Le Guess Who? is a Celebration of Sound in Utrecht, The Netherlands. The festival is dedicated to boundary-crossing music & culture from all over the world.
How do we envision a future where our presence is uncertain, denied, erased? What might it feel like, if revenge were to become a practice within that future? Can the haunting carry our rage, our despair, our ancestral weight, and our spiritual practices? DJ and sound researcher Raziyah Heath's work aims to uncover the cross pollinations of Afro-diasporic (sub)cultures and sonic threads, focusing on the variations, range and intersectionality of the experiences that result from this. In thi...
14 Jul 2026
Up The Youth Club
Youth clubs and cultural spaces have long provided young people with a place to connect, socialize and try new things. They have had a huge but almost invisible effect on music, culture and society. Yet, over the past two decades, many have disappeared due to funding cuts and shifting priorities. The question of how such spaces are organized, financed and sustained is therefore more urgent than ever. In this podcast, the third in a series of conversations recorded at Le Guess Who?’s Sound &a...
30 Jun 2026
On Sound as Substance: Indigenous Approaches to Sound / Sound as Medicine
Music is perhaps widely known to serve as a means of collective and individual healing. But to what extent do we take sound seriously, beyond the auditory experience? What thoughts come to mind when we consider sound as its own sovereign being, containing substance and functioning as an actual medicine—a means that can influence physical and mental well-being? In this podcast, the second in a series of conversations recorded at Le Guess Who?’s Sound & Culture Summit, four artists and mus...
16 Jun 2026
Artistic Freedom Under Threat: Mobility, Censorship & the Right to Create
Artistic freedom is too often reduced to “freedom of expression”, but for artists and independent cultural organizers, the ground is much more complex. It’s not only what someone can say, but where someone can go, how someone can live, who someone can reach, and whether someone can sustain the work without fear. In this podcast, the first in a series of conversations recorded at Le Guess Who?’s Sound & Culture Summit, three music and arts practitioners from Syria, Georgia and Malaysia j...
3 Nov 2023
Ndox Electrique root their sound in Senegal's healing ceremonies, by Atiyyah Khan
On the closing day of Le Guess Who? 2023, the festival features the first international performance of Ndox Electrique, whose music is inspired by an ancient ritual of the spirit-world originating from Senegal’s n’döep ceremonies. Here, Atiyyah Khan, an arts journalist, researcher and DJ from Johannesburg, introduces the group and provides context to the origins of this healing ritual that connects so strongly to their sound. Words & audio by Atiyyah KhanPhotography by Gianna Gr...
24 Oct 2023
Kamilya Jubran: Witnessing a transcendent moment on stage
Born in Palestine and currently based in Paris, Kamilya Jubran is one of the most revered figures in the experimental and alternative Arabic music scenes. Through her multi-disciplinary work, Jubran continues to inspire a new generation of both musicians and audiences. One of those musicians is Sandy Chamoun, part of the Lebanese group SANAM who are also performing at Le Guess Who? 2023. We asked Sandy Chamoun to share a personal introduction to Kamilya Jubran’s life and work.Words &...
10 Oct 2023
Renowned Pakistani qawwali singer Faiz Ali Faiz by Arooj Aftab
Having been born to seven consecutive generations of qawwals (those who perform the ancient form of religious Sufi music from Pakistan and Northern India - Punjab - known as qawwali), Faiz Ali Faiz was raised on the practice.After having performed at Le Guess Who? in 2021, we asked Pakistani singer Arooj Aftab, whose work is inspired by Sufi poets and musicians that came before her, to interview Faiz Ali Faiz. They talked about his background story, what music means to him, and about pushing ...
22 Sept 2023
AMPFEMININE is here to prove that female and non-binary producers are out there, they just need the space, and community, to flourish.
Rotterdam based-DJ collective AMPFEMININE scours its diverse database to bring an evening of fresh feminine energy to this year’s Le Guess Who? proving that female and non-binary DJs are out there, they just need the space - and community - to flourish .Words & audio by Cheri PercyPhotography by Tengbeh Kamara
20 Sept 2023
How seven trailblazing Le Guess Who? artists reimagine their cultural and musical heritage
For 16 years and counting, Le Guess Who? has strived to create a space for generations of music lovers and makers to come together. A podium, where icons of their trade not just pass the baton to those that carve out a new path – but where they engage on eye-level.This year, the Le Guess Who? line-up once again boasts an array of young artists and newer acts that, all in their own way, recalibrate their musical and cultural heritage, and create a whole new thing on top of it. Their contributi...
3 Nov 2022
15 years of Le Guess Who?: How one Dutch festival became home to music fans across the globe
Ahead of its 15th Anniversary Edition, Cheri Percy speaks to the co-founders of forward-thinking festival Le Guess Who? about its evolution from a two-man team to an award-winning movement. Boundary-breaking artists and former guest curators Camae Ayewa (Moor Mother) and Radwan Ghazi Moumneh (Jerusalem In My Heart) also weigh in alongside local figureheads Margriet van Kraats and Marlies Timmermans to explain why Utrecht's annual music event has since become home to music fans across the glob...
19 Oct 2022
Flamenco innovator Lole Montoya: “I would not be able to sing something I’m not feeling”
Already at an early age, Lole Montoya decided that she wanted to dedicate her life to singing. But not only did she indeed become a singer, she also redefined the flamenco genre by bringing in new influences, genres and poetry. Her skill has been displayed across a long repertoire, which includes her work as part of the renowned duo Lole y Manuel, surely one of the most important musical duos in popular Spanish music.This year, Lole Montoya gives a rare performance at Le Guess Who? as part of...
27 Sept 2022
Cheikha Rabia: a destiny tied to the continuous reinvention of rai
This November, Le Guess Who? will feature a special performance by Cheikha Rabia, a renowned singer with over five decades of experience in reinventing rai music. Her performance will be a collaboration with Esraa Warda, a prolific dancer expert in traditional North African dance forms. Both artists hail from Algeria, but currently, Cheikha Rabia lives in Paris. After having performed at Le Guess Who? in 2019, we asked Yasmine Dubois - also known as Lafawndah -, a singer, songwriter, pro...
4 Aug 2022
Rats on Rafts on their multi-disciplinary spectacle, Visions of Chapter 3
This November, Rotterdam post-punk quintet Rats on Rafts bring their multi-disciplinary spectacle, Visions of Chapter 3, to Le Guess Who? 2022 for its first public-facing debut.Cheri Percy spoke to the band’s David Fagan about how the project developed while the world was in a state of flux, as well as Rotterdam as outsider city and painting pictures in your brain.Words & audio by Cheri PercyRats on Rafts audio courtesy of the band Photography by Jasmijn Slegh
1 Mar 2022
A personal introduction to Egypt’s Mazaher, bearers of the Zãr tradition, by Nadah El Shazly (2021)
This November (2021), Le Guess Who? will feature a rare performance (their first European show in over 15 years) of Egypt’s Mazaher: a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms used in a ceremonial event to cleanse the spirits and to clear away illness and discomfort.We very much want to introduce you to the Egyptian ensemble, but figured that Nadah El Shazly is in a much better position to do so, since her connection...
1 Mar 2022
John Dwyer talks to Brigid Dawson about songwriting, memories of touring, classical music, and birthday presents (2021)
John Dwyer (OSEES, Bent Arcana) is one of the guest curators for Le Guess Who? 2021. His stirring program includes Brigid Dawson, whom he played with for years. Dawson released the debut record of her The Mother’s Network project last year via Castleface Records and will be taking the festival stage with Sunwatchers.Ahead of their performances at Le Guess Who?, Bant Mag. invited John and Brigid to have a conversation about their songwriting methods, memories of touring, finding solace in clas...
1 Mar 2022
‘A sudden, uncontrollable urge to dance’: the magic of Nyege Nyege Tapes & Hakuna Kulala Club Night (2021)
Forget Detroit, Chicago, and Berlin for a minute. Some of the most exciting electronic music records are being cut in the capital of Uganda, Kampala, and many are coming out of label Nyege Nyege Tapes. The collective is committed to shedding light on some of the best outsider music made in Kampala and all around East Africa.This November (2021), Le Guess Who? is drawing attention to the label, featuring performances from some of Nyege Nyege Tapes’ most irreverent names, such as Kenyan black m...
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