Image credit: Delali Ayivi

Prolific curators Astral People announce new twin-city festival

The inaugural festival brings a stacked lineup to Sydney and Melbourne

Prolific curators Astral People unveil a bold new twin-city festival, Move My Way, set to transform the first weekend of October across Eora/Sydney’s Carriageworks and Naarm/Melbourne’s PICA. Both venues will be reimagined as multi-stage playgrounds alive with sound, rhythm, and movement, headlined by Mercury Prize-winning jazz ensemble Ezra Collective, Grammy-nominated rapper Freddie Gibbs, London’s Afrobeats-meets-jazz trailblazers Kokoroko, and the inimitable Sampa the Great.

Move My Way

SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER
CARRIAGEWORKS, EORA/SYDNEY NSW
2PM – 10:45PM

SUNDAY 4 OCTOBER
PICA, NAARM/MELBOURNE VIC
2PM – 10:45PM

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Rooted in comfort, connection, and community, Move My Way is a meeting point where local scenes and global currents converge, united by a shared musical language. The festival navigates fluidly between hip hop, R&B, jazz, and modern club sounds, celebrating the soulful threads that bind these genres while championing both heritage and progression. Here, seasoned icons sit alongside contemporary luminaries and emerging voices, forming a living tapestry of sound.

London’s Ezra Collective have become one of the most eclectic and acclaimed acts on the global stage. Since forming in 2012, the quintet have released three beloved albums that distil the vibrant, multicultural pulse of contemporary London. Their 2025 release Dance, No One’s Watching, an ode to the joy of movement, earned them BRIT Awards’ Group of the Year, with a career-defining performance at Glastonbury that same year cementing their international stature. Collaborations with Jorja Smith, Loyle Carner, Sampa the Great, and Kojey Radical illustrate a reach that traverses jazz, R&B, and hip hop with effortless dexterity.

American rapper Freddie Gibbs is celebrated for his technical prowess, razor-sharp lyricism, and genre-defying versatility, earning the title of “a classic rapper’s rapper” from The Guardian. Across a career punctuated by critically acclaimed collaborations with Madlib, Danny Brown, Pusha T, and The Alchemist, Gibbs’ 2025 release Alfredo 2 reinforces his status among the greats of contemporary hip hop.

Kokoroko return to Australia following a landmark 2025, bringing their acclaimed second album, Tuff Times Never Last. Infused with hope, nostalgia, and diasporic resonance, the London-based septet fuse Afrobeats, highlife, and jazz with neo-soul, Brit-funk, West African disco, and beyond. Since their breakout on Gilles Peterson’s 2018 We Out Here compilation, they have carved out a global following, their music a reflection of London’s diasporic soundscape.

Zambian-born Sampa the Great embodies a fearless, globally-minded artistry. From her early mixtapes to the ARIA Award-winning The Return and the internationally lauded As Above, So Below, her work navigates culture, heritage, and innovation with compelling fluidity. Sampa’s commanding presence has graced stages from Glastonbury to Coachella, NPR’s Tiny Desk to Splendour in the Grass.

The inaugural Move My Way lineup extends beyond these headliners, with London-based singer-producer Qendresa, the playful percussionist duo GENA (Liv.e and Karriem Riggins), Manchester electronic stalwart and Worldwide FM host Luke Una, and Tokyo-born multi-instrumentalist Takuya Nakamura. NTS radio mainstays Coco María and Jamz Supernova bring global club sensibilities, alongside Londoner Tash LC, Sydney-based visionary xmunashe, and Melbourne’s jazz-infused hip hop talent Miles Nautu. Rounding out the experience, Club 77 resident Mazzacles anchors Sydney, while Singaporean selector DJ RAH commands the Melbourne stage.

Local pride runs deep. In Sydney, Planet Trip, veterans of Carriageworks’ club nights, bring the spirit of the city with sets from La Foxy Fuzz, Lu Faria, Lauren Hansom, Mike Who, Ritual, Setwun, and Sista Cini. In Melbourne, Northside Records’ soul and funk takeover features Chris Gill alongside El Fuentes, Emelyne, Lori, Mike Gurrieri, Mothafunk, and Stuckey, offering a sonic portrait of Fitzroy’s enduring musical heartbeat.

It’s a welcome addition to the live music scene.

Presale commences from 12pm AEST on Tuesday 19 May before general on-sale opens from 12pm AEST on Wednesday 20 May. Sign up for presale access here and find more info here.