasts the world has been lucky to find, an anomaly of a band that can twist any crunch of noise into saccharine hook-heavy pop euphoria. Their wide-eyed trial-and-e...

Priscilla Telmon & Vincent Moon are a collaborating multidisciplinary artist duo working as independent filmmakers and sound-explorers. Together they produce ethnographic experimental films and mu...

In cooperation with Utrecht Early Music Festival Olga Pashchenko, one of the world’s most accomplished piano and keyboard virtuosos, will bring a unique take on one of the most famous horror so...

Collaboratorium The cartoon physics of Brooklyn experimental outfit Zs, the Lovecraftian doom tandem Ex Eye with Colin Stetson, the blast beat barrages of Liturgy; Greg Fox has an uncanny knack for t...

"Tarot," says King Khan, shuffling a deck of cards rhythmically back and forth, "was designed to give power back to the people." - Dazed At Le Guess Who? 2017, King Khan and Game of Thrones...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, it's one of the projects of jazz superforce & festival curator Shabaka Hutchings, who released t...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Fotodok & Casco Art Institute Being born and raised on the island of Curaçao, the work of Kevin Osepa (1994) revolves around his identity and the identity...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Utrecht University In the wake of his recently published fifth book ‘Silenced by Sound: the Music Meritocracy Myth’ and driven by his ongoing field-record...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, it's 'Corner Shops' by Tim Presley (White Fence) and Cate Le Bon, who together form the pleasan...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver Franco Rosso’s Babylon had its world premiere at Cannes in 1980 but was deemed “too controversial, and likely to incite racial tension”...

Presented by Le Guess Who? & Centraal Museum As co-creative director for Björk on visuals, mask-maker James Merry is primarily known for his hand embroidery on sportswear, but he also create...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, it's Ethio-jazz legend Hailu Mergia with a contemplative solo piano track. Together with the Wa...

Lombok Festival, one of Le Guess Who?’s satellite events, returns on Friday 8 November. The freely accessible festival is a celebration of the cultural diversity of this city’s district, i...

Taking his name from a spot near to his heart and home, Phil Elverum of Mount Eerie and The Microphones makes music heavily imbued with that foggy green mood of Washington state. But far from limiting...

Here's a must-see fo you: a new, intimate session from extraordinary singer-songwriter and Le Guess Who? 2018 curator Devendra Banhart, recorded for 'quiet, please!'. Situated in a futu...

Le Guess Who 2018 will host the influential Lydia Lunch and her Big Sexy Noise. How did Lunch become the revered anti-establishment figure she is today? This article offers a brief exploration of the...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week it is Japanese cult star Shintaro Sakamoto, a former member of legendary psychedelic band Yura Yura T...

Due to the volatile nature of the accusations surrounding Ms. Argento, she has chosen to withdraw from her curatorship of this year's edition, while these issues remain open. Le Guess Who? supports he...

Much of John Dwyer’s curatorship for this year’s Le Guess Who? reflects his attraction for music that is as exciting as it is mad, loud and potentially deafening. All these attributes can...

Tunisian-Belgian artist Ghalia Benali has been on the receiving end of many descriptors - perhaps none as fitting as ‘a maker of her own myths’, as said by the New York Times. Benali&rsquo...

Every week, we bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, we dive into the psychedelic, fleeting world of the Brazilian psych rockers Boogarins.  Exploring their...

Le Mini Who? returns as part of Le Guess Who? 2018 on Saturday, 10 November. As a spin-off festival of Le Guess Who?, it transforms many of Utrecht’s local bars, restaurants, venues and warehous...

This avant-rock group's relationship with Le Guess Who? goes way back; the three-piece Montreal band has played the festival time and time again. This year, it only made sense to mark our return to fo...

Born to missionaries in Atlanta, Angel Bat Dawid followed her family from Georgia to Kentucky to Kenya – and when they settled in Chicago, she took up clarinet and music education. Nowadays...

Every week, we bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, we highlight a track of acclaimed improvisational maverick and storyteller of the highest order: Lonnie Holle...

"I call free jazz a liberation technology, and it’s very essential to anything that I make. It has to have that conductor running through my music for it to be successful, or for me to get acros...

Near Stoic is Skander Ben Yahia’s alias, in which he becomes a storyteller. Experimenting with tapes, modular synths, field recordings and archives, the Tunisian musician makes use of every mate...

In Eavesdrop with Christine Kakaire, the Berlin-based writer, editor, teacher and speaker invites artists performing at this year’s Le Guess Who? for live interviews, discussing the inspirations...

Thanks to supporters like you, Le Guess Who? has been able to grow into a leading international festival, known for the inspiring way in which groundbreaking music is presented and praised by artists, visitors, media and industry alike.  Le Guess who? celebrates music as an art form, one that transcends languages, borders and cultur...

Rotterdam’s Rats on Rafts’ most recent album, ‘Chapter 3: The Mind Runs A Net Of Rabbit Paths’, is proof of their ambition - and even more so is their one-off performance at Le...

Le Guess Who? aims to present a festival that is accessible for everyone, but unfortunately not all festival venues are equally accessible. Please have a look below or at the specific venue pages for more information. Together with Marianne Dijkshoorn of 'Welkom Toegankelijkheid & Evenementen' we have tried to make the acce...

"De curatoren van Le Guess Who? 2019 maakten een zorgvuldige keuze, maar het aanbod blijft overweldigend.", aldus Gonzo (circus), het Vlaams-Nederlandse magazine voor muziek en andere kunstvormen. De redactie van Gonzo (circus) heeft daar iets op bedacht: De essentiële Le Guess Who? 2019-leeslijst aan de hand van de ke...

During Le Guess Who? 2022, flamenco icon Estrella Morente and Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra came together for a magic showcase of warmth and joy. You can now watch the full concert film of the stunning performance at Utrecht's Jacobikerk, presented in collaboration with Ud Festival.  The daughter of world-famous Enrique Morente,...

November 2025 Le Guess Who? exists to bring people together through music and culture. U? is its participative and freely accessible city program celebrating local and creative communities.Le Guess Who? heeft het doel om mensen samen te brengen door middel van muziek en cultuur. U? is het gratis toegankelijk stadsprogramma van Le Guess...

Nihiloxica exploded out of Kampala in 2017 with their groundbreaking fusion of Bugandan drumming and UK bass. The band explores the darkest depths between two separate cultures of dance music, uniting abrasive club electronics with raucous percussive energy. At Le Guess Who? 2023, the group presented their late latest album 'Source of De...

Noura Mint Seymali performed on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of the program curated by Arooj Aftab. You can now listen to, and relive, the full performance below.  Noura Mint Seymali is a nationally adored Mauritanian musical star, born into a prominent line of Moorish griot; West African praise singers, poets a...

Le Guess Who? 2025 6-9 November in Utrecht, The Netherlands We also offer tickets for CJP members & U-pas members.Not a CJP member and still under 30? Click here to order a CJP pass.Please note: CM.com (formerly Yourticketprovider) is the only official ticket provider of Le Guess Who?. The only secure way to buy tickets from someo...

Born Ana Lucia in Mexico, Coco María grew up surrounded by music. She soon set out on a mission to share it with others - which she continues to do on 'Club Coco', her show at WorldwideFM, and...

Dreamcrusher, the project of multidisciplinary artist Luwayne Glass, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by clipping. You can now listen to his performance below, released via Dreamcrusher for Bandcamp Friday.  Live at Le Guess Who? 2022 by DREAMCRUSHER AboutDreamcrusher began on Kansas-born, New Yor...

Bolstered by diverse global sounds and powerful female vocals, this thrilling Tokyo-based tribal-psych trio draws from each of the member’s distinct musical influences to create a dreamy tale so...

General info about U?Algemene informatie over U?

A transcendental opening ceremony took place at the start of Le Guess Who? 2024, thanks to a special collaboration between the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra and visual artist Arion de Munck, who presented the world premiere of Hadra Immersive at the festival.  The Hadra is an ancient northern Moroccan ceremony that leads participan...

Le Guess Who? x Front As part of our new, hybrid platform COSMOS, we once again collaborated with Dutch music platform Front to bring you live sessions with rising Dutch artists. Watch and listen to the live sessions + interviews with Dutch post-punk outfit Private Bankingand and Anna van Rij. LE GUESS WHO? X FRONT

Having participated in pretty much every edition of the festival thus far, internationally recognized DJ Fitz, is by now basically Le Guess Who? royalty. One of the world’s primary authorities o...

In partnership with Space21Hardi Kurda, a sound artist and curator of Kurdistan-Iraq’s first experimental festival, Space21, takes us on a listening journey to the city of Slemani and its cultural and art activities. Here, the view of the mountains and nature mix with the urban sonic environment. The sound of power generator noises...

We’re thrilled to share the video of AEAEA (Nicolas Jaar x Patrick Higgins)’s live premiere at Le Guess Who? 2019. AEAEA is the recent collaboration of two of today’s most acclaimed musical visionaries; in 2019, Le Guess Who? proudly presented the duo’s live premiere as part of Patrick Higgins’ curation at th...

Musical selections and conversation with Dhanveer Singh Brar and Paul RekretIn this session Dhanveer Singh Brar and Paul Rekret are asked to pick a piece of music in response to a set of remarks that...

Via therapeutic frequencies, forest bathing, and binaural sound, Hinako Omori's solo work is more akin to immersive cartography of the mind in ambient tradition than a plain recording. The Yokohama-bo...

Hatis Noit’s vocal awakening came at the age of sixteen, during a trip to Nepal in which she was moved by a female monk’s chant. This experience led her to begin exploring the visceral pow...

South London's four-piece Italia 90 returns with the release of 2019 'An Episode': a fierce post-punk track and the first single from their upcoming EP, 'Italia 90 III', which will be out later this year. The distinctive vocal is paired with frenzied and textured guitar work, propulsive percussion and a distorted and dogged...

With its cosy and colourful atmosphere, picturesque canals, breathtaking medieval city centre and buzzing nightlife, the city of Utrecht is a hidden gem full of lovely people and stunning places. Selected with great care, Le Guess Who? would like to introduce you to the 2022 edition of the festival's Treasure Guide.  In the mood for...

South East London producer, vocalist and DJ Coby Sey excitingly intersects contemporary club, DIY-art, and music production. After performing at Le Guess Who? in 2017, he now returns as part of the London collective & guest curators CURL, together with Mica Levi and Brother May.  This week, Coby Sey released his debut album 'Con...

Earlier this week, Brooklyn-based, Pakistani singer Arooj Aftab won the GRAMMY Award for Best Global Music Performance for her song ‘Mohabbat’. She performed live at Le Guess Who? 2021, the international festival for boundary-crossing music & culture, as part of her first ever European tour. Arooj Aftab is the first Pakis...

‘PERFORMANCE RAGE’ is the latest entry into percussionist, sound manipulator, and visual artist NAH’s explosive sound catalog. The release’s name drives at the Philadelphia-bor...

Vietnamese experimental music collective Rắn Cạp Đuôi have been expanding their vast auditory spectrum since forming back in 2015. The group shifts between rave music and eco-futurism, and press...

Price Attack is the new group allying the talents of Stef Kett (vocals and guitar), Leo Kurunis (bass guitar), and Jem Doulton (drums). Their songs leap across a tight-knit structure, and each track s...

The cult album Faust IV was the fourth studio album released by the German krautrock group in 1973. Reimagining the music from the iconic album, Faust IV was performed live at Le Guess Who? 2021 as part of the curated program by OSEES' John Dwyer. Faust IV Live! captured the strange magic that then and now defines Faust as an entity unto...

This year, Le Guess Who? presents the fourth edition of Hidden Musics, a project that focuses on deeply localized music and features artists embedded in rich, often centuries-old musical traditions that have been developed with little or no outside influences. The first series was initiated in 2019 by Le Guess Who? in collaboration with C...

This November, Le Guess Who? will feature a special performance by Pakistani qawwali singer Faiz Ali Faiz. Having been born to seven consecutive generations of qawwals (those who perform the ancient form of religious Sufi music from Pakistan and Northern India - Punjab - known as qawwali), Faiz Ali Faiz was raised on the practice. After...

Le Guess Who?, considered to be one of the most forward-thinking festivals around the world, returns to Utrecht, the Netherlands, from 9-12 November for its 16th edition. We now reveal the full 2023 line-up, after previously announcing festival curators Heba Kadry, Nala Sinephro, Slauson Malone 1 and Stereolab, as well as performances by...

In collaboration with Le Guess Who? and Garage Noord, the celebrated Dominican-American multi-disciplinary artist Kelman Duran presented a residency & club night including Emma dj, Torus, Bamoa Yende, Pebble, Noise Diva and WHYDJ. Kelman Duran went to Amsterdam for a one-week residency, making music with local communities and hosting...

As a hallmark of Le Guess Who?, the festival each year invites trailblazing creatives to curate their own dedicated programs, highlighting fellow like-minded artists and those that have inspired them. Anglo-French avant-pop group Stereolab have been hailed as one of the most influential and fiercely independent groups of the 90s. For Le...

Vietnamese experimental music collective Rắn Cạp Đuôi have been expanding their vast auditory spectrum since forming back in 2015. The group shifts between rave music and eco-futurism, and press...

Lees hier de tekst in het Nederlands. U?, the freely accessible city program of Le Guess Who?, celebrates local and creative communities based in the Netherlands, with a strong focus on Utrecht. From 8-10 November 2024, U? returns for its 4th edition. The 2024 program for U? is now revealed, featuring a festival playground taking place...

On Friday, 8 November 2024, Le Guess Who? will witness the magic of legendary Cumbia and Gaita ensemble Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto. To say that we are excited about welcoming them to Utrecht would be a massive understatement. In fact, the influence of this Grammy-winning, generations-spanning band on the trajectory of Latin American musi...

Each year, Le Guess Who? invites trailblazing creatives to curate their own dedicated programs, highlighting their inspirations, emerging acts and fellow like-minded artists, with an emphasis on discovery and exploration.Experimental cellist and composer Mabe Fratti introduces her curation at Le Guess Who? 2024 with a personally compiled...

We are excited to present our film & talk program, as well as a special exhibition, new additions to our 2024 line-up and the long-awaited time schedules for Le Guess Who? 2024. Time Schedules Start your scheduling now! The time schedules for Le Guess Who? 2024, as well for U?, our freely accessible city program, are online now. Pl...

Slauson Malone was the moniker of LA-based multidisciplinary artist and musician Jasper Marsalis. With Slauson Malone 1, he returns to explore the intersections of popular music and performance art. P...

When you merge the transformative power of Italian musician and composer Caterina Barbieri with Space Afrika’s spacious urban dubscapes (plus the unique visual narration of Marcel Weber or MFO),...

Le Guess Who? is lucky enough to host the reunion of legendary alternative hip-hop group Antipop Consortium. The foursome first made a shocking dent on the rap scene with their debut album ‘Trag...

Some people are worth waiting for - and Ustad Noor Bakhsh is certainly among them. Having had to cancel his performance at Le Guess Who? last year due to health issues, the electric Benju master is th...

For a newly developed special project Le Guess Who? is collaborating with Utrecht Art Academy’s ‘Music & Technology’ department to produce an experimental showcase, which will be...

The open call has been closed.  *** Following the success of last year’s pilot, U? is excited to continue co-creating the festival program with communities across the Netherlands. We once again invite (aspiring) curators who are deeply connected to a specific community to shape the program together with us. This process is a...

When UK-based experimental collective Ex-Easter Island Head steps on stage, the electric guitar - an instrument whose possibilities sometimes seem to have been exhausted - is born anew. Mechanical preparations, extended techniques; call it what you want, but, to us, it's more like auditory magic.  Watch our concert film of the group...

‘Like putting your brain in a blender for an hour straight’. So describes Beat Magazine a typical Tropical Fuck Storm concert. This Melbourne foursome’s fiery flavor can be savored t...

In anticipation of his Friday performance, Wadada Leo Smith is kicking off this year’s Le Guess Who? with Creative Music. For this special showcase, arranged by curatorial platform Touching Bass...

South London's Wu-Lu, spearheaded by musician/vocalist Miles Romans-Hopcraft, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of Bo Ningen's curated program for the festival. Below, you can watch the group perform the tracks Ten & Blame from the album LOGGERHEAD, released via Warp Records. “Powered by artistic freedom and sens...

West Java is home to Reak, a spiritual trance ritual that has existed in the region for hundreds of years. Seni Reak Juarta Putra, an original community of the Reak ceremony, offers this year’s...

Brian Jackson performed live during the closing night of Le Guess Who? 2024, featuring a string of classic tracks such as The Revolution Will Not Be Televised, Home Is Where the Hatred Is, and Winter in America. You can now listen to, and relive, the full performance below.  As one-half of power duo Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jac...

(Nederlandse tekst hieronder) Following the success of last year's pilot, we are continuing to offer Low Income Day Tickets for Le Guess Who? 2025. This initiative is specifically for those who otherwise would not be able to attend the festival. This initiative arises from the fact that we hear that the ticket price is still one of the...

During Le Guess Who? 2024, we witnessed the magic of legendary Cumbia and Gaita ensemble Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto, thanks to festival curator Mabe Fratti who invited them to Utrecht. Dubbed "the authentic masters of traditional Colombian Music" by the New Yorker, Latin GRAMMY-winning Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto have toured the world f...

Calm Roots was born on NTS as a regular exploration of Alex Rita’s (Touching Bass) collection’s most meditative tones. It resonated with listeners globally to such a degree that now it has...

As Demdike Stare, Sean Canty and Miles Whittaker’s encyclopedic knowledge of music - a result of their voracious appetite for crate digging in their youth - is made crystal clear. Hailing from t...

When electronic producer, DJ, and performer Liliane Chlela relocated from Lebanon to Canada in 2021, she was faced with a tough choice; as an artist from the diaspora navigating a mostly white music m...

Over the years, Taiwanese-born, Montréal-hailing Alex Zhang Hungtai (formerly Dirty Beaches) has dived fully into the role of composer. Tinkering with the saxophone, synthesizers, percussion, and piano, Zhang has embraced the free form, focusing on explorations of improvised music, free jazz, and ritualistic music of liminality....

Christmas In Mourning is a collaboration between Beirut’s electronic musicians Sary Moussa and Abed Kobeissy, and the Greek Orthodox tenor of the Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem’s Lauren...

Southeast Asia's Golden Triangle sits between the mountainous regions of Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand. The locals call it Sop Ruak - miles and miles of rocks, and, well, opium. London’s Sex Swing...

After featuring on ‘COSMOS Embassy: China’, multifaceted Chinese-American artist Otay:onii is fully taking her practice (which spans music, performance, installation, and film composition)...

Ramallah, Palestine-based interdisciplinary artist Julmud collaborates with British-Palestinian movement creative Sasha Shadid on a piece that speaks about the aesthetics of the Cremisan Valley in Pal...

Mexican improvisational artist, composer, producer, and performer Germán Bringas arrives at Le Guess Who? bearing a fascination with velocity - of attention, synesthesia, and consciousness over...

Brooklyn-based noise/rock band Ice Balloons features Sean Kennerly (Samiam) on bass and vocals, Kyp Malone (TV on the Radio) on synthesizers and modules, and Lyla Vander (Habibi) on drums and vocals. According to the band itself, it was a ‘common misinterpretation of psychosis’ that led Ice Balloons to start making music. The...

Cate Le Bon is celebrated for her playful lyricism, and her inventive pop melodies combined with post-punk takeoffs. Last year, the Welsh avant-pop songwriter released her most tantalizing record yet...

A classical singer. A multi-instrumentalist. A transgender artist. An experimental pioneer of electronic music. A children’s show composer and actor. A Buddhist practitioner. A psychotherapy co-...

Klokpack6ix is a music- and art collective with more than twenty members/affiliates. A ‘mixed media clusterfuck’ (their words) of young rappers, producers, designers, writers, and performa...

LE 18 is a multidisciplinary cultural and residency space established in 2013 and located in the medina of Marrakech (Morocco). It aims to provide time and space for research, creation, encounter, mut...

Every year in our visitors survey right after the festival, we ask you what your favorite performance of the festival. Below are your 17 choices of Le Guess Who? 2017. We're pleased to also share the...

Nick León and Kelman Duran are standing side by side for a b2b set that promises to whisk us away on nightly adventures. Long-time collaborators - Duran remixed León’s ‘Apret...

LE 18 is a multidisciplinary cultural and residency space established in 2013 and located in the medina of Marrakech, Morocco. It aims to provide time and space for research, creation, encounter, mutu...

Cate Le Bon, Tim Presley & H. Hawkline present Cate Le Bon and Tim Presley form the musical duo DRINKS, but also practice other arts and crafts as a means to enter a different headspace. Together...

Fearless is a descriptor for French artist Cécile Schott, AKA Colleen, when it comes to her willingness to explore new ways of expressing herself as a solo performer. Following the glistening a...

The Hof van Cartesius is a unique circular work spot for more than 100 makers and entrepreneurs. It is also an incubator for new talent, a hub for experiment and a meeting space for the local communit...

Each year, COSMOS – Le Guess Who?’s global music community – partners up with eight new Embassies to showcase their music scene. For this, we commission local filmmakers to portray t...

Each year, COSMOS – Le Guess Who?’s global music community – partners up with eight new Embassies to showcase their music scene. For this, we commission local filmmakers to portray t...

Each year, COSMOS – Le Guess Who?’s global music community – partners up with eight new Embassies to showcase their music scene. For this, we commission local filmmakers to portray t...

Dianne Verdonk, Michelle Vossen and Roald van Dillewijn present and perform their new interactive installation bromwol. Literally meaning humming wool, they have mainly experimented with carded wool m...

Le Guess Who? is dedicated to boundary-crossing music & culture from all over the world. The festival shows that the world has a greater cultural richness to offer than we generally see and hear. During four days, our program displays extraordinary musical performances, as well as exhibitions, art installations, film screenings, talks...

In partnership with Hassan Kamil & AndariyamagKnown for its strong rhythms, melancholy lyrics, and bittersweet taste, the Sudanese music scene is more active than ever. This Embassy features a sel...

Over the years, Taiwanese-born, Montréal-hailing Alex Zhang Hungtai (formerly Dirty Beaches) has dived fully into the role of composer. Tinkering with the saxophone, synthesizers, percussion, and piano, Zhang has embraced the free form, focusing on explorations of improvised music, free jazz, and ritualistic music of liminality....

Charity Charly is a self-taught filmmaker and artist who focuses on making the invisible layers in society visible. She is currently working on her debut as a director for her first film ‘Tra Fa...

Because of the eagerness in broadening the intersectionality of the punk scene and approaching a more interdisciplinary approach, community curator Bibi Bannink has invited, in collaboration with dB's...

‘The Invaders’ talks about a generation of civil rights activists who originated from Memphis in 1967, consisting of students, Vietnam veterans, musicians and intellectuals who were inspir...

Jamal Moss, better known as Hieroglyphic Being, is one of the most distinct figures from Chicago's rave scene. Throughout his impressive output, Moss’s glitchy style draws from the roots of spir...

Declared a ‘cult hero’ by The Guardian, Perfume Genius has invited Canadian songwriter and actress Mary Margaret O’Hara to Utrecht for a very rare live performance. The undisciplinar...

Embracing music from both bygone and current eras, Miranda Cuckson is regarded as one of the most acclaimed performers of classical and modern music. The New York Times called Cuckson “a prodigi...

On Zwangere Guy’s debut album ‘Wie is Guy?’, there is a swagger in his flow that displays confidence usually only found in rappers who have been around for a while. It is perhaps thi...

Op deze pagina is de selectie van de vier portretten van Melanie te vinden, behorende bij de Centercom Subsidiefonds-pitch van Le Guess Who?, evenals een schets van de opzet voor twee van de posters (nog geen definitieve ontwerpen).

Outside the Catharijnepoort, where today you’ll find the Smakkelaarsveld, the Ellendigenkerkhof (the churchyard of the wretched) was situated between 1402 and 1664. A burial ground for those who...

Founded by the international music festival Le Guess Who?, COSMOS invites vibrant music communities from every corner of the map to share their stories - both online and offline.

Prepare for a giant meeting of improv artists. The copper horns of Stichting BUI, a celebrated gathering of titans of improv, will come shoulder to shoulder with poetry performer Wordbites and beatbox...

South London's Wu-Lu, spearheaded by musician/vocalist Miles Romans-Hopcraft, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of Bo Ningen's curated program for the festival. Below, you can watch the group perform the tracks Ten & Blame from the album LOGGERHEAD, released via Warp Records. “Powered by artistic freedom and sens...

In partnership with Mentha Project & BIE MusicThe project curated and produced by the Beijing-based BIE Music showcases the originality and creativity of China’s diverse indie music scenes w...

This time slot, In Solidarity With, has been set aside to respect the many artists who couldn’t be with us this year. There are always cancellations, but this year, more than any previous editio...

Waterschade is a young punk band from Haarlem who do not like patriarchy, racism and, of course, capitalism. They express this with tight bass lines, hard riffs and lots of screaming. With a mix of ha...

While shooting photographs, Jip Jansen tries to capture a feeling. To portray an emotion. The images are timeless. Almost all the photos are shot in the Slachthuis, the most beautiful café in H...

Pharoah Sanders eagerly bleeds jazz traditions out into the spiritual realms of gospel, soul, African folk and R&B, influencing artists as diverse as The Stooges, Marvin Gaye and Sun Ra (who coine...

‘Carefree’ doesn’t even begin to describe the music of DRINKS. Untroubled by anything resembling internal logic, White Fence’s Tim Presley and Cate Le Bon indulge in deliciousl...

‘Erratic Weather’, the digital art project of French digital artist Mathieu Le Sourd (Maotik) and Dutch cellist, composer and producer Maarten Vos, is a sonic picture of the chaos of clima...

"With his pioneering industrial metal band Godflesh, Justin Broadrick writes songs built on concussive beats, apocalyptic riffs, and feral howls. It’s music made for an audience who, during live shows, reward the storm of sound with rapt attention. But when Broadrick performs in techno clubs as JK Flesh, he wears a hoodie that...

Oiseaux-Tempête will release their new album 'From Somewhere Invisible' on 18 October: a collaboration with former Le Guess Who? artists Radwan Ghazi Moumneh (Jerusalem In My Heart, also LGW17 curator) and Jessica Moss (Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band), as well as G.W. Sok (King Champion Sounds, for...

Each moment that passes on this avant-garde trio’s music is an excuse to take a left turn - making every song, record, and concert a unique, unrepeatable experience. Arve Henriksen, Ståle Storl...

Jota Ortiz is a collector, selector and musician from Panama. He has been roaming his hot and humid homeland for the past 10 years searching for lost gems on vinyl to preserve for future generations....

English contemporary artist Mark Leckey makes use of a variety of media, including film, sound, sculpture, and performance. His versatile practice focuses on the relationship between popular culture a...

Originally initiated as a solo effort by Zamity Mitelembe, Salutingrome has since evolved into a respected rock band, accompanied by Victor Keyser on guitar and Tijmen Aalberts on drums. Commencing wi...

On the same day as his Nick León b2b, LA-based abstract electronic music icon Kelman Duran is linking up with multi-faceted artist Franziska Aigner, AKA FRANKIE. There is a lot of crossover in...

Amsterdam-based group Devon Rexi, founded by Nic Mauskovic (AKA Nicolini, former Le Guess Who? artist) and Nushin Naini, create dubby, playful experimental music. The fried-Farsi vocals are sung in th...

Sonic Souvenirs is a workshop in which participants will engage in the creative (re)use and recontextualization of archival materials from Le Guess Who?’s library - spanning from 2014 to 2023 -...

Aftab Sr. was born in what was, up until the seventies, the beating cultural heart of Pakistan - Lahore. Raised amidst culture (music, fine arts, crafts, progressive literature, socio-political discou...

Electronic musician, composer, saxophonist, and sound artist Marc Alberto can’t keep still; the highly creative Euro-Caribbean musician is constantly challenging categorization, making the diffi...

Southeast Asia's Golden Triangle sits between the mountainous regions of Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand. The locals call it Sop Ruak - miles and miles of rocks, and, well, opium. London’s Sex Swing...

United Screens for Palestine is an open and decentralized collective of programmers, cultural workers and venues, responding to the paralysis brought about by the ongoing genocide as well as the incre...

Degeneracy Regeneracy is an immersive audiovisual exhibition of five interconnected artworks, each unfolding like a chapter in a larger narrative. Set within a single space, it explores the cyclical r...

Polish guitarist Raphael Rogiński presented his album Žaltys live at Utrecht’s Pieterskerk during Le Guess Who? 2024, accompanied on stage by Lithuanian singer and kanklės player Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė and American multi-instrumentalist Shahzad Ismaily. You can now listen to the full performance, which was co-curated by Unsound as pa...

'The After Image Becomes A Poem' A world exclusive performance for Le Guess Who? 2024 Bo Ningen create a unique aural and visual experience performing their alternate live score inspired by Alejandr...

Leisha Thomas is Alpha Maid, a guitarist, vocalist, and producer hailing from South East London. Her first solo release on the C.A.N.V.A.S. collective label, 2021's 'CHUCKLE', garnered significant cri...

Percussionist and composer Tumi Mogorosi is in the vanguard of the South African creative music scene’s burgeoning outernational dimension. He took the drummer’s chair in multiple boundary...

Black creative music often becomes a powerful act of resistance and activism, and that’s certainly true for Asher Gamedze’s music. Through rolling drums and poetic reflections, the virtuos...

With a brush dipped in optimism, Tiago Caetano paints the melancholic Breton coast to turn it into the colourful palette of Brazil; luckily that warm wind will blow all the way to Utrecht for Le Guess...

Le Guess Who? 2025 guest curator Ziúr brings together unique super-duo Attila Csihar & Iggor Cavalera. On drums is the co-founder of legendary Brazilian band Sepultura, whose groundbreaking...

Across 24 years, sound and multimedia artist Raven Chacon has built an extraordinary body of work, appearing in over eighty solo and collaborative appearances, including with the influential collectiv...

Even though her discography is very diversified - ranging from trippy left-field to experimental drum & bass and oddball techno - something that permeates all upsammy’s tracks, is the organi...

Producer 33EMYBW uses abstract dance music to explore the mysteries of humanity and its evolution. Her deconstructed club compositions draw inspiration from IDM, folk music and a wide range of visual...

Le Guess Who? 2025 guest curator Tianzhuo Chen invites two influential figures of the Chinese music scene to perform and improvise together on stage. Groundbreaking guitarist Li Jianhong is a pioneer...

Pianist, sound artist and multi-instrumentalist Dirar Kalash works across a wide range of musical and sonic practices, moving between composed and improvised forms of free jazz and avant-garde. His wo...

As part of her guest curation at Le Guess Who? 2025, trailblazing percussionist Valentina Magaletti takes the stage for a special improvised set. Her versatile technique, which can incorporate anythin...

Le Guess Who? 2025 guest curator Asher Gamedze invites a Cape Town-based critical sound collective committed to dangerous thinking and sonic vandalism. DEAD SYMBOLS situates its practice at the inters...

Layered vocals, electronic experimentation, field recordings and film intertwine for a special performance influenced by the present, to imagine a sonic future for Palestine. Experimental singer-songw...

Transcendentally beautiful, The Space Lady’s music is once again gracing planet Le Guess Who?. Transmitting messages of peace and harmony, she began her odyssey on the streets of Boston in the l...

The harmonies of singer-songwriter Luisa Almaguer flow with the warmth and vibrancy of a celebration shared with the chosen family. Drawing from Mexican musical traditions, her voice carries both stre...

Le Guess Who? aficionados are certainly familiar with the work of multi-talented artist Alabaster DePlume, whose instrumental and lyrical creations radiate healing and empathy. Often joined on stage b...

With immersive bass drones and striking video projections, emptyset creates captivating audiovisual experiences that push the boundaries of electronic sound and architectural audiovisual. The multidis...

You might have seen her walking around festival terrains around the globe, with a bag full of vinyls and a big smile on her face. Inventive collector and selector DJ Marcelle brings her iconic three-t...

It takes a few instants to pick up on the explosive and contagious rhythms of Ndagga Rhythm Force. Led by the stunning stage presence of veteran percussionist Bada Seck and singer Mbene Diatta Seck, t...

All hail the return of SUNN O))): a live experience of physical sound, fog and glacial maximalism. Ten years after their curation, the iconic duo will perform again at Le Guess Who?, where they’...

As punk and grunge continue to resonate across generations, post-hardcore band Unwound are leaving a mark in every decade they’re touching. Formed in 1991 in the Pacific Northwest, they lit up t...

Driven by an appetite for boundless experimentation, producer and composer Ziúr has always been subverting expectations, corkscrewing through hardcore, metal and punk before veering towards ele...

By Tianzhuo Chen & Siko Setyanto & Nova Ruth & KadapatLe Guess Who? 2025 guest curator Tianzhuo Chen brings a multidisciplinary, multi-layered performance to the festival that weaves toget...

Le Guess Who? takes place across several locations in the city center of Utrecht; ranging from pop venues and theaters to churches, galleries and warehouses. Most are within walking distance from each other. 

It’s obvious why Caila Thompson-Hannant chose the moniker Mozart's Sister. Like that ersatz sibling, the Montreal musician has a swift ear for bubbly, uplifting melodies. In hyperkinetic and gle...

Lili Boulanger (1893) is a unique and prodigious case studies in music history, taking up singing, organ, piano, violin, cello and harp at the premature age of five. In 1913, she became the first woma...

Pharoah Sanders isn't just one of the biggest jazz icons to ever set foot on a stage. In many ways, he transcends jazz music's conventions like few others. His employment of the tenor sax is unequaled...

Pinkstermaandag 5 juni in LE:EN, Utrecht, met: Six Organs of Admittance, Baby Dee en Faarjam.

Canadian artist Sarah Davachi's creates immersive soundscapes with a playful exchange between ancient acoustic instrumentation and analogue synths. Davachi is a real sonic thrill-seeker who enjoys pus...

Ben Frost’s interests are as vast as his output is, creating music for dance companies and films, and collaborating with visual artists and poets. Frost’s music is influenced by classical...

Seattle-based musician Jesy Fortino (who also formed Mirrorring together with Grouper’s Liz Harris) returns as Tiny Vipers after an eight-year album hiatus. With the electronic soundscape-based...

Coby Sey is a NTS Radio DJ and musician who released a 5-track record on Young Turks' sub-label Whities this year. A long time collaborator of Mica Levi and Tirzah, Coby now forges his own path as pro...

Paul Clipson is a San Francisco-based experimental filmmaker who often collaborates with sound artists and musicians. His Super 8 and 16mm films aim to bring subconscious visual abstractions to light....

Composer, guitarist and producer Patrick Higgins (also a member of New York avant-garde outfit Zs) will perform with string ensemble of the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra. The performance will feature...

Anatolian psych folk revivalists Altın Gün are, most simply put, a power pact between members of Jacco Gardner and Jungle By Night, who wound up crossing paths with musicians Erdinç Ecevit...

Post-grunge/noise/hardcore juggernaut and overall cool Canadians METZ have released two albums worth of aural onslaught. This time around, the band frantically push their well-established sound even f...

K Á R Y Y N is a producer, composer and vocalist who makes textured and emotional music inspired by the human condition, science and spirituality. Born in Alabama, baptized in Aleppo and raised...

Ben Bertrand is a Brussels-based bass clarinetist who cut his teeth in the Belgian modern classical scene. Bertrand once invented a device that enables him to transform the natural sound of his instru...

Steven Warwick is a British-born, Berlin-based musician and visual artist who performed under the moniker Heatsick in the past. Warwick moulds hypnotic dancefloor-focussed tracks in a similar way to h...

Born and raised in China and currently residing in Berlin, Pan Daijing is a groundbreaking artist, composer and storyteller who creates a raw and rare mixture of noise music, performance art, dance an...

Having fled from the fundamentalists in their home country of Sudan, the original members of psychedelic group The Scorpios established themselves in London during the 80s. Once there, they built a gr...

Crack Cloud is a rather peculiar project: a multimedia collective that includes members from different cities, ethnicities and origins. Their debut release ‘Anchoring Point’ is based aroun...

Belgian dancer and choreographer Judith Clijsters isn’t just someone who constructs and performs a dance movement. She observes. More specifically, she observes our bodies, and how we use them....

New York-based musician Martin Bisi is hailed as iconic producer who defined the sound of New York noise. This year’s release ‘BC35’ celebrates the 35-year Anniversary his of BC Stud...

Cinema Perdu is the moniker of Utrecht-based Martijn Pieck, who has also been involved in woodbender and the [law rah] collective. Fascinated by urban found sounds, he works with manipulated samples a...

With his self-taught piano improvisations and stream-of-consciousness lyrical approach, Lonnie Holley is a storyteller of the highest order. Apart from being an acclaimed visual artist, Holley also cr...

In 1970, soul artist Jerry Williams, Jr. radically reinvented himself as Swamp Dogg: an anti-hero who smashes the conventions of commercial R&B music, and whose subversive lyrics earned him a spot...

With a career that dates back to the 80s, Soichi Terada has long been a bastion of soothing house music in Japan. Thanks in part to Hunee, who provided a showcase of Terada’s work via the Rush H...

The Graindelavoix ensemble from Antwerp is notorious for their daring and alienating performances that embrace the imperfections of what it means to be human. Now, they presents the four-hour piece &l...

Formed in 1997, Endless Boogie is an American rock band who are living up to their own band name. They’re well known for their seemingly infinite, minimalist jams, onstage as well as on record....

The Line Of Best Fit interview Kane Strang, on 3 albums he would be crate-digging for at the World's Biggest Record Fair, happening in Utrecht during Le Guess Who? 2017. Read in fu...

Le Guess Who? & de Volkskrant bring you video portraits of artists performing at Le Guess Who? 2017. Han Bennink, the world’s most resourceful drummer, celebrated his 75th birthday at Le Gu...

Public Poetry takes the written word into our shared communal life in public space; it brings people together for the sake of the most intimate of verbal arts. In this session, LGW artists are invited...

During Le Guess Who? 2017, Perfume Genius and Mary Margaret O’Hara met backstage for a side-by-side interview. Mike Hadreas invited the Canadian cult hero to Utrecht as part of his curated...

In the late 80’s, Doug Hream Blunt moonlighted music with a job at a care home in San Francisco. As a relative late bloomer at age 35, he started writing songs after attending a How To Start A B...

The Netherlands 3FM: "3voor12 is op Le Guess Who?, waar basketballen tegen aan het plafond geschroefde gitaren worden gegooid"3voor12: "Eerste 67 namen voor Le Guess Who? 2017"           3voor12: "Kelly Lee Owens, dagdromer met kennishonger"           3voor12: "Le Guess Who? str...

Moroccan Gnawa master Maâlem Houssam Guinia performed live at Le Guess Who? 2017. This performance was curated by James Holden for the festival: About:Maâlem (or ‘master musician&rsquo...

Great pop songs with magic sprinkles of Eastern soundtracks, Spaghetti Western’s spacious twang and some grooving yé-yé sounds, that’s Khana Bierbood in a nutshell. Not surpr...

Xylouris White is firmly rooted in the past and future: a tight alliance between Greek musician and songwriter Georgios Xylouris and drummer Jim White. Xylouris White reconciles not only the tandem&rs...

Acid Rooster are pretty much a wet dream for heads who cram their cabinets with Amon Düül, Spacemen 3, Wooden Shjips and Magma. The dynamics of this band diverge from weightless, spaced out...

DJ Quesadilla and DJ Fitz, two swashbuckling archeologists of music who habitually turn dancefloors all over the world into journeys of sweet sonic oblivion. The former is one of the most prominent fi...

Mazaher are a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms used as a purification and exorcism ritual to help pacify and...

Mount Eerie has announced the release of '(after)', a new live album recorded live at Le Guess Who? 2017. The performance was curated by Perfume Genius for the festival, and took place at the Jacobike...

Besides being a captivating composer, violinist, and vocalist, Jessica Moss is also a skillful story-teller. Listening to her first solo ventures, one is immediately transported into the icy Montreal...

For this performance, song and dance collide in a partnership between producer Rian Treanor and video artist Leila Ziu. ‘Altered States on the Dancefloor’ sees director Ziu opening doorway...

presented by Jongerentheater Link Discrimination, prejudice, exclusion, racism; these subjects are all up for discussion at Open Podium West. Hear and meet people of all ages from the neighbourhood,...

The Flare Quartet, with violinists from the Netherlands, Spain and Canada, was founded in 2020 by a group of master students from the Utrecht Conservatoire. They are joining the  Palestinian, Syr...

Sudan/UK collective The Scorpios performed on the closing day of Le Guess Who? 2018. Inspired by traditional Sudanese music and 60s and 70s pop, the group create an elated mix of Arabic rhythms, raw Eastern funk and vintage psychedelia. You can now listen to their full festival performance: About Having fled from the fundamentalists i...

At De Voorkamer you can learn the Syrian folk dance Dabke. Amer, who will be the teacher, is a health and food enthusiast, a body builder whose message is that everyone should stay fit and healthy wit...

An international musical threesome made up of members from Ukraine, Catalunya, Turkey, and, all of them also, the Netherlands, comes together in Trio SonCe, who present 'Five Seasons' – a fascin...

Supervisory Board Hans van Soelen – chairman (end first period March 2026)Jorien Waanders – audit committee (end first period June 2026)Mark Laagewaard – audit committee  (end first period January 2027)Nancy Poleon – member (end first period January 2027)Ilayda Hagens – member (end first period January...

Today, Cate le Bon releases her fifth solo album 'Reward'. It was written in the county of Cumbria in North West England and it is Le Bon's most personal record to date, described as intensely introspective and profound. The record clings to the value of meaning and is a warning against lazy comparisons and face values. Stream...

Le Guess Who? presents ON/OFF

ZONAL is the collaborative noise, dub and industrial project of Le Guess Who? 2019 curator Kevin Richard Martin (The Bug, King Midas Sound) and Justin Broadrick (Godflesh, JK Flesh). The group now announces their debut full-length album, to be released this fall via Relapse Records. The first two tracks; 'Cage Version' and 'No Versio...

‘Pep Navigates’ is a short film accompanying the reissue of Valencian ambient composer Pep Llopis’ 1987 record ‘Poiemusia La Nau Dels Argonautes’. The album of minimalism...

Little Blue Nothing is an intimate journey into the world of Irena & Vojtech Havlovi, two low-profile Czech viola players who live in the suburbs of Prague, out of society. The two musicians recor...

For Le Guess Who? spin-off festival Le Mini Who?, 2019 marks the move to Cartesius. Le Mini Who? transforms local bars, restaurants, venues and warehouses into improvised venues for (mainly) Dutch underground bands to play. For its 11th edition on Sunday 10 November, Le Mini Who? settles in the Cartesius area, located in the nor...

U? is Le Guess Who’s participatory and freely accessible day program, made for–and with–the city of Utrecht. With U?, Le Guess Who? extends its mission to enrich people through music and culture even further to the city. From 10 to 13 November 2022, U? returns for its second edition. The program is made with, or even ent...

LGW? 2021 Line-Up Le Guess Who? 2021 featured programs curated by John Dwyer, Lucrecia Dalt, Matana Roberts, Phil Elverum and Midori Takada. View the full line-up via the link below. LE GUESS WHO? 2021 LINE-UP

London trio Moin, comprised of Raime’s Joe Andrews and Tom Halstead together with percussionist visionary Valentina Magaletti, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the program curated by Stereolab. You can now listen to and relive the full performance, featuring a previously unreleased track: "'Moin are subtly but br...

Avant-rock group Suuns' relationship with Le Guess Who? goes way back; the three-piece Montreal band has always positively surprised us with their releases and their newest, 'The Witness', their first for Joyful Noise Recordings, is yet another impressive step of their sonic universe. Produced and recorded over the course of 2020 at ...

An affectionate portrait of this Cape Verdean singer with a deep, melancholic voice, using archived footage, live recordings, and interviews to capture the life of a woman who never betrayed her humbl...

Le Guess Who? exists to bring people together through art and music, and despite the uncertainty of the times we have continued to work toward that end. Some things might change, and some things will change, but we have put together a festival for 2021 that we are extremely proud of, and will bring it to you in whatever form possible.&nbs...

At De Voorkamer you can learn the Syrian folk dance Dabke. Amer, who is the perfect person to present it to you, will be the teacher. He is a health and food enthusiast, a body builder whose message i...

Amara Diabate, who lives in Zuilen, is a master drummer and kora player. He is hosting a djembe workshop where all those present can feel everything the drums produce and what it awakens. Diabate guid...

Asmae Amaddaou shares her keen yet velvety soft observations and experiences from her book ‘De wereld is van ons’. For the book, the 20-year-old Gouda-based, Moroccan-born writer drew from...

Even without her other half Minka — who she met during EKKO’s DJ course over their shared love for fast and quirky electronic music — Joshka takes you on a rave journey past dynamic...

Want to be among the first to hear about the latest news & program updates? Download our official festival app. When you switch on notifications in the app, you'll receive news and last-minute update on your phone. During the festival weekend you can explore the line-up, create your personal timetable, find your way through Utrecht w...

In partnership with ICRN  Bringing together DIY broadcasters from the Baltics and beyond, the Independent Community Radio Network (ICRN) has created an impactful platform that proves once more, that there is always strength in numbers. In 2022, a handful of activists and community radios from the Baltic-Nordic region joined forces t...

puurvuur is a DJ and producer from Utrecht, who plays and makes beats that sit in the cracks between bass music, hiphop, and club. Selections span from breaks to uncategorizable productions around 140...

On the quays at De Nijverheid you will find the annually renewed open-air art exhibition KunstKoers. Prick up your ears as you wander along the art works, so you won’t miss out on composer and s...

At times fragile, at others outrageously explosive, Delwood takes listeners on a cinematic voyage where organic and electronic components merge. Undoubtedly, their music will remind you of Tortoise, D...

While Le Guess Who? 2021 is still taking place, we have some exciting news for our most dedicated visitors. Early Bird 4-Day Passes for Le Guess Who? 2022 are available now until November 30th or until sold out. The Early Bird tickets cost €128 (including service costs). Le Guess Who? 2022The 15th edition of Le Guess Who? will take...

“Unfamiliar” sounds, from “unknown” parts of the world. Exoticizing entire cultures from a global North perspective, such are the traditional descriptors attached to so much of...

There is a thread binding London and Johannesburg, of which internationally-acclaimed ensemble The Brother Moves On is part. Founded by artist Nkululeko Mthembu and his brother Siyabonga Mthembu, the...

While Nappy Nina previously made appearances on Yaeji, Quelle Chris, and Son Lux's music, her characteristic breezy flow has led her to conquer stages worldwide in her own right. For her Le Guess Who? performance, she will be joined by DJ Stas THEE Boss.  Now, the Oakland-born writer, MC, and producer releases her new song, produced...

Le Guess Who? presents 'The Big Playback', a podcast about all things music. Episode 3 is a four-part series entitled 'For the Record', exploring the role of the archivist from all angles, released in weekly installments. In this new series, host Margaret Munchheimer talks to an independent archival collective in Indonesia; a sound and p...

Cottica Territory is Now Only in Memory is a short documentary about the Marron music & culture of the Cottica area. After the internal war, many villagers stayed in Moengo on their return from th...

The Brother Moves On is the captivating South-African performance art ensemble from Johannesburg, famous for the way the artists masterfully draw from past, present and future within music. Now, the group releases an uplifting and inspirational new album entitled '$/He Who Feeds You…Owns You' via Shabaka Hutchings' Native Rebel Rec...

(scroll naar beneden voor de Nederlandse tekst) U? is the freely accessible day program of Le Guess Who? In 2023, U? takes place on 11 & 12 November. With this open call, we want to give everyone with ideas the opportunity to participate. The program of U? consists a multitude of events and activities which are c...

Le Guess Who? presents 'The Big Playback', a podcast about all things music. For the occasion of Le Guess Who’s 15th Edition, we pay tribute to DJ Fitz- the man, the legend, the only artist to have been on every single lineup.  In this final episode of the series (revisit the first part here), we follow Fitz to Berlin and beyo...

Buddy to Buddy matches newcomers to citizens based on equality, shared interests and a lot of ‘gezelligheid’. It helps newcomers get out of social isolation and it involves fellow citizens with the integration of their new neighbors. In this short documentary, our resident photo- & videographer Juri Hiensch visited buddy's...

Street vendors are often referred to as merchandisers who use public spaces to sell their products and services. In Mexico, street vendors go back to the pre-Hispanic times, when people started sellin...

Polish guitarist Raphael Rogiński presented his album Žaltys live at Utrecht’s Pieterskerk during Le Guess Who? 2024, accompanied on stage by Lithuanian singer and kanklės player Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė and American multi-instrumentalist Shahzad Ismaily. You can now listen to the full performance, which was co-curated by Unsound as pa...

During Le Guess Who? 2017 in Utrecht, The Netherlands, Canadian singer-songwriter Mary Margaret O’Hara gave a very rare live appearance, curated by Perfume Genius for the festival. We are extremely proud to now be able to share the video recordings of the performance, premiered by The Wire. Declared a ‘cult hero’ by The...

In partnership with Space21Hardi Kurda, a sound artist and curator of Kurdistan-Iraq’s first experimental festival, Space21, takes us on a listening journey to the city of Slemani and its cultur...

Le Guess Who? presents 'The Big Playback', a podcast about all things music. For the occasion of Le Guess Who’s 15th Edition, we pay tribute to DJ Fitz- the man, the legend, the only artist to have been on every single lineup.  In this two part series we dig first into Fitz’s illustrious past in NYC as a DIY show or...

The Master Musicians of Jajouka, led by Bachir Attar, performed live at the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the Hidden Musics project following the release of their new album 'Dancing Under The Moon', released earlier in 2022 via Glitterbeat Records. You can listen to and relive the full performance below.  About B...

San Agustín is a south-central Caracas, Venezuela, district that began to form in the late 1800s. People from Margarita Island and the Venezuelan Andes, but especially from the Black areas of V...

Le Guess Who? presents 'The Big Playback', a podcast about all things music. Episode 3 is a four-part series entitled 'For the Record', exploring the role of the archivist from all angles, released in weekly installments. In this series, host Margaret Munchheimer talks to an independent archival collective in Indonesia; a sound and perfo...

Having been born to seven consecutive generations of qawwals (those who perform the ancient form of religious Sufi music from Pakistan and Northern India - Punjab - known as qawwali), Pakistani singer...

Detroit-based multidisciplinary artist Ahya Simone's practice is populated by a careful probing of Black identity, aesthetics, and community building - and it is crawling with exciting references. Bro...

From 10-13 November, Le Guess Who? returns to Utrecht for its 15th Anniversary Edition. We now proudly reveal the full 2022 line-up, with new additions joining the likes of Abdullah Ibrahim, Low, Lole Montoya, Nia Archives, as well as festival curators Animal Collective, clipping., and CURL. General program Joining Le Guess Who?&rsquo...

Free Tekno parties were on the forefront of electronics since the birth of acid-house. In this short documentary, our resident photo- & videographer Juri Hiensch explored the past and present of this fascinating subculture, with a big & close community present in Utrecht. Watch the mini documentary below + view the photo/video ser...

After last year's success of full rooms, beautiful films and interesting conversations, we are bringing the Film & Discourse Program back to Le Guess Who?. We are excited to present our full program and the partners we created it with. Film Program This year, Le Guess Who? once again collaborates with IDFA (International Documentary...

There aren't many music performances that can be described as frightening, but Wolf Eyes' intense and bizarre live shows have garnered the band a truly creepy reputation. Formed in Michigan in 1998, t...

A singer-songsmith who presents experimental, linear versions of ‘songs’ with no beginning or end, but with rubato and dissonants. Think Sonic Youth, Bill Frisell, Dirty Three and Joanna N...

Georgia's Pankisi Ensemble performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the Hidden Musics program. Now, you can relive this touching performance with the full audio of the show, recorded at Utrecht's Jacobikerk during the festival. AboutThe Pankisi Ensemble goes against the typical 'ethno-fusion' grain in two ways. First, by not res...

Not all adolescents find the support they need within the youth care. For those who don’t, IJzersterk has developed ‘Empowerment’. Professionals and hands-on experts support young pe...

Nature, afrofuturism, jazz, and hip-hop have come together to form Phantom Wizard’s ethereal work. The artist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist of Surinamese descent was born and raised in th...

Nature, afrofuturism, jazz, and hip-hop have come together to form Phantom Wizard’s ethereal work. The artist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist of Surinamese descent was born and raised in th...

(Nederlandse versie hieronder) As part of Le Guess Who? 2024, we are once again initiating the 'Donate a Ticket' concept. This initiative gives festival visitors the opportunity to purchase an extra day ticket for people who are also interested in visiting the festival, but do not have the financial resources themselves to do so. Visito...

Le Feast invites you into a living room in Utrecht, to enjoy a feast together with people you don't know (yet). Would you like to join as a home-chef or guest? You can now sign up!Le Feast nodigt je uit in een huiskamer in Utrecht om samen met mensen die je (nog) niet kent te genieten van een feestmaal. Lijkt het je leuk om deel te nemen...

In partnership with Sharjah Art Foundation.   Located in Sharjah’s historic Art and Heritage Areas, Sharjah Art Foundation activities and events take place throughout the year and inc...

Debuted by BBC Radio 6 Music with Mary Anne Hobbs, Le Guess Who? 2024 artists Rafael Anton Irisarri and KMRU reveal their new, collaborative track Red Moon Tide. The track is part of veteran composer and Ghostly International alumnus Irisarri's new album FAÇADISMS, to be released on 8 November. FAÇADISMS by Rafael Anton Irisarri...

On Friday, 8 November 2024, the compilation album Chromesthesia: the Colour of Sound Vol. 1 is set to be released. Brainchild of British-Egyptian historian Hannah Elsisi (NYU AD, Cambridge), Chromesthesia—aptly named "the colour of sound"— tracks afro-diasporic rhythms from the Whole Mangrove World. Now, the first single from...

For every record he spins, Pedro Ricardo takes on new challenges. The artist, who will be doing a DJ set at Le Guess Who?, relies on the strength of the grooves he plays, bringing forth a feeling of intense freedom to the dance floor through a selection of warm, inviting rhythms. Jazz-fusion, disco, and funk are to be expected, but house...

Since we are all simultaneously yelling how unique we are, I decided to rename myself Plastic Persoon. An Avant Gabber duo consisting of Sob (45ACIDBABIES, FFOOSS) and Juna (Imhotel, Gita Buhari). Bot...

With the ethos of Listening is the Way Forward, Le Guess Who? is widely considered to be one of the most forward-thinking festivals around. Le Guess Who? exists to promote sounds that are often overlooked, and to platform fresh perspectives on what is possible in music. Artists from all over the world push the boundaries of expectations...

Starting DJing at thirteen, Mari Larrington-Nelson, AKA Shy One, was introduced to the flora and fauna of London’s sound early on. Record-collecting soon turned into beat-making for local names...

With their podcast, U?TCAST showcases street culture talent from Utrecht along the full width.MokerjongCrow NesstybeatsU?TCAST will be opened by a young enthousiast that we've seen making quite a...

This year, U?, the freely accessible city program of Le Guess Who?, starts a new collaboration with Music Moves to make the dance floor more accessible and inclusive. Music Moves is a training program in which young adults (17 - 27 years) organize their own music event for people who do not naturally have access to music events. "We bel...

Since 2013, South East London singer and songwriter Tirzah has been making music with longtime friend and musical partner Mica Levi. Third album trip9love…??? was released this September via Do...

Located in Sharjah’s historic art and heritage Areas, Sharjah Art Foundation’s activities and events take place throughout the year and include exhibitions featuring the work of Arab and i...

Le Mini Who? is a spin-off festival of Le Guess Who?. It transforms many of Utrecht’s shops and bars into improvised venues for (mainly) Dutch underground bands to play, where people jostle for...

Last year, Aba Shanti-I celebrated his thirtieth year as a resident sound system at the Notting Hill Carnival. The same year he started, the legendary producer was voted the No. 1 DJ in the World by D...

Playing at the iconic Fuji Rock Festival for five years straight is a feat many dream of, but, for ASA-CHANG & Junray, it’s a blip in their long story. ASA-CHANG is the founder and original...

COSMOS is Le Guess Who?’s hybrid platform that highlights independent music scenes from around the world. Here we invite vibrant music communities from every corner of the map to become COSMOS Embassies, and to share their stories–both online and offline–through mixtapes, film, live radio, conversations and performances....

London-based Mexican violinist, composer, and improviser Gibrana Cervantes performed live at Le Guess Who? 2024, as part of the program curated by Mabe Fratti. You can listen to the full performance below, featuring two unreleased tracks: ‘Blur of Memories’ and ‘Verdad vs. Error’, as well as ‘Moving Through...

As one-half of power duo Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson, Brian’s fingerprints are still all over music today - from Common to Kendrick Lamar to Tupac and more. Almost 50 years later, the Am...

Bibi Bannink is an 18-year-old Audiovisual Media student at HKU (The Utrecht School for the Arts). Active in the field of feminist punk, she is eager to invest in broadening the intersectionality of t...

Maardewân is a community of migrant creatives who have found themselves and each other in the Netherlands. Coming from diverse backgrounds and disciplines, they are bonded by their friendship an...

This year, U? will have it’s very own ‘sustainable’ merchandise station. No one other than Utrecht’s infamous Birdguy, who created this year’s U? artwork, has designed a...

A Study of a Shared Meal is an invitation to come together in the preparation and sharing of a meal. Inspired by Harney and Moten’s idea of “study” as what you do with other people,...

Le Mini Who? returns as part of Le Guess Who? 2019 on Sunday, 10 November. As a free spin-off festival of Le Guess Who?, it transforms many of Utrecht’s local bars, restaurants, venues and warehouses into improvised venues for (mainly) Dutch underground bands to play. For its 11th edition on Sunday, 10 November 2019, Le Mini Wh...

Le Mini Who? returns as part of Le Guess Who? 2018 on Saturday, 10 November. As a spin-off festival of Le Guess Who?, it transforms many of Utrecht’s local bars, restaurants, venues and warehous...

We’re very happy to announce that we'll have our very own Le Guess Who? Beer for sale at the festival this year. In collaboration with one of Utrecht’s finest microbreweries, De Kromme Har...

Le Guess Who? exists to bring people together through art and music. In 2021, the international festival for boundary-crossing music and culture makes a new addition to the upcoming festival edition: U?, a new, participative and freely accessible day program created for and with the city of Utrecht. 

With just two weeks left until Le Guess Who? 2019, we now present you our official 2019 program guide, where you'll find all the info you need to know about this year's festival. You can discover all the artist biographies, plus explore sections for Untitled, Le Mini Who? and Lombok Festival. While you're browsing through the...

With just one week left until Le Guess Who?, we are now publishing our official 2018 program guide, where you'll find all artist biographies, plus sections for Le Mini Who?, Lombok Festival, and our new satellite event 'Untitled', as well as a Utrecht Treasure Guide (with 40+ special offers for festival visitors) and several Illustra...

Today, Rotterdam's noise pop revisionists The Sweet Release Of Death make their much-anticipated return with third LP 'The Blissful Joy Of Living', out now via Subroutine Records. The album could be considered a playful counter-statement to their own name. Over the span of six songs, it offers an acute glimpse of a band mired in tota...

Utrecht based photographer Rogier Boogaard captured documentary photo series of artists involved in the festival.De Utrechtse fotograaf Rogier Boogaard heeft artiesten die betrokken waren bij het festival vastgelegd in documentaire fotoseries.

"This is flamenco punk", said Niño de Elche towards the end of his performance at Le Guess Who?. It's a fitting statement: the Spanish musician, who is also called a 'singer, poet and omnipresent master of ensorcelling souls' has been challenging conservative and picturesque perceptions of flamenco for over two decades. You can re...

We are excited to present you a new satellite event during Le Guess Who? 2018: ‘Untitled’. The program focuses on all disciplines other than music and is an exploration of other artistic e...

Upon arrival at the festival, you will need to exchange your ticket for a festival wristband to ensure entrance to all the festival venues. Like last year, our Ticket & Info area is located in TivoliVredenburg on the ground floor.  Please note: - You can only exchange your ticket for a wristband at our ticket desk in Tivoli...

Our festival newspaper is your guide to Utrecht city gems and all Le Guess Who? local events. Here, the festival team recommends spots to eat, drink, shop and hang out in Utrecht. You'll also learn mo...

The official Le Guess Who? 2017 program guide is here. Read & dive in to prepare for next week: all artist biographies in one neat place, as well as more info on wristband pick-up and our fringe e...

With many idyllic canals, a medieval city centre, the vibrant nightlife, and an overload of cultural activities, the city of Utrecht has some incredible discoveries in store for you. Selected with great care, Le Guess Who? would like to introduce to you this year's Utrecht Treasure Guide. Here is an interactive map, showing...

Upon arrival at the festival, you will need to exchange your ticket for a festival wristband to ensure entrance to the festival venues. Please note: You can only do this at our ticket desk in TivoliVredenburg (Vredenburgkade 11, right next to Utrecht central station), not at other venues. Please note that you can only coll...

Raised in North Carolina, Kelsey Lu (although she prefers you just call her 'Lu') is the daughter of two devout Jehovah’s Witnesses. From a young age on, Lu was always encouraged to surround her...

The Skinny just posted their 2017 guide to European festivals, featuring Primavera, MELT! Festival, Trans Musicales and yours truly. "It’s a music nerd’s paradise, in fact; not only are t...

Vietnamese-French DJ, producer & label boss Anh Phi, who was involved in the creation of COSMOS' Vietnam Embassy Film in 2023, connects the dots between Ho Chi Minh City, Paris, and Berlin. To celebrate his debut EP, Bu​ô​ng, we proudly present this exclusive mix for COSMOS, dedicated to the buzzing Southeast and East Asian unde...

Uncloud is a non profit contemporary and innovative art & music organization based in Utrecht. In this short documentary, our resident photo- & videographer Juri Hiensch visited Uncloud at their home base and during their first club night at WAS. Watch the mini documentary below + view the photo/video series on our Instagram. D...

(English version below) Voor de komende editie van Le Guess Who? (8 t/m 11 november in de gehele binnenstad van Utrecht, werkt de organisatie samen met VluchtelingenWerk, dat maatschappelijk par...

Test your sustainable or social innovation at Le Guess Who? 2023Test jouw duurzame of sociale innovatie op Le Guess Who? 2023

Test your sustainable or social innovation at Le Guess Who? 2023Test jouw duurzame of sociale innovatie op Le Guess Who? 2023

Le Guess Who? exists to promote sounds that are often overlooked, and to platform fresh perspectives on what is possible in music. Artists from all over the world offer an insight into the unprecedented diversity of human creativity.  Le Guess Who? returns 7-10 November 2024 for its 17th edition in Utrecht, The Netherlands. We&rsq...

Widely considered to be one of the most forward-thinking festivals, Le Guess Who? exists to platform fresh perspectives on what is possible in music. Artists from all over the world offer insights into the unprecedented diversity of human creativity. Le Guess Who? returns 7-10 November 2024 for its 17th edition in Utrecht, The Netherland...

Le Guess Who? is a Celebration of Sound. From 10-13 November, the festival returns to Utrecht, The Netherlands, for its 15th Anniversary Edition. We now reveals the guest curators and their full curated programs, as well as the first artists for the general program. Curated programs by Animal Collective, clipping., and CURL Inviting gue...

Each year, Le Guess Who? cooperates with a different illustrator to design the festival's main graphics and images (the layout and typography are done each year by Loudmouth). In 2016, the festival il...

We're pleased to reveal the initial line-up for Le Guess Who? 2019, dedicated to boundary-crossing music from all over the world. The first 87 acts include very rare performances by Asha Puthli, Ustad Saami, and Ayalew Mesfin & Debo Band, as well as the curated programs by Jenny Hval, Moon Duo, Patrick Higgins and The...

Pakistani singer Faiz Ali Faiz gave a spectacular performance as one of the closing acts of Le Guess Who? 2023. You can now relive this glorious moment with our concert film, as well as the full audio of the show.  "Another kind of passion was found in the lovely old Vredenburg hall with the transcendent qawwali of Faiz Ali Faiz a...

It is true that making plans for shows and festivals in 2021 is a bit of a gamble. But Le Guess Who? believes that it’s important to have something to look forward to. In the spirit of cautious optimism, we are proud to announce the second round of confirmations for November 11-14 in Utrecht, The Netherlands. Le Guess Who?’s...

The European Jazz Network (EJN) is the Europe-wide association of 170+ organizations and promoters from 34 countries who specialize in creative music, contemporary jazz and improvised music. Every year since 2012, the EJN awards a European promoter who succeeds to create visionary and fascinating musical programs.  Le Guess Who? is...

Following the announcements of the curated programs by Fatoumata Diawara, Iris van Herpen & Salvador Breed, Jenny Hval, Moon Duo, Patrick Higgins, and The Bug, we are now proud to reveal the full program for Le Guess Who? 2019. New additions include the premiere of AEAEA (Patrick Higgins & Nicolas Jaar), Aldous Harding, Deerh...

In 2007 startte Johan Gijsen samen met Bob van Heur het festival Le Guess Who? om ondervertegenwoordigde muziek een plek te geven. Nu is het festival met zijn genre-doorbrekende programmering wereldwijd toonaangevend en trekt het ieder jaar muziekliefhebbers van over de hele wereld.  Johan Gijsen: “Met dezelfde kriebels waarme...

Le Guess Who? is een internationaal toonaangevend festival voor grensverleggende muziek en cultuur van over de hele wereld. De vijftiende editie vindt plaats van 10 tot en met 13 november 2022 in Utrecht. Le Guess Who? presenteert geluiden die je op andere plekken niet te horen krijgt, maar volgens ons juist aandacht verdienen omdat ze j...

(Nederlandse versie hieronder) With Day Tickets and 4-Day Passes for Le Guess Who? 2022 currently being on sale, we are once again offering the 'Grant an Entry' option in our ticketing system, for which we are continuing our cooperation with the Dutch Council for Refugees and NewBees The 'Grant an Entry' initiative gives festival v...

DRINKS are set to return to Le Guess Who? with a fresh batch of offbeat psych pop vignettes. We linked up with eternal nomads Cate Le Bon and Tim Presley via FaceTime to talk about living off the grid...

Following the announcement of the curated programs and the initial names for the general program of Le Guess Who? 2022 last month, we are now adding four special projects to the program. These include the third edition of Hidden Musics and programs hosted by Coco Maria, GNOD, and Uncloud. Hidden Musics Le Guess Who? proudly presents the...

We're proud to reveal the full line-up for Le Guess Who? 2018 with 47 new additions to the program. Starting today, day tickets for the festival are also on sale.  The final additions to the Le...

Following the announcement of the initial line-up for Le Guess Who? 2023, including programs curated by Heba Kadry, Nala Sinephro, Slauson Malone 1 and Stereolab, we now add several special projects to this year’s festival edition, featuring COSMOS, Hidden Musics and The Anonymous Project. Rắn Cạp Đuôi Collective COSMOS...

As an international festival, Le Guess Who? has always worked with a borderless and boundary-crossing ethos. Now, we further enhance this focus with the launch of COSMOS: a new, hybrid platform that connects the local, physical festival environment with exclusive content that is available for worldwide, online streaming, via cosmos.legues...

COSMOS is Le Guess Who?’s hybrid platform with both live and on-demand exclusive content. Beyond music, beyond film, and beyond borders, COSMOS translates the festival’s mission to the online environment. From 10-15 May, 2022, the 2nd edition of COSMOS will be freely available for worldwide streaming via cosmos.leguesswho.com....

During Le Guess Who? 2021, Phil Elverum (Mount Eerie / The Microphones) was one of five guest curators for the festival. Aside from putting together a personal program of inspirations and like-minded artists, Phil Elverum also performed live with guitarist Jay Blackinton to present Elverum’s latest album, 'The Microphones In 20...

Last November, Alan Sparhawk returned to Europe to play some select solo shows, the first being a performance at Le Guess Who?. Three decades ago, Sparhawk co-founded the band Low alongside vocalist and drummer Mimi Parker, who sadly passed away in late 2022. Their music derived elemental power from its fearless exploration of quiet, ge...

Catalan artist Marina Herlop performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by Animal Collective, following the release of her latest album 'Pripyat'. Relive the mesmerizing performance with our concert film below, featuring the songs miu, doiloi, abans abans and shaolin mantis.  *Update: following the release...

Besides the artwork and typography done yearly by Loudmouth Utrecht, Le Guess Who? each year invites a different illustrator to design the main festival images, which evolves during multiple line-up a...

Recently, we celebrated the 100th festival recording being included in our online recordings archive. Now, we are elated to share the concert film of Anglo-French avant-pop group and festival curators Stereolab live at Le Guess Who? 2023. Hailed as one of the most influential and fiercely independent groups of the 90s, Stereolab's influe...

ASA-CHANG & Junray performed live at TivoliVredenburg's Pandora during Le Guess Who? 2024. You can now relive the full, spellbinding performance via the recording below - a mesmerizing hour of unprecedented music making.  ASA-CHANG is the founder and original bandmaster of Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, who, upon leaving the en...

In addition to the previously announced initial line-up and curators, we now reveals a range of special projects and performers for the festival: Future Feminism; 15 years of RVNG Intl.; ONCEIM; and t...

"This is flamenco punk", said Niño de Elche towards the end of his performance at Le Guess Who?. It's a fitting statement: the Spanish musician, who is also called a 'singer, poet and omnipresent master of ensorcelling souls' has been challenging conservative and picturesque perceptions of flamenco for over two decades. You can re...

One year ago, Le Cri du Caire released their hauntingly beautiful, self-tilted debut album. We are now thrilled to share the recording of their mesmerizing performance at Utrecht's Jacobikerk during Le Guess Who? 2023, where the group performed the majority of the album, as well as new material. AboutSinger, writer, poet, and expressio...

COSMOS is Le Guess Who?’s globe-spanning initiative that amplifies exciting music scenes from around the world. Through films, interviews, performances, and artist residencies, COSMOS connects international music communities and shares their stories. Now, COSMOS reveals the 2023 Embassies, together with its first-ever live program,...

2018 marks the start of a long-term collaboration between the Utrecht Early Music Festival and Le Guess Who?. The first joint project, a marathon concert by musician and anthropologist Björn Schm...

Dutch-Surinamese artist Pink Oculus premiered her new project 'Before Wisdom' live at TivoliVredenburg during Le Guess Who? 2021. 'Before Wisdom' is a special collaboration with audiovisual artist Boris Acket, spatial designer and scenographer Dennis Vanderbroeck, and writer Vincent van Velsen.  The newest video to appear online now...

De Raad van Toezicht van Stichting Le Guess Who maakt bekend dat Bob van Heur en Anne Marleen de Jong per 1 januari 2023 zijn aangesteld als directeur-bestuurders van Le Guess Who?. Zij volgen algemeen directeur Johan Gijsen op.  Hans van Soelen, voorzitter Raad van Toezicht: “Als Raad van Toezicht zijn we verheugd met deze tw...

Our residential photographers Juri Hiensch and Melanie Marsman have been exploring Le Guess Who? again in 2022, captured different photo series during the festival. The upcoming time, we'll be sharing these series on this website and our social media. Curated by Animal Collective, by Juri Hiensch For LGW22, Baltimore quartet Animal Co...

Ever the experimentalists, Rotterdam post-punk quintet Rats on Rafts bring their multi-disciplinary spectacle, Visions of Chapter 3, to Le Guess Who? for its first public-facing debut. And, as frontman David Fagan admits, there’s no telling just quite how it will all pan out…

“With the able steer of festival curators Jenny Hval, Moon Duo, Fatoumata Diawara, and Iris Van Herpen, this year’s boundary-crossing festival Le Guess Who?? welcomed visitors from over 60 countries and proved that even in times of political divide, music and art can bring us together into a more hopeful future.” - The...

We're very pleased to present you the curators and initial line-up for Le Guess Who? 2018. A gentle reminder: current 4-Day Festival Passes are available until Thursday, 7 June, and will increa...

During the 15th Anniversary Edition of Le Guess Who? in 2022, West Coast hip-hop trio clipping. performed live as part of their guest curation at the festival.  We're thrilled to now share the concert film of the performance, with clipping. performing tracks from throughout their discography, including fan favorites such as ‘N...

After an overwhelming first edition in 2019, the celebrated concert series Hidden Musics returns to Le Guess Who? from 11-14 November 2021 in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Hidden Musics presents international musical performances that are not usually experienced on stages or at festivals; these rich, often centuries-old musical traditions ar...

Musician and poet Alabaster dePlume was Le Guess Who? 2021’s Artist in Residence and can be described as many things: a cleric of the written word, a maverick of sound, a conductor of communion. He garnered a substantial breakthrough in 2020 with his gorgeous compilation album ‘To Cy & Lee: Instrumentals Vol. 1’, a c...

Avant-rock group Suuns have always surprised us with their releases and their newest, ‘The Witness’, on Joyful Noise, is yet another impressive step of their sonic universe. Following the release of the album, Suuns performed at Le Guess Who? 2021, and we're happy to now share the concert film of this performance as well as th...

Le Guess Who? & de Volkskrant bring you video portraits of artists performing at Le Guess Who? 2017. We visit James Holden in his London studio to discuss his new album 'The Animal Spirits', play...

Kenya's Duma, figureheads of the flourishing Nairobi underground metal scene, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2021 as part of the program curated by Phil Elverum (The Microphones/Mount Eerie).  Martin "Lord Spike Heart" Khanja and Sam Karugo released their self-titled album in 2020 through Uganda’s Nyege Nyege Tapes and were i...

Lebanese free-rock, post-folk sextet SANAM performed live on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2023, following the release of their debut album 'Aykathani Malakon'. Relive the performance with our concert film, and the audio recording of the show below: About SANAM's music is akin to a ritual, somewhere between a marriage and an exorc...

Le Guess Who? 2024 is approaching, and we're looking forward to welcome you to Utrecht for our 17th festival edition.  We can't wait to share an amazing wealth of sounds with you again, but first, there are some important details we'd like to share with you. Please take a moment to review the following information before your visit...

Bulgarian women's choir Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares performed music from their new album 'BooCheeMish' live at Le Guess Who? 2017, in Utrecht's iconic Dom church (dating back to the 13th centu...

Stichting Le Guess Who heeft een Culturele ANBI-status. Een ANBI is een instelling die zich voor minstens 90% inzet voor het algemeen nut. Een ANBI is vrijgesteld van schenkbelasting. Voor een begunstiger van een ANBI betekent deze ANBI-status fiscaal voordeel in de inkomstenbelasting en de vennootschapsbelasting. KVK-nummer: 51954222RSI...

The full line-up for Le Guess Who? is now revealed, with 60 acts completing the program - check out the full line-up here.  The Ecstatic Music of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda performed by...

Chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms, Egyptian ensemble Mazaher gave a rare performance at Le Guess Who? 2021. It was their first European show in over 15 years. Mazaher is an Egyptian ensemble, a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: a combination of chanted songs and hypnotic polyrhythm...

Following the release of her debut ‘No Panic No Pain’, south London rapper FLOHIO performed at TivoliVredenburg’s Ronda during Le Guess Who? 2021. You can now relive the performance; listen to the full show below: "Lagos born, South London based MC, Flohio is ready to rage her way to the top of rap, passing by grime,...

Op zondag 28 oktober, twee weken voordat Le Guess Who? losbarst in Utrecht, stelt het festivalteam je persoonlijk het programma voor. De oprichters en organisatoren nemen je aan de hand mee door het p...

Le Guess Who? takes pace across 20 locations in the city center of Utrecht; ranging from churches and galleries to theaters and pop venues. Most are within walking distance from each other. Here are a couple highlighted.

(Nederlandse versie hieronder) As part of Le Guess Who? 2023, we are once again initiating the 'Grant an Entry' concept. This initiative gives festival visitors the opportunity to purchase an extra day ticket for people who are also interested in visiting the festival, but do not have the financial resources themselves to do so.  V...

Le Guess Who? is celebrating an impressive milestone with the publication of its 100th festival recording: dub-reggae ensemble African Head Charge live at Le Guess Who? 2023. Over the years, the festival has continuously expanded its online recording archive via leguesswho.com/recordings. The archive reflects the eclectic nature of Le Gue...

(scroll naar beneden voor de Nederlandse tekst) U?, the freely accessible city program of Le Guess Who?, returns to Utrecht on 11 and 12 November 2023 for its third edition. This program is created for, but especially with Utrecht, to celebrate the city's creativity in all its diversity. Utrecht has an enormous variety of community cent...

London-based producer Ryan Lee West, aka Rival Consoles, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by clipping., following the release of latest album ‘Now Is’. You can now listen to and relive the full performance below.  AboutThroughout his critically acclaimed fifteen-year career, Rival Con...

Electronic sound explorer James Holden is added as curator for Le Guess Who?, hosting multiple stages on Saturday, 11 November. Performing is Moroccan Gnawa musician Maâlem Houssam Guinia &...

Filmmaker and songwriter Alanis Obomsawin performed songs from her 1985 album 'Bush Lady' live for the first time at Le Guess Who? 2017, featuring music of the Native American Abenaki people. The perf...

Eddie Chacon performed live at Le Guess Who? 2021 following the release of his latest album ‘Pleasure, Joy and Happiness’, made in collaboration with producer John Carroll Kirby. You can now watch & listen to four tracks from the performance below.  AboutAs part of the soul duo Charles & Eddie, Eddie Chacon exper...

Tom Skinner performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the program curated by Stereolab, following the release of ‘Voices of Bishara’. Relive the magnificent show with our concert film, and listen to the full audio of performance, in which the group also pays homage to American cellist Abdul Wadud with interpretations o...

Le Guess Who? takes pace across 20 locations in the city center of Utrecht; ranging from churches and galleries to theaters and pop venues. Most are within walking distance from each other. Here are a couple highlighted.

Video Recordings Relive the festival; watch live performances by Mazaher and Suuns. The upcoming time, we'll be sharing more performances on this website and our social media. VISIT VIDEO ARCHIVE

Along with exploring the festival program, visitors of Le Guess Who? 2019 can also immerse themselves in various activities during the day throughout the city of Utrecht, including the ‘Untitled’ program.  Untitled made its debut as part of Le Guess Who? 2018. We're eager to expand the programming to include more daytime...

Zware Metalen, het grootste e-zine in het Nederlandse taalgebied voor metalliefhebbers, sprak uitgebreid met Le Guess Who?-curator Kevin Richard Martin, beter bekend als The Bug. Het resultaat is een enerverend gesprek met een specifieke gedachte, aldus Zware Metalen: wat kunnen metalheads leren van Kevin's roekeloze a...

Version April 2025 Le Guess Who Foundation (hereafter referred to as LGW) wishes to explain how it handles and uses your personal data. LGW values the privacy of visitors, volunteers, artists, and all employees, and is responsible for all provided data, while ensuring the protection of the data being handled. We will treat data confident...

During Le Guess Who? 2018, the Portuguese platform Canal180 traveled to Utrecht to capture a film in collaboration with the festival. Titled 'Representing the Underrepresented', it reveals the story and ideology behind Le Guess Who? and, following its March 29 premiere at MIL Festival in Lisbon, the film is now available to watch online....

Le Guess Who? & de Volkskrant bring you video portraits of artists performing at Le Guess Who? 2017. Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda’s devotion to spirituality defined the final decades o...

Le Guess Who? & de Volkskrant bring you video portraits of artists performing at Le Guess Who? 2017. Jerusalem In My Heart is the main project of Lebanon-born, Montreal-based artist and producer...

(artwork by Grouper's Liz Harris) Liz Harris aka Grouper is one of the most prominent and inspiring musicians exploring the space between sound and song. While mostly ambient based, her compositions...

COSMOS is bringing Le Guess Who? to the world, and the world to Le Guess Who?

Dreamcrusher, the project of multidisciplinary artist Luwayne Glass, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by clipping. You can now listen to his performance below, released via Dreamcrusher for Bandcamp Friday.  Live at Le Guess Who? 2022 by DREAMCRUSHER AboutDreamcrusher began on Kansas-born, New Yor...

Tom Skinner performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the program curated by Stereolab, following the release of ‘Voices of Bishara’. Relive the magnificent show with our concert film, and listen to the full audio of performance, in which the group also pays homage to American cellist Abdul Wadud with interpretations o...

Catalan artist Marina Herlop performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by Animal Collective. Last year, we released the concert film with tracks from her 2022 album 'Pripyat'. Now that its follow-up is out, 2023's 'Nekkuja', we release the video of 'La Alhambra', one of the tracks from that new album.  "T...

Durban-based Gqom futurists Phelimuncasi (Nyege Nyege Tapes) brought their life-affirming energy to Le Guess Who? 2023, providing ample space to dance and sweat at TivoliVredenburg's Pandora stage. Relive the performance with our concert film below.  About Much like the South African bee after which they named their most recent a...

Palestinian-born, Paris-based musician Kamilya Jubran, one of the most revered figures in the experimental and alternative Arabic music scenes, performs at Le Guess Who? 2023, curated by Heba Kadry. Relive the mesmerizing performance with our concert film.  About Raised by her music-loving parents in Galilee, for 20 years she was...

Noura Mint Seymali performed on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of the program curated by Arooj Aftab. You can now listen to, and relive, the full performance below.  Noura Mint Seymali is a nationally adored Mauritanian musical star, born into a prominent line of Moorish griot; West African praise singers, poets a...

Electronic luminary Darren Cunningham aka Actress, whose work merges and morphs elements of techno, electro, R&B and concrète, performs at Le Guess Who? 2024 following the release of Statik, and just a couple of days ahead of the release of his new mixtape Д​а​р​е​н Д​ж​. К​а​н​н​і​н​г​е​м, out now via Smalltown Supersound.&nbs...

Kahil El'Zabar Ethnic Heritage Ensemble celebrated their 50th anniversary on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024, commemorating half a century of continuously shifting gears and tempos in the jazz-blues continuum. Listen to, and relive, the full performance below.  The Ethnic Heritage Ensemble was founded by El’Zabar in...

A New Year's gift and a souvenir from Le Guess Who? 2024. The full live performance by Abul Mogard and Rafael Anton Irisarri at Utrecht’s Jacobikerk is now available as free, or pay-what-you-want on Bandcamp.   When Abul Mogard (AKA Guido Zen) and composer, record producer, and mastering engineer Rafael Anton Irisarri first pl...

As an international festival, Le Guess Who? has always worked with a borderless and boundary-crossing ethos. With COSMOS, we amplify local scenes from around the world to an international audience.

(artwork by Emma Fischer) At a very young age, Han Bennink started drumming for his grandparents on pans and cookie cans, and with curtain rods as sticks. All over the world, Bennink is celebrat...

If you're a regular Le Guess Who? attendant, then surely you know musician/producer/writer/artist Arish Ahmad Khan, known by the stage name of King Khan. The artist also played the festival back in 20...

The first curators are announced for the 11th edition of Le Guess Who? 2017, each hosting a range of inspirations and befriended artists, and also performing themselves. Perfume Genius invites a.o. Bu...

Le Guess Who? & de Volkskrant bring you video portraits of artists performing at Le Guess Who? 2017. We meet up with Perfume Genius’ Mike Hadreas to discuss his live performance, and his cu...

Before debuting his immersive multimedia-performance Somnium at this year’s Le Guess Who?, we had an extensive chat with Dutch musician, songwriter, and composer Jacco Gardner. About Dutch explorers, silent film soundtracks, Zambian rock legends, strange peninsula’s and of course, his upcoming LP Somnium. Jacco Gardner, sitti...

Le Guess Who? exists to bring people together through music and culture. U? is its participative and freely accessible city program celebrating local and creative communities. ⁠ Le Guess Who? heeft het doel om mensen samen te brengen door middel van muziek en cultuur. U? is het gratis toegankelijk stadsprogramma van Le Guess Who? met een...

A nice surprise came our way recently. The sound engineer at De Helling during Le Guess Who? 2021 was able to capture the intense performance of Dutch outfit Plague Organ. Or at least, almost the entire performance: apparently the engineer was so overwhelmed upon the start of the show that he was about half a minute late with starting the...

(scroll naar beneden voor de Nederlandse tekst) U? is the participatory & freely accessible day program of Le Guess Who?, which returns 10-13 November to Utrecht. It hosts a multitude of events and activities which are created for and with local citizens, initiatives, entrepreneurs, social institutions and community centers. U? featu...

Swedish psych outfit Goat performed live at Le Guess Who?'s 15th Anniversary Edition in 2022, following the release of their latest album 'Oh Death' via Rocket Recordings. You can now relive part of the performance via our concert film below, which features the tracks 'Under No Nation', 'Gathering of Ancient Tribes', 'Do The Dance', 'Disc...

You can also listen to this story – below or via your favorite podcast app. Words & audio by Cheri PercyPhotography by Tengbeh Kamara   Rotterdam based-DJ collective AMPFEMININE scours its diverse database to bring an evening of fresh feminine energy to this year’s Le Guess Who? proving that female and non-b...

As one of the special projects of Le Guess Who? 2023, the festival celebrated the legacy of spiritual jazz icon Pharoah Sanders and his seminal composition, Harvest Time (1977). During the closing day of the festival, The Harvest Time Project: A Tribute to Pharoah Sanders brought together Irreversible Entanglements, Domenico Lancellotti,...

Pakistani singer Faiz Ali Faiz gave a spectacular performance as one of the closing acts of Le Guess Who? 2023. You can now relive this glorious moment with our concert film, as well as the full audio of the show.  "Another kind of passion was found in the lovely old Vredenburg hall with the transcendent qawwali of Faiz Ali Faiz a...

Le Guess Who? presents ‘The Big Playback’, a conversational, in-depth podcast about all things music. In ‘The Big Playback’, host Margaret Munchheimer talks to musicians, scholars, record label owners, and music managers and delves into different topics exploring individual and collective musical experiences. You c...

This November, Le Guess Who? will feature a special performance by Cheikha Rabia, a renowned singer with over five decades of experience in reinventing rai music. Her performance will be a collaboration with Esraa Warda, a prolific dancer expert in traditional North African dance forms. Both artists hail from Algeria, but currently, Cheik...

You can also listen to this story – below or via your favorite podcast app. On the closing day of Le Guess Who? 2023, the festival features the first international performance of Ndox Electrique, whose music is inspired by an ancient ritual of the spirit-world originating from Senegal’s n’döep ceremonies. ...

Each year Le Guess Who? works with a big team of volunteers, consisting of enthusiastic, new music-loving friends from all over the world. The festival offers a place to connect with new people, to gain working experience and to discover new and inspiring music.  To give you an impression of what it is like to volunteer at Le Guess...

Our residential photographers Juri Hiensch and Melanie Marsman have been exploring Le Guess Who? again in 2021, captured different photo series during the festival. The upcoming time, we'll be sharing these series on this website and our social media. Portrait series at LGW21, by Melanie Marsman At Le Guess Who? 2021, residential phot...

International Music Festival6-9 November 2025

Ghent-based duo Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 following the release of their acclaimed debut album 'Topical Dancer'. You can listen to & relive their performance with 3 tracks: 'Mantra', 'Ceci n'est pas un cliché', and 'Thank You'. About Cultural appropriation, misogyny, rac...

Asher Gamedze is a cultural worker based in Cape Town, working mainly as a musician, writer, organizer and an educator. With his band, he performed live during the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2022.  You can now listen to three tracks that the group performed live from their 'Dialectic Soul' album (2020): 'Eternality', 'Siyabulela...

The Daily Indie sprak uitgebreid met Le Guess Who?-curatoren Ripley Johnson en Sanae Yamada, beter bekend als Moon Duo. The Daily Indie neemt een duik in het leven van het duo, hun muziek en hun curatorschap op het festival. Het duo bracht eind september hun zevende plaat 'Stars Are The Light' uit, geïnspireerd door disco, funk...

(Nederlandse versie hieronder) For the upcoming festival edition, Le Guess Who? will continue its collaboration with the Dutch Council for Refugees. Just like last year, the festival supports the initiative ‘Grant an Entry’. The initiative gives festival visitors the opportunity to purchase an extra day ticket for refugees re...

(Nederlandse versie hieronder) Between a partnership of more than 40 Dutch festival, a new initiative emerged, called ‘Geef een Toegift’ (‘Give an Encore’). Festival visitors...

Denmark's Den Sorte Skole create magical, musical storytelling across time and space. For Le Guess Who? 2017, the duo have put together a special mixtape with artists performing at the festival. Liste...

In collaboration with Vrije Geluiden, we recorded one of the performances of Niger's Les Filles de Illighadad at Le Guess Who? 2016. Pan African Music now premieres these recordings, ahead of the rele...

During Le Guess Who?, people from all over the world travel to Utrecht to experience the festival. Utrecht is a very hospitable place, and our visitors are very open-minded; looking to explore the fes...

Alabaster DePlume gave a special performance on the opening night of Le Guess Who?'s 15th Anniversary Edition, joined on stage by a.o. Jeff Parker (Tortoise) on guitar and Asher Gamedze on drums. Revisit the performance with our concert film, featuring ‘What’s Missing’, ‘Visit Croatia’, ‘Mrs Calamari&rs...

Op donderdagavond werd in TivoliVredenburg de Maartenspenning uitgereikt aan Johan Gijsen en Bob van Heur, oprichters van het internationale festival Le Guess Who?. De stedelijke onderscheiding is in het leven geroepen voor bestuurders die zich op cultureel terrein op een buitengewone manier voor Utrecht hebben ingezet. Burgemeester Shar...

During the 15th Anniversary Edition of Le Guess Who? in 2022, West Coast hip-hop trio clipping. performed live as part of their guest curation at the festival.  We're thrilled to now share the concert film of the performance, with clipping. performing tracks from throughout their discography, including fan favorites such as ‘N...

London's Dry Cleaning performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 following the release of their sophomore album, the John Parish-produced Stumpwork. You can now relive the performance with our concert film below. It features the Stumpwork-tracks No Decent Shoes For Rain, Don’t Press Me, Conservative Hell and Driver’s Story as well a...

Tampa rap duo They Hate Change performed at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by clipping., following the release of Finally, New; their debut album for Jagjaguwar. Relive the ecstatic performance below with our concert film, featuring two unreleased tracks produced by John Carroll Kirby and Zach Witness: AboutTampa&rsq...

The Bug performed live as one of the closing acts of Le Guess Who? 2022, accompanied on stage by MC's Dis Fig, Flowdan and Logan to bring the buzzing energy found on The Bug's record to life. Relive part of the performance with our concert film below, featuring Fat Mac and Dirty/I Luv You (Freestyle) feat. Flowdan, Take feat. Dis Fig and...

Nihiloxica exploded out of Kampala in 2017 with their groundbreaking fusion of Bugandan drumming and UK bass. The band explores the darkest depths between two separate cultures of dance music, uniting abrasive club electronics with raucous percussive energy. At Le Guess Who? 2023, the group presented their late latest album 'Source of De...

As part of Slauson Malone 1's curation at Le Guess Who?, New York City rapper MIKE performed live at the festival with tracks from all across his discography and an emphasis on material from his 2022 album Beware of the Monkey and its follow-up, Burning Desire. Tune in below.  "A magnetic stage presence fused with one of the most...

Since 2022, Le Guess Who? partners with the Nature and Environment Federation Utrecht to offset CO2 emissions from international air travel by artists and visitors. Thanks to collaboration in 2023, a sustainable roof at Utrecht’s Hof van Cartesius, a unique circular workspace for creative entrepreneurs, has now been realized. Hof va...

The work of multi-talented sound artist ZULI has spilled over Cairo's borders onto the rest of the world, garnering support from the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre. Recently, the artist released his new album Lambda; leading up to the release, the musician and producer, who is determined to uplift other Middle Eastern creative voices, p...

Festival curator Slauson Malone 1 performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 following the release of his latest album EXCELSIOR via Warp Records. On stage, he is joined by cellist Nicky Wetherell. Relive the performance with our concert film: Speaking about his role as curator at the festival, Slauson Malone 1 (real name: Jasper Marsalis) s...

Relive Ndox Electrique live at Le Guess Who?, the first international performance of the genre-blurring musical ensemble that originated in Senegal, and whose music is inspired by an ancient ritual of the spirit-world originating from Senegal’s n’döep ceremonies.  About How does one put Ndox Electrique into mere...

Montreal-based artist Myriam Gendron performs live at Le Guess Who? 2024, featuring music from across her three albums: Not So Deep as a Well, Ma d​é​lire - Songs of love, lost & found, and 2024's Mayday. About Before the release of her first record a decade ago, Quebecois musician Myriam Gendron was busking in Paris, singi...

For 16 years and counting, Le Guess Who? has strived to create a space for generations of music lovers and makers to come together. A podium where icons of their trade not just pass the baton to those that carve out a new path – but where they engage on eye-level. In 2023, Le Guess Who? once again boasted an array of young artists...

Watch our concert film of Kim Gordon performing live at Le Guess Who? 2024, curated by Crystallmess, following the release of her latest, acclaimed album The Collective via Matador Records.  "The album's daring beats and improvised guitar are marks of a lifelong radical still at the peak of her powers.” – The New Yorker...

Our official Le Guess Who? 2024 app is now available, made in collaboration with TMSQR. With this app, you can explore the line-up, create your personal timetable, find your way through Utrecht with the interactive festival map and listen to the official LGW24 playlist. You can also switch easily between Le Guess Who? and U?, our freely a...

In the flamenco world, Frente Abierto presents new possibilities. The group welcomes genres as diverse as metal and ambient into their realm, fusing their experimental streak with some of new flamenco’s most powerful singers.  At Le Guess Who? 2024, the Andalusian collective collaborated with Israel Fernández, a cantaor...

Thursday 8 November, on the opening night of this year’s festival, we present two performances by ONCEIM in the Utrecht Dom Church, in collaboration with contemporary music organization Gaudeamus. ONCEIM, short for ‘Orchestre de Nouvelles Créations, Expérimentations et Improvisations Musicales’, is a French...

With their cosmic jazz celebration, Sun Ra Arkestra was one of the closing acts of Le Guess Who? 2017. We're pleased to now bring you the full recording of this show, spanning decades of the Sun Ra le...

In 2019, the concert series Hidden Musics originated between Le Guess Who?, Chris Eckman of Glitterbeat Records and GRAMMY Award-winning producer and writer Ian Brennan, from the shared belief that it is important to platform underrepresented artists, and magnify music produced far from the mainstream. In 2022, we are proud the present th...

Unfortunately, it is currently no longer possible to register as a volunteer for Le Guess Who? 2022. Keep an eye on our website for more information about the participation possibilities next year.***We are beyond excited to let you know that Le Guess Who? 2022 is upon us and will once again fill the streets, venues, churches and hidden c...

Did you always wanted to know what was happening backstage during Le Guess Who? Photographer Sara Amroussi-Gilissen was present at the festival last November, and captured artists like Kelly Lee Owens...

This year, we've partnered up with TimeSquare, who provide you with the official festival app for Le Guess Who? 2019. Stay up to date with our latest news and make your personal timetable by saving your favorite artists. Listen to the Le Guess Who? 2019 Spotify playlist and navigate your way through Utrecht during the festival with t...

New Age & Folk Jazz pioneer Beverly Glenn-Copeland gave a very rare performance on the closing day of Le Guess Who? 2018 together with five-piece ensemble Indigo Rising. The performance was curated by both Devendra Banhart and Moor Mother. Beverly Glenn-Copeland - 'Sunset Village', live at Le Guess Who? 2018: About: After a twent...

Before TivoliVredenburg opened in 2014, Le Guess Who? had its headquarters at beloved pop venue Tivoli Oudegracht. This year, we are happy to return to our roots with a very special project: Collaboratorium, a musical laboratory where we invite artists to dive deep into experimental territory. Collaboratorium, hosted by American singer-s...

On Thursday, 8 November (the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2018), French experimental orchestra ONCEIM will perform twice in Utrecht’s iconic Dom church; a collaboration between Le Guess Who? a...

You can now listen to Tortoise's Wilco-curated set at Le Guess Who? 2016. "In all its electro, percussive, ambient, rock glory. Toss it on and dream of Netherlands’ November nights", as Und...

The initial line-up for Le Guess Who? 2019 has now been revealed. Delve into the music of all artists announced as part of the initial with our handpicked, official playlist. From Asha Puthli's cosmic disco anthem 'Space Talk' to the juggernaut industrial/metal of Godflesh, back to the vulnerable and healing music of La Bruja de...

As every year, an important part of the Le Guess Who? program is about making new discoveries; experiencing new sounds and artists that might become new personal favorites in the future. To help you e...

W.I.T.C.H., the band responsible for pioneering zamrock, returned to the stage during Le Guess Who? 2023 following the release of their new album 'Zango', their first in nearly four decades. On stage, they were joined by a.o. Jacco Gardner, Michael Rault and Nico Mauskoviç. Relive the performance below with our concert film and the...

As we near the start of Le Guess Who? 2024, we’d like to share the behind-the-scenes struggles and frustrations we are experiencing in trying to obtain visas for the artists we’ve invited to Utrecht. At Le Guess Who?, our focus and dedication has long been on developing a diverse and inclusive program, also through extensive...

VPRO Vrije Geluiden once again teamed up with Le Guess Who? the festival to capture several intimate sessions with festival artists - recorded at restaurant De Klub, just opposite of TivoliVredenburg. All sessions are now available to watch below.  Eli Keszler NY-based artist, composer, and percussionist Eli Keszler has garnered...

Ahead of his performance at Le Guess Who?, shamanic painter Joe Coleman gives us a glimpse into his immersive work process. “Computers are very odd to me,” Brooklyn-based painter and perf...

An immersive event and all-encompassing experience, 24-Hour Drone is a roving, international series presented by Basilica Hudson and Le Guess Who?, featuring musicians and sound artists...

Forget Detroit, Chicago, and Berlin for a minute. Some of the most exciting electronic music records are being cut in the capital of Uganda, Kampala, and many are coming out of label Nyege Nyege Tapes. The collective is committed to shedding light on some of the best outsider music made in Kampala and all around East Africa. This Novembe...

In 2024, Le Guess Who? starts a pilot with Low Income Day Tickets, specifically for those who otherwise would not be able to attend the festival. This initiative arises from the fact that we hear that the ticket price is one of the biggest barriers for people to visit the festival. We want to give people - who would like to visit the fes...

Each year, Le Guess Who? invites trailblazing creatives to curate their own dedicated programs, highlighting their inspirations, emerging acts and fellow like-minded artists, with an emphasis on discovery and exploration.Japanese psych-rock outfit Bo Ningen introduce their curation at Le Guess Who? 2024 with a playlist that they have...

The Wire Magazine shares an exclusive collaborative track from Le Guess Who? curator Kevin Richard Martin (The Bug) and Japanese voice artist Hatis Noit, entitled 'After The Storm'. Listen to the track and read a statement about the duo's collaborative project here on The Wire's website. To receive a free download of t...

Le Guess Who? takes pace across 20 locations in the city center of Utrecht; ranging from churches and galleries to theaters and pop venues. Most are within walking distance from each other. Here are a couple highlighted.

Le Guess Who? is an ever-changing format: we are always full of new ideas and looking for new ways to do what we do. In order to keep developing the festival the upcoming fifteen years on the same level as we did the last fifteen, we could use your support. Over the past fifteen years, we have developed into a platform that showcases...

Damon Locks' Black Monument Ensemble performed live at Le Guess Who? 2021. Curated by Matana Roberts for the festival, it marked the group's European live premiere. Now can now relive the performance with this video of the ensemble performing 'The Body Is Electric' from their latest & acclaimed album 'NOW'.  AboutThe past and...

Japanese 10-piece ensemble Minyo Crusaders gave a glorious and life-affirming performance at Le Guess Who? 2019 as part of their first ever European tour, following the release of their debut album 'Echoes of Japan. Now, Mais Um Discos release the recordings of the performance as digital album, available to stream or download. ...

Jerusalem In My Heart is an audio-visual happening with roots in both Montréal and Beirut, combining the best of both worlds. Figurehead Radwan Ghazi Moumneh has been nursing the craft of...

Genre-bending singer Neneh Cherry performed at Le Guess Who? 2018, presenting work from her latest album 'Broken Politics'; you can now listen + watch part of the performance below:  Neneh Cherry - 'Shot Gun Shack', live at Le Guess Who? 2018: About:Across decades, Neneh Cherry traversed and transcended every known faction of the...

This year, Le Guess Who? will have its very own, official festival hangout, hosted by Kapitaal: a Utrecht-based -open- studio for screen-, etch- and risoprint. A meeting place with a proper program, filled with exhibitions, lectures and music, owners Carlien and Ramon create a social place where craftsmanship, design and pop-culture meet....

Ahead of Le Guess Who? 2018, Red Bull Radio has created a special preview channel for Le Guess Who? 2018 with interview and live recording highlights from Blanck Mass, Circuit des Yeux, Eartheater, Pan Daijing, Senyawa, Kate NV, The Bug & Miss Red, GAIKA, and many more. Tune in below to hear Shabaka Hutchings discuss his Caribbean ro...

Hailed as 'The Mother of All Maqam', Farida Mohammed Ali gave an immersive performance at Le Guess Who? 2017 together with the Iraqi Maqam Ensemble. This performance was curated by Jerusalem In My Hea...

Jerusalem In My Heart, the project of Lebanon-born and Montréal-based artist Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, announces its new album. Entitled 'Daqa'iq Tudaiq', the record will appear on 5 Octo...

StayOkay Utrecht Centrum is a recommended pick if you're looking for accommodation during Le Guess Who? 2018. Located ideally at Neude Square, StayOkay is positioned in the heart of Utrecht city cente...

Hip hop visionaries Digable Planets played an exclusive show at Le Guess Who? 2016. We've just added three tracks to our online audio archive - listen below: Recorded by VPRO 3voor12 on Saturday, 1...

The West African collective of Les Amazones d'Afrique performed live at Le Guess Who? 2017, with Mamani Keita, Rokia Koné, and Kandia Kouyate as lead singers. Now, OkayAfrica pre...

Some of our volunteers (aka the Superheroes of Le Guess Who?) decided to make a festival zine, to share their experiences while working at the festival last November, and witnessing the likes of Perfu...

Le Guess Who? 2017 is included in Pitchfork's new Guide to Upcoming Festivals. Their lineup highlights, besides our curators, are Pharoah Sanders, James Holden, Sun Kil Moon,...

For eclectic London-based group The Heliocentrics, musical boundaries are invisible. This collective has the ability to fluently string together a broad spectrum of genres, including free-form jazz, h...

The Line of Best Fit shares the full audio of Junun’s electrifying performance at Le Guess Who? 2016, featuring Shye Ben Tzur, Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood and Indian ensemble The Rajasthan...

Sarathy Korwar performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 on the night preceding the release of his new album 'KALAK'. You can now relive the full performance below, which includes tracks from that album, as well as 'Coolie', performed live together with Alabaster dePlume.  AboutBorn in the US, Sarathy Korwar grew up in Ahmedabad and Ch...

Moor Mother's Camae Ayewa has put together her own playlist as an introduction to her curated program at Le Guess Who? 2018, with some of her favorite tracks of each artist. Hosting several of h...

Zanzibar singer Siti Muharam performed live at Le Guess Who? 2021, marking her European live debut. In 2020, she received the prestigious Songlines Awards for African Artist of the Year following the release of her album 'Siti of Unguja'. Now, Songlines premieres the concert film of Siti Muharam's performance at Le Guess Who?, featur...

Oiseaux-Tempête gave an overwhelming and immersive performance at Le Guess Who? 2019. For Bandcamp Friday, the cross-cultural, multi-genre improv group now officially release the recordings of Oiseaux-Tempête & Friends live at Le Guess Who? 2019.  For this special performance, titled Oiseaux-Tempête & Frien...

London-based producer Ryan Lee West, aka Rival Consoles, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by clipping., following the release of latest album ‘Now Is’. You can now listen to and relive the full performance below.  AboutThroughout his critically acclaimed fifteen-year career, Rival Con...

During Le Guess Who? 2022, flamenco icon Estrella Morente and Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra came together for a magic showcase of warmth and joy. You can now watch the full concert film of the stunning performance at Utrecht's Jacobikerk, presented in collaboration with Ud Festival.  The daughter of world-famous Enrique Morente,...

Ghent-based duo Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Pupul performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 following the release of their acclaimed debut album 'Topical Dancer'. You can listen to & relive their performance with 3 tracks: 'Mantra', 'Ceci n'est pas un cliché', and 'Thank You'. About Cultural appropriation, misogyny, rac...

From 10-13 November, we'll celebrate the 15th Anniversary of Le Guess Who? We hope you have a wonderful time in Utrecht and are excited to celebrate together with you. But first, there are a couple of things we'd like to draw your attention to. Please read the information below carefully before visiting the festival. Download your ticke...

Mourning [A] BLKstar performed live on the opening night of Le Guess Who?'s 15th Anniversary Edition in 2022. The collective, made up of musicians, writers, and multimedia artists, has a bountiful track record, amassing several releases under its belt since 2015. Their music is for both eulogies and revolutions, as they expand upon contem...

From the minute when flamenco innovator Lole Montoya stepped onto the stage at the Jacobikerk during Le Guess Who? 2022, we knew we were in for a magical moment in time. Together with guitarist Juan Carmona, she gave a rare and very touching performance as part of the Hidden Musics project. Luckily, you can relive it now with our concert...

Catalan artist Marina Herlop performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the program curated by Animal Collective, following the release of her latest album 'Pripyat'. Relive the mesmerizing performance with our concert film below, featuring the songs miu, doiloi, abans abans and shaolin mantis.  AboutOn ‘miu’, a s...

Panda Bear & Sonic Boom performed at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of Animal Collective's curation, following the release of their latest album 'Reset'. Relive the performance below with our concert film, which features the songs Everyday, Edge of the Edge, Danger, and Livin’ in the After.  AboutSix years ago, Peter Kember,...

Lewsberg, hailed as "Rotterdam’s answer to The Velvet Underground" by NME, performed live on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2022. We now share the track 'The Corner' from that performance (taken from their 2021 album 'In Your Hands') just as the band are about to go on an international tour which will bring them to Germany, USA,...

Renowned rai singer Cheikha Rabia & Esraa Warda, a prolific dancer expert in traditional North African dance forms, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the Hidden Musics project. Relive the mesmerizing performance at TivoliVredenburg's Pandora via our concert film below: AboutCheikha Rabia and Esraa Warda both hail from...

Ahead of Le Guess Who? 2023, Apple Music has launched their own playlist as preview for the festival, highlighting some of the innovative sounds that can be discovered during your time in Utrecht.

Phantom Wizard is an artist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist of Surinamese descent who is born and raised in the Dutch capital. He embarks on a deeply personal yet profoundly universal journey, punctuated by experimentation and improvisation. Nature, afrofuturism, jazz, and hip-hop have come together to form his ethereal work. He use...

Nusantara Beat are a psych-groove sextet from Amsterdam. The group has quickly amassed a cult following, largely due to the deep connection to their Indonesian roots and a passion for honoring their cultural heritage. Photography by Juri Hiensch

Richard Dawson performed live at Utrecht's Jacobikerk during Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the program curated by Slauson Malone 1. You can now listen to the British folk master performing Museum (from the 2022 album The Ruby Chord) and Two Halves (from 2020).  "The next song is from the point of view of a robot or an AI, somethin...

This year, Japanese psych-rock outfit Bo Ningen are one of the guest curators of Le Guess Who?, with their curation is dedicated to “representing the Bo Ningen community, with lots of collaborative projects and with a strong focus on audiovisual performances.” As an introduction to their program, Taigen Kawabe, lead singer a...

The village of Cileunyi, located in the mountainous areas surrounding Bandung, West Java, is home to Reak, a spiritual trance ritual that has existed in the region for hundreds of years. Seni Reak Juarta Putra, an original community of the Reak ceremony, offers this year’s Le Guess Who? audience a rare glimpse into the ritual. Th...

You can also listen to this story – below or via your favorite podcast app. Words by Julian BrimmersAudio by Cheri PercyCover photo by Gianfranco Bello   For 16 years and counting, Le Guess Who? has strived to create a space for generations of music lovers and makers to come together. A podium, where icons of their trade n...

Sarathy Korwar performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 on the night preceding the release of his new album 'KALAK'. You can now relive the full performance below, which includes tracks from that album, as well as 'Coolie', performed live together with Alabaster dePlume.  AboutBorn in the US, Sarathy Korwar grew up in Ahmedabad and Ch...

Asher Gamedze is a cultural worker based in Cape Town, working mainly as a musician, writer, organizer and an educator. With his band, he performed live during the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2022.  You can now listen to three tracks that the group performed live from their 'Dialectic Soul' album (2020): 'Eternality', 'Siyabulela...

This year, Le Guess Who? presents the fourth edition of Hidden Musics, a project that focuses on deeply localized music and features artists embedded in rich, often centuries-old musical traditions that have been developed with little or no outside influences. The first series was initiated in 2019 by Le Guess Who? in collaboration w...

We got an amazing amount of enthousiastic responds to our call for volunteers, so therefore we closed the registrations for now. However, schedules always change and there is a chance that a spot will open up. That's why we opened a waiting list. You can sign up for the waiting list here.Please keep in mind that being on the waiting list...

Born in Beirut and based in Montreal, Liliane Chlela is a producer, DJ and performer whose progressive sound experiments brought her to the forefront of the electronic and experimental music scene, both in Lebanon and far beyond. At Le Guess Who? 2024, Liliane Chlela will present the live premiere of I, the hybrid and the antidote. &ldqu...

Continuing the legacy of her father, the legendary Ravi Shankar, Anoushka Shankar is considered to be one of the world’s most renowned sitar players. In 2018, she performed at Le Guess Who?, together with Austrian percussionist and Björk collaborator Manu Delago and the 27-member string section of the Metropole Orkest, conducte...

If you want to support us, and help us to continue developing the festival and COSMOS in the upcoming years, you can make a one-off or a regular donation.

Le Guess Who? & de Volkskrant bring you video portraits of artists performing at Le Guess Who? 2017. We meet Sudan Archives in Los Angeles just before she leaves for her first ever European tour....

Czech's Full Moon Magazine, one of our long-time mediapartners, have put together a playlist previewing Le Guess Who? 2017 with some of their favorite selections. It includes key tracks from Grouper,...

Turkey's Bant Mag is one of our media partners, and they're preparing a magnificent, in-depth special on the festival which will be updated weekly. Read in full here.  The first featur...

VPRO's 3VOOR12 captured the full performances on video. Relive the performances: Elza Soares live at Le Guess Who? 2016: Digable Planets live at Le Guess Who? 2016: Julia Holter live at Le Gues...

(Artwork by Raimund Wong) Playing live following ‘The Inheritors’ was a complete new experience for James Holden; improvising with live drums, sax and synths opened a new world for Holden...

Knekelhuis is an Amsterdam-based independent record label that heightens the aesthetic similarities between different genres, eras, and scenes, including wave, punk, synth-pop, industrial, ambient, techno, and abstract electronics. This year, Knekelhuis is presenting an international selection of label-related artists and dear friends th...

Can't wait for Le Guess Who? to take off next week? We know how you feel. So, to fill in the hours that still await us (or at least, two of those hours), we now present you our first Le Guess Who? Radio Show. Hosted by Le Guess Who? programmers Bob van Heur and Jacob Hagelaars, they guide you through the extensive 2019 program and p...

The wait is over: the full time schedules for Le Guess Who? 2019 are here. Dig in and find out who's playing when & where. Update: the PDF version of our time schedules is available to download now as well. We've also added the very last performances to our program, including stubbornly adventurous and tirelessly independent Dutch o...

After eight decades of triumph and tragedy, Brazilian protest singer Elza Soares is lauded as queen of samba and a powerful voice against repression and injustice relating to gender, race, sexual orie...

The Brother Moves On, the captivating South-African ensemble famous for masterfully drawing from past, present and future, performed at Le Guess Who? 2022 following the release of '$/He Who Feeds You…Owns You' via Shabaka Hutchings' Native Rebel Recordings. You can now listen to & relive the full performance.  AboutTher...

Released with Pharoah Sanders’ blessing, Luaka Bop now presents the definitive, remastered version of Pharoah, the trailblazing saxophonist’s seminal record from 1977. Misunderstood upon its release, the album has long been a holy grail and has been bootlegged for years. Featuring two previously unreleased live performances...

This year, Le Guess Who? presents the fourth edition of Hidden Musics, a project that focuses on deeply localized music and features artists embedded in rich, often centuries-old musical traditions that have been developed with little or no outside influences. The first series was initiated in 2019 by Le Guess Who? in collaboration w...

This year, Le Guess Who? presents the fourth edition of Hidden Musics, a project that focuses on deeply localized music and features artists embedded in rich, often centuries-old musical traditions that have been developed with little or no outside influences. The first series was initiated in 2019 by Le Guess Who? in collaboration w...

This year, Le Guess Who? presents the fourth edition of Hidden Musics, a project that focuses on deeply localized music and features artists embedded in rich, often centuries-old musical traditions that have been developed with little or no outside influences. The first series was initiated in 2019 by Le Guess Who? in collaboration w...

This November, Le Guess Who? features a performance by Kamilya Jubran, which was curated by mastering engineer Heba Kadry. Born in Palestine and currently based in Paris, Kamilya Jubran is one of the most revered figures in the experimental and alternative Arabic music scenes.  Through her multi-disciplinary work, Jubran continues t...

Le Guess Who? has always worked with a borderless and boundary-crossing ethos. It led the organization to create COSMOS: a hybrid (both online and offline) platform that promotes international collaboration. Via this platform, organizations and initiatives from around the world give an insight into their local cultural scenes through film...

Already at an early age, Lole Montoya decided that she wanted to dedicate her life to singing. But not only did she indeed become a singer, she also redefined the flamenco genre by bringing in new influences, genres and poetry. Her skill has been displayed across a long repertoire, which includes her work as part of the renowned duo Lole...

Each year, Le Guess Who? invites trailblazing creatives to curate their own dedicated programs, highlighting their inspirations, emerging acts and fellow like-minded artists, with an emphasis on discovery and exploration.Errol & Alex Rita, founders of the London-based musical movement Touching Bass, introduce their curation at Le Gues...

Le Guess Who? is a playground for discovery and exploration, and once again that's deeply reflected in our 2024 program. Now that we've revealed the full line-up, including the curated programs by Arooj Aftab, Bo Ningen, Crystallmess, DARKSIDE, Mabe Fratti, and Touching Bass, it's time to start your musical discovery again. Take a deep...

Gonzo (circus) is een Vlaams/Nederlands magazine gericht op vooruitstrevende muziek en cultuur. Het magazine is mediapartner van Le Guess Who? 2018, en dit jaar werken we uitgebreider samen dan ooit.&...

Norwegian singer, producer, novel writer and Le Guess Who? 2019 curator Jenny Hval has released a new song called 'High Alice'. It is taken from her upcoming album 'The Practice of Love', which will be released in September. In a statement accompanying the release of the song, Hval says that 'High Alice' felt like the narra...

Unfortunately, The Necks have to cancel their November tour, including their performance at Le Guess Who? 2021.   * update May 5th: Low will not be able to make it to Le Guess Who? 2021 in November. In a statement, the band says: We are sad to announce that due to ongoing COVID issues and restrictions across the world we are...

With his unshakeable conviction, found all over his rhymes and delivery, Zwangere Guy quickly became considered ‘the boss of Brussels rap’. In his live shows, his boastful, insolent and exciting personality always shines bright.  Zwangere Guy performed live at TivoliVredenburg's Ronda during Le Guess Who? 2021 on the nig...

This evening, the Dutch government announced new restrictions for cultural events. These restrictions will begin at 6PM tomorrow (Saturday) 13 November. In an already extremely difficult year for organizing events, we are again faced with several challenges, and also within a very short timeframe.Our motto this year is Celebrate Change. W...

Georgia's Pankisi Ensemble performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the Hidden Musics program. Now, you can relive this touching performance with the full audio of the show, recorded at Utrecht's Jacobikerk during the festival. AboutThe Pankisi Ensemble goes against the typical 'ethno-fusion' grain in two ways. First, by not res...

From the minute when flamenco innovator Lole Montoya stepped onto the stage at the Jacobikerk during Le Guess Who? 2022, we knew we were in for a magical moment in time. Together with guitarist Juan Carmona, she gave a rare and very touching performance as part of the Hidden Musics project. Luckily, you can relive it now with our concert...

For the third time Le Guess Who? has initiated an educational project in collaboration with four different local high schools. 131 pupils delved into the program of Le Guess Who? 2019 during their art classes. The pupils formed duos and chose an artist from this year’s line-up, for whom they designed a new visual product based on th...

Cycle or walk through Utrecht suburb Lombok's main street, and you're immediately welcomed by Turkish and Moroccan grocery stores, bakeries, the smell of kebab, and huge piles of colorful fruits sold...

In the mid-1960s, Art Ensemble of Chicago sprung from the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). Moving far beyond jazz, avant-garde and performance art, the ensemble has created a realm that is entirely original. On the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2018, and on the eve of the Art Ensemble of Chicago’s 50t...

Dit weekend werden in de Stadsschouwburg Groningen voor de 21e keer de IJzeren Podiumdieren uitgereikt door De Vereniging Nederlandse Poppodia en -Festivals (VNPF). Le Guess Who? mocht de award voor Beste Festival in ontvangst nemen. Uit het juryrapport: “De organisatie bewijst keer op keer dat je met doordachte, vernieuwende en div...

Visit our recordings section for lots of exclusive audio & video recordings of Le Guess Who? performances.  Featuring a.o. Neneh Cherry, Mount Eerie, Sun Ra Arkestra, James Holden, Mary Margaret O'Hara, Protomartyr, Selda Bağcan, Alanis Obomsawin, Junun feat. Shye Ben Tzur, Jonny Greenwood and the Rajasthan Express, The Notwist,...

We are very curious to hear your thoughts and experiences about Le Guess Who? 2018. If you have a moment, please fill out our visitors survey. With your feedback, we can make Le Guess Who? 2019 an even better experience. Thank you!        

Want to be among the first to hear about the latest news & Le Guess Who? program updates? You can now also subscribe via WhatsApp to receive festival updates. To do so, add +31 6 8379 7340 to you...

We couldn’t resist: we’ve added beatmaker, DJ & 'king amongst cratediggers' Kutmah to the line-up for Le Guess Who? 2017. This will be a DJ set on Friday, 10 November in TivoliVredenbu...

Please note that Mount Eerie's show at Le Guess Who? is a reservations-only performance. You’ll need to reserve a separate ticket to get entrance (no additional costs, but note that capacity is...

The Line of Best Fit, The Skinny and The Quietus share recordings from three of last year's performances: Listen to the full set of Destroyer live at Le Guess Who? 2015, premiered by T...

Help us make Le Guess Who? an even more immersive experience. 

Every week, we bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up via our Track of the Week series. With #10 just posted - Devendra Banhart's 'Fig in Leather' - we thought it would be a g...

During Le Guess Who? 2021, our media partner Pan African Music captured video portrait of DJ's Menzi and Turkana. Both artists performed at the Nyege Nyege Tapes present Hakuna Kulala Club Night at the festival.  Durban native Menzi has been a steady presence in South African electronic music for a number of years. After producing f...

Did you forget to walk by the merchandise desk during Le Guess Who? 2021? There are still some sweaters, t-shirts and slip mats left. The items, which were designed by Dylan Marcus McConnell and Koen Delaere, are now available in our webshop. Visit webshop The sweaters and t-shirts were printed at by local print workshops Kapitaal a...

Belgian musician, composer, and instrument maker Jochem Baelus aka Slumberland and experimental Tuvan singer Sainkho Namtchylak gave a collaborative performance during Le Guess Who? 2021 at Utrecht’s Jacobikerk. With Slumberland, Belgian musician, composer, and instrument maker Jochem Baelus creates hypnotic krautrock and post punk...

African Head Charge performed live on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2023 following the release of their new album 'A Trip To Bolgatanga'. You can now relive the performance with the full audio of the show, which is assured to put a smile on anyone's face.  About'A bad attitude is like a flat tire - you can't go anywhere until...

London trio Moin, comprised of Raime’s Joe Andrews and Tom Halstead together with percussionist visionary Valentina Magaletti, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2023 as part of the program curated by Stereolab. You can now listen to and relive the full performance, featuring a previously unreleased track: "'Moin are subtly but br...

Lost Girls is the Norwegian duo made up of experimental guitarist Håvard Volden and former LGW curator Jenny Hval. Their latest album, 2023's Selvutsletter, continues the intuitive, late night feel of the group's previous work with topics such as cities after dark, music rituals, band practices of the ‘90s, and the early days...

Our official Le Guess Who? 2023 app is now available, made in collaboration with TMSQR. With this app, you can explore the line-up, create your personal timetable, find your way through Utrecht with the interactive festival map and listen to the official LGW Playlist. You can also switch easily between Le Guess Who? and U?, our freely acc...

Sudan's Noori & His Dorpa Band performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022, presented in collaboration with Ostinato Records. Below, you can relive the performance with our video of a part of the concert, as well as the audio of the full show, with a spirited introduction by Ostinato's Vik Sohonie before the band came on stage. Additionall...

In the spring of 2023, COSMOS – Le Guess Who’s? global music community – organized its first artist residency in Goa, India. Over the past few years, Goa has become a sanctuary for artists and freewheeling spirits of all kinds, including REProduce-founder Rana Ghose. In collaboration with Rana, COSMOS created a space for...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, it's the Brazilian singer-songwriter who wrote the theme song for Netflix hit series 'Narcos'. But,...

Every week, we’ll bring you a must-hear track from the Le Guess Who? 2018 line-up. This week, it's the new age & folk-jazz pioneer who has been curated by Devendra Banhart as well as Moor Mo...