With the announcement of the Trinity Ball lineup coming from theGMB through a live stream on Facebook last week, many students were quick to laud this year’s lineup as one of the strongest it has been in years. However, a few folks in the GMB were left scratching their head at a few of the names, especially towards the lower half of the poster. Fear not! We’re here to give you the complete lowdown on the lineup and have selected a few of our favourites for April 6.
What can be said about the George Ezra that you don’t already know? (Perhaps that he recently launched his own podcast with guests like Ed Sheeran just this month?) This year’s headliner is one of the biggest superstars to ever grace the stage and promises to not disappoint.
While Ezra’s style of folk rock has indeed made an impact on the charts, London producer Jax Jones can certainly make the claim of being a bonafide hitmaker. With a boastful 11 million monthly listeners on Spotify, Jax’s brand of catchy dance-pop has garnered him a fan base all over the world.
For house fans, Denis Sulta is the big one. Possibly the hottest DJ in Ireland’s dance music scene right now, Glaswegian Denis Sulta has won over the hearts and minds of ravers all over the island with his anthemic house productions and memorable, electrifying live sets. Dropping trance classics with a Conor McGregor monologue over them is a brave move to do as a DJ, but that’s just one of the many things that have contributed to Sulta’s meteoric rise and made him the Tune Drop behemoth he is today.
Having already been co-signed by Beats 1’s Julie Adenuga, among others, Manchester rapper and songstress IAMDDB is currently setting the UK music scene alight with her unique blend of R&B and trap music. The charismatic and captivating personality she conveys in interviews and on social media certainly flows through into her own music, exuding an effortless bravado and swagger rarely seen among non-American MCs.
What started off as two local lads making comedy songs on YouTube has now evolved to be one of the country’s best-known names in Irish hip-hop – Versatile. Casper Walsh and Eskimo Supreme have now conquered festival stages at Electric Picnic and Life, and just recently performed to a sold out District 8, bringing a large cult of young Irish fans along the ride with them.
Andy Carthy, or Mr. Scruff, is a veteran in the electronic music scene. Having been affiliated with legendary UK label Ninja Tune for nearly two decades, the English producer has become world-renowned for his jazz-infused brand of house, disco, and electronica, as well as enjoying equal acclaim with his eclectic DJ sets. For fans of Moodymann, Theo Parrish and other Midwestern house DJs Mr. Scruff has to be a name to add to your schedule at Trinity Ball this year.
The possible forefathers of the explosive ‘UK drill’ movement, London rap group 67 have made waves in both their home country and abroad with their unique fusion of grime flows and production with lyrics and subject matters more typically reserved for Chicago drill MCs like Chief Keef & Lil Durk. Check out their remix of Mura Masa’s “All Around the World” or “Let’s Lurk” (whose beat was sampled on Big Shaq’s “Man’s Not Hot”) for an introduction. Expect mosh pits, chants and generally rowdiness when they take the stage this April.
Derry-born, Liverpool-based Or:la has garnered a serious reputation for herself as one of Europe’s most in-demand DJs at exponential speed. Having entered most of our radar’s when she played at Belfast’s AVA Festival for Boiler Room, Or:la recently played a three hour set at Pygmalion. Attendees were treated to a varied mix of genres, from UK breakbeat to Detroit techno, all tied up in a cohesive manner showcasing some serious technical DJ skills. Assume this set to be one of the more memorable DJs you’ll see on the night.
Pearson Sound, along with Ben UFO and Pangaea, was one of the founders of the influential UK bass record label Hessle Audio. Previously known as Ramadanman, Pearson Sound’s productions have become stand out moments in the tracklisting of DJs the world over, with last years “XLB” especially being a critical tool in a DJs arsenal.
Of course, there are even more acts nestled on the lineup that deserve a mention here such as Indie rockers Circa Waves, pop-house DJs Hannah Wants and Friend Within, and Dublin grime duo Mango X MathMan all deserve an honourable mention.
As well as that, TCD’s own talent will be represented in the form of Trinity Orchestra and the Trinitones, and a few slots for our own DJ society, DUDJ, along with DJs from Trinity-affiliated club night The Midnight Disco making an appearance too. The varied and eclectic lineup on offer this year may prove that this year’s TBall is the best we’ve seen in years.
