GET set for a weekend of live music, food and fun as the local Summerwave music festival kicks off a local tour this May.
The free tour will bring together some of the best names from previous Summerwave festivals for a weekend worth of music, including One More Weekend, Ivy Black, Colour Court and Kitty Rae, while Taylor Henderson will be the headline act.
Tour coordinator and NDCH youth worker Matt Allan said they are delighted to have Henderson on board as a headliner this year.
“Taylor last played with the tour in 2021 and is an incredibly talented singer-songwriter who has captivated audiences around the world with his music, and I can’t wait for fans to experience his live performance once again,” he said.
Speaking to The Guardian, Henderson said he is excited to be coming back to the Gannawarra and Loddon regions to be a part of Summerwave.
“I got to know the crew and just how much fun it is – they always bring so many artists along and it is always a beautiful event,” he said.
“It’s going to be heaps of fun for me, but really it’s about the community – it’s about me getting them involved and making sure they are having a good time.”
While he is also in the process of organising a 10-year anniversary tour – being 10 years since his start in the music industry on X-Factor and releasing his first album – Henderson said audiences can expect a more reminiscent performance from him this time around.
“Usually when I do shows we showcase all sorts of music, whether it’s my own to covers and new songs,” he said.
“But I kind of want to take it right back and just give them a bit of a nostalgia show where we are going to be showcasing all of the old songs, all the classics.
“Anyone who was 10-years-old when they first watched me is now 20, so we kind of just want to tap into that and give people a trip down memory lane.”
This year’s all ages event will also be free thanks to generous support from Music Victoria for flood affected areas.
“It’s like two birds with one stone – we have an awesome time but it is also for a really good cause,” Henderson said.
Music Victoria CEO Simone Schinkel said being able to see live music across Victoria is something that shouldn’t be taken for granted.
“All ages events are particularly essential to inspire the next generation of music makers,” she said.
“It is simply fantastic to see what the team behind the Summerwave Music Festival have been able to bring together.”
In addition to the headliners, the festival will also feature a variety of up-and-coming artists, including local youth performers, at each of the three venues. Kerang local Deaken Fawcett is one of those performers.
“I’ve done lots of gigs, but Summerwave is definitely a unique event because it is such a wide variety of genres going through the show – nothing is very similar, and we have purposefully done that,” Fawcett told the Guardian.
The three day festival will kick off in Wedderburn on Friday May 12, before continuing onto Boort on Saturday and concluding in Cohuna on Sunday May 14.
Summerwave is a fully supervised, alcohol, smoke and drug free all ages event. The project is supported by Music Victoria and the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria, FReeZa, Northern District Community Health and the North Central LLEN.
