Rinse FM | Born & Bred — Celebrate London

Celebrate London

With festival season fully underway, Born & Bred was poised to continue the musical wave. Situated in the trendy, edgy Haggerston, East London, everything we were looking for was there.

As you walked in, the bass reverberated around the endlessly rhythmic grounds. Expectations were high for this celebration of music – hip hop, grime, drum 'n' bass, garage (the sounds of London) were very much centric to this weekend, all alongside some fantastic international talent.

The festival was perfectly sized to be able to make the most of the eclectic variety. Some stages open, some within the enclosed musical hub of a tent – creating your own blend of sound was the spice of life.

Named after the group of DJ's themselves, and fresh from their sell-out events across London, Livin' Proof played on their self-named stage. It wasn't the busiest tent, but the hip-hop flavour shone through, providing a stepping stone for the day ahead. Lady Leshurr energised the main stage crowd with her endless, vigorous, dance moves. This culminated with one of what turned out to be the major performances of the weekend.

US talent ILoveMakonnen was much hyped, but his performance was somewhat lacklustre and void of personality, needing that little something extra. And with Wiley not bothering to turn up, it felt like the day’s peak had already been reached. P Money, Slimzee and Cadell didn't quite provide the same crowd pleasing, big hitting set – but the crowd were still pumped and enjoying it nonetheless. The Newham Generals maintained the level of hype with a strong performance.

Nadia Rose set Sunday OFF – the sun was out, and this was exactly what was needed to set the tempo. The performance both hit and surpassed expectations. The effervescent Katy B then gave a surprise set in her home-city – and continued the dominance of the female talent at this year’s festival (despite the absence of the controversial Azealia Banks . . .) Kyla's sensual R&B only supported this statement.

Closing the festival were the Lord of the Mics, including the old statesman D Double E, and BBK's Jammer. The quality was there to be seen, and the crowd embraced it.

The absence of the two main acts wasn’t enough to cloud over the music and array of talent the festival had to offer, and it was this that truly shone through over this June weekend in East London.

Photo credit: Chazino Suban