Welsh musician set to curate UK grassroots festival on home ground

Amelia Jones

A Welsh musician is set to curate a two-day festival celebrating the UK’s grassroots music venues, following in the footsteps of artists including David Bowie.

Welsh musician and producer Kelly Lee Owens will curate a two-day festival at grassroots music venue Neuadd Ogwen in Bethesda on 12-13 December 2026, bringing together local musicians and established and emerging artists from further afield.

The festival forms part of Hometown Meltdown, a new partnership between the Southbank Centre, the UK’s largest multi-arts centre and home of the annual Meltdown music festival, and Music Venue Trust, the charity representing the UK’s grassroots music venues.

Since 1993, Meltdown has invited a different musician each year to curate its programme, with previous curators including David Bowie, Grace Jones and Chaka Khan.

For the first time, that artist-led approach is extending beyond the Southbank Centre’s London home, with six musicians programming festivals in grassroots venues connected to the places that have shaped them.

In Bethesda, Owens will bring her own musical perspective to Neuadd Ogwen, creating a programme that connects the venue’s local music community with artists from beyond the area.

The line-up will include: Tokomololo, Osgled, Gruff Rhys (DJ set), Casi Wyn, Cerys Hafana, Gwenno Morgan

Welsh roots

Owens said: “My Welsh roots have always been incredibly important to me – especially placing the emphasis on the pool of creative talent and energies in the north of Wales! I’m excited to work with Hometown Meltdown to bring focus to this part of the UK!”

Abbie Jones, Marketing and Events Coordinating Officer at Neuadd Ogwen, Bethesda said: “At Neuadd Ogwen, we’re very excited to be a part of Hometown Meltdown!

“Grassroots music venues are about more than just putting on gigs; they’re places where communities come together, new talent gets a platform, and people can experience live music right on their doorstep.

“Here in Bethesda we play an important role in championing the Welsh language and culture, giving Welsh-speaking artists a stage, and creating spaces where the language can thrive through music and the arts.

“Hometown Meltdown is a brilliant opportunity to celebrate the venues, artists and communities that keep our music scene alive.”

Grassroots music venues are a vital part of the UK’s live music ecology: places where artists experiment, develop their sound, build audiences and test new work.

Despite the importance of their geographic spread to the artistic and economic landscape, 59.3% of the grassroots music venues were excluded from significant tour routings in 2025.

Gaps in touring circuits mean that some towns and cities have fewer opportunities to host touring artists and connect local audiences with live music from beyond their area.

Southbank Centre

Hometown Meltdown brings the Southbank Centre’s artistic and curatorial expertise together with the local knowledge, talent and creative networks of grassroots venues.

As a national arts centre with a longstanding commitment to artistic experimentation, the Southbank Centre is taking the spirit and ambition of its flagship festival into new settings, supporting the programming of the two-day festivals across the UK’s network of grassroots music venues.

Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre, said: “As a national arts centre, the Southbank Centre has a vital role in bringing people together around ambitious artistic experiences and supporting the conditions in which new work can flourish. Meltdown has always given artists the freedom to shape a festival around the music and ideas that matter to them.

“Hometown Meltdown takes that spirit into grassroots venues across the UK, bringing the artistic ambition of our flagship festival into the places where musicians develop their practice and new audiences find their way into live music.

“It’s a celebration of the excellence already happening in these venues, and of what becomes possible when we connect creative communities across the country.”

Alongside Owens at Neuadd Ogwen in Bethesda, the inaugural series will see five other artists curate and host two-day festivals in grassroots music venues connected to their own stories.