FKA Twigs to curate 2027 Meltdown festival

The singer‑songwriter will lead the annual Meltdown festival, promising a showcase of London’s cultural diversity.

By Felo News Desk · Published Tue, 20 Oct 2026 20:04:10 GMT

FKA Twigs, whose real name is Tahliah Debrett Barnett, will curate and headline the Southbank Centre’s Meltdown festival in 2027, the outlets standard.co.uk and independent.co.uk reported on 20 October 2026.

What happened

The annual Meltdown festival, first held in 1993, appoints a different cultural figure each year to programme ten days of concerts and performances across the Southbank Centre’s venues. Twigs was announced as the 2027 curator and headline act. Her recent albums, Eusexua and Eusexua Afterglow, were released in 2025.

What the reports add

Standard.co.uk describes the festival as an eleven‑day event, while independent.co.uk and the second Standard piece state it runs for ten days. Both outlets note that the festival traditionally showcases a wide range of music, theatre and visual art. The Independent adds that Twigs performed at the Mojave Tent at the 2026 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, a detail not mentioned by the Standard articles.

What was said

Twigs told the Standard: “I am honoured and excited to be curating Meltdown at the Southbank Centre. The potent artistic and cultural landscape in London has raised me from Croydon College, to performing in underground cabaret clubs, dancing till sunrise in warehouses on the docks and last year being lucky enough to sing my operatic songs in one of the largest arenas in London.” The Independent repeats the same quotation verbatim.

How it came about

Meltdown’s curatorial model has been a fixture of the Southbank Centre’s programming since its inception in 1993. Fela News previously covered the festival’s history and past curators in a feature on the 2026 edition, linking the event to other major UK festivals such as Glastonbury 2027 (see article). Twigs’ rise from Croydon College to international stages, highlighted in her statement, mirrors the festival’s aim to celebrate London’s multicultural artistic clash.

Key facts

FKA Twigs will curate and headline the 2027 Meltdown festival at the Southbank Centre. (standard.co.uk)
Meltdown was first held in 1993 and traditionally runs for ten days. (independent.co.uk)
Twigs’ albums <i>Eusexua</i> and <i>Eusexua Afterglow</i> were released in 2025. (standard.co.uk)

Where accounts differ

Length of the festival: the festival sees a different cultural figure curate 10 days of concerts (standard.co.uk); the beloved annual festival … sees a different cultural figure curate 11 days of concerts (standard.co.uk)