Legendary British reggae band announce Cardiff date this summer

Amelia Jones 

An iconic British reggae band will return to home soil for an unmissable live show this summer.

Formed in Birmingham in the late 1970s, UB40 rose from humble beginnings to become one of the most successful reggae bands in the world. The group began as a collection of friends who met around Moseley and the city’s School of Art, at a time when job opportunities were limited and some members were living on unemployment benefit.

UB40 will perform at the Utilita arena, Cardiff on June 3. The show will see the band take to the stage in the city centre venue, with fans able to hear a catalogue of reggae classics that have spanned more than four decades.

The band’s music has had a lasting impact on the popularity of reggae outside Jamaica. By blending traditional reggae rhythms with pop sensibilities, the band introduced the genre to new audiences across the UK, Europe and beyond. Their success in the 1980s and 1990s helped cement reggae’s place in mainstream music culture.

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Initially describing themselves as an instrumental “jazz-dub-reggae” group, UB40 quickly developed their own distinctive sound. Over the decades, the band have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and spent more than 11 years in the UK album charts, with hits including Red Red Wine, Kingston Town, Can’t Help Falling in Love and Food for Thought.

Fans attending the Cardiff performance can expect a set packed with some of the band’s best-known hits from across their long career, as well as brand-new tracks from their forthcoming studio album, set for release in spring 2026.

Their Cardiff appearance is set to deliver a night of feel-good reggae and nostalgia, celebrating the songs that have made UB40 a household name across generations.

You can buy tickets for the event here.