All Points East: A First in Inclusivity for 2021

By Laurine Payet, Music Journalist

After a year without festivals, Victoria Park welcomed again one of this year’s biggest music events, All Points East. The massive London festival showed that a good line-up with incredible headliners could be reached while respecting a good parity of genders. Artists such as London Grammer, Jorja Smith and Lianne La Havas were at the top of the bill for the 2021 edition of All Points East. As well as a good representation of women, we saw many queer artists perform over the Bank holiday weekend. Let’s have a look back at the three-day festival.

Friday

The festival kicked off on Friday afternoon with the Glasgow born and raised singer Joesef. The bisexual artist writes, records and produces all of his music on his own. His powerful but delicate voice was the perfect match for the start of All Points East. The crowd was surprisingly packed for an early afternoon performance and his cover of Sister Sledge’s ‘Thinking of You’ set the positive energy for the rest of the day. Not long after was his set followed by Loraine James. Mixing jazz, electronica and pop vocals, the North London singer brings together a lot of influences. On the stage of All Points East, Loraine James expresses her queerness through her music, enchanting the crowd effortlessly. The singer unapologetically prides herself in being a black queer woman in a world in an industry where minorities are far from getting the representation deserved.

Låpsley was one of the highlights of the first day of All Points East. After releasing her second album during the first week of lockdown, the bisexual singer and songwriter experienced the frustration of not being able to play her record live for over a year after its release. Her set at the festival was her first step on stage post lockdowns. Excitation mixed with anxiety, Låpsley was, with no surprise, a success for her fans. Friday also welcomed the rapper Enny. Famous for her remixed song ‘Peng Black Girls’ with Jorja Smith, Enny gained popularity during the pandemic. This was for her the first live performance with such a crowd. After starting off by posting freestyle videos on her YouTube channel, the British rapper certainly reached a new level in her career.

Saturday

For its second day, All Points East received British singer-songwriter and poet Arlo Parks. After performing her first gig in 2019, Arlo Parks, gathered an immense crowd on the main stage of the festival. Only 21 years-old, the queer artist from London released her debut album at the start of the year, a few months before being able to perform it live. Opening her set with Hurt the magnificent ‘Hurt’, Arlo Parks openly sings about mental health and celebrates queer love.

While Saturday’s headliner was Jamie XX, All Points East welcomed Romy, singer of The XX. Romy Madley Croft has only been relleasing music as a solo artist since last year. Debuting her career with the single ‘Lifetime’, the singer took a much different creative path for her project. The dance and electro-pop sound of Romy screams party and celebration. She expressed the fact the start of her solo career freed her from certain barriers. Being able to write about lesbian love, and perform it in her own way without being afraid made her set unique and powerful.

Monday

Active in the London underground scene since 2016, the female-led and queer band Goat Girl appeared to be one of the more awaited names of All Points East. Blending prog-rock, jazz and punk, it is hard to define the band’s sound. With a sharp sound, deep vocals and effective drums, Goat Girl worked perfectly in All Points East’s tent.

With a line-up mainly focused on indie music, the queer acts performing on Monday were more on the electronic side. The 6 Music stage welcomed American producer Octo Octa. With three albums to her name, the transgender DJ based in Brooklyn set fire to the last day of the festival, warming up Victoria Park before the set of closing act Foals.

Based in Manchester, Afrodeutsche blends sounds from her heritage. She defines her sound as “Afrofuturistic electro and techno, classical solo piano and Detroit legacy house”, a memorable journey through a range of noise. She played alongside Maya Jane Coles, a queer techno music producer and DJ. Sampled by Lady Gaga in ‘Sour Candy’, Maya Jane Coles is a big name in her scene and has been so for over ten years.

This year’s line-up of All Points East included a fair parity of gender, as well as a good representation of LGBTQ+ artists and people of colour. While not using this as a marketing tool but still selling out, they have shown that it is possible to succeed and platform talented marginalised artists.