Brick Lane Jazz Festival announces first-ever conference and Pro Pass as part of 2026 festival programme
23rd – 26th April 2026 | Pro Pass tickets start from just £19 | Early bird festival tickets start from just £34.95 | Payment plans from just £11 per month
First wave panellist lineup:
Gary Crosby OBE (Tomorrow’s Warriors), Ahnansé (Steam Down), Tina Edwards (DJ & broadcaster), Brian Jackson (Jazz-funk Pioneer), Lou Paley (Women in Jazz), Valentine Comar (Brownswood), Eerf Evil (Silhouettes Project), Robert Luis (Tru Thoughts), Charlie Fenemer (Orii Community), Rohan Rakhit (DJ & broadcaster), Andre Marmot (Earth Agency), Sophie Farrel (Sister Midnight), Asher Kosher (Route 73), Shannon-Latoyah Simon (British Council), Yvette Griffith (NYJO, Jazz re:freshed), Jane Cornwall (journalist)
Full festival lineup A-Z:
A Grime Supreme • Aby Coulibaly • Alexander Flood • Alici • Amanda Whiting • anaiis & Grupo Cosmo • Another Taste (live) • Arjuna Oakes • Bad Influence • Benji “chief” Appiah • Bibi Tanga & The Selenites • BONITA • Brian Jackson • BXL X LDN Interplay III • Celine Dessberg • Charlie Stacey • Christ-Stéphane Boizi • C-Sé Quartet • daoud • Eliane Correa • Five Points Project • Footshooter (live) • Gabriele Poso (live) • Genevieve Namazzi Quartet • Haseeb Iqbal • Helena Casella • IAMNOBODI • Jembaa Groove • Joe Armon-Jones • Kassa GJ Quartet • KAU • Kianja • Kivnzogianna • Knats • Kwame Yeboah • Kyla Kilzer & Max Noir • Kyra • Leif Kaner-Lidström • Levitation Orchestra • Lucy Park • Maddy Coombs • MADELEINE • Marlon The Pannist • Meron T • Nídia & Valentina • Oliver Night • Poppy Helmer & Friends • Resolution 88 • Richard Spaven • Robert Luis • Rohan Rakhit Presents • Rhys Baker • Ruby Rushton • Saiming • Sam Wise • SHOLTO & Finn Rees • Stella & The Longos • Steppin’ Over • Sticky Dub • TABLE • Tanhai Collective • Tawiah • Tia Gordon • Tina Edwards b2b Tim Garcia (DJ Set) • Tomorrow’s Warriors • Yoni Mayraz • ZENA + many more TBA
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Having firmly established itself as a cornerstone of East London’s musical landscape, Brick Lane Jazz Festival has earned a reputation for spotlighting local artists and emerging trailblazers from the city’s thriving underground scenes, whilst honouring the jazz legends that have come before them. Always striving to find new ways to support the next generation of talent, the festival has today announced details of a new conference programme along with a new release of Pro Pass tickets that will give attendees access to a range of talks, workshops, exhibits, and exclusive performances.
Brick Lane Jazz Festival returns for their fifth birthday edition from 23rd – 26th April 2026, the new conference announcement sees a host of inimitable and eclectic panellists join a stacked line-up headlined by Joe Armon-Jones, Brian Jackson, and anaiis & Grupo Cosmo. Amongst the conference speaker lineup are the likes of multi-award winning saxophonist and community leader Ahnansé, co-founder of jazz mentoring charity Tomorrow’s Warriors, Gary Crosby OBE; the Women In Jazz collective, audio tech pioneers Solid State Logic, Swedish keyboard manufacturers Nord, ethical streaming tastemaker service Qobuz; Tru Thoughts Records; DJ, and broadcaster, Rohan Rakhit; DJ, broadcaster & music journalist, Tina Edwards; hip-hop activist and mentor Eerf Evil; long-time friends of the festival, label and promoters, Tru Thoughts Records, and many more.
The conference will be held in the festival’s new venue, the ‘Flow State Hub’ - an open-plan warehouse space opposite Juju’s Bar & Stage in the heart of the festival site in Ely’s Yard, while Juju’s Bar & Stage will host their evening networking mixers. There will also be opportunities for structured networking sessions in partnership with Women in Jazz at Juju’s Bar, which will include one-to-one mentoring sessions with industry professionals, as well as some less formal networking mixers. Festival sponsors, One Jazz Radio, will be broadcasting live from the conference venue, with performances from the Nord stage included.
Speaking on the conference, the festival’s founder, Juliet Kennedy says, “Our aim is to empower artists and music professionals by connecting people across the industry, encouraging meaningful exchange, and helping create sustainable opportunities within London’s grassroots music ecosystem.”
Independent apparel, lifestyle, homeware, and cosmetics retailer, Goodhood, will also be joining the conference as a partner. The store will be providing a retail outlet for some of the festival’s cutting-edge exhibitor audio equipment in the conference hub, with their store next door to Juju’s Bar. The National Jazz Archive will also be present in the conference hub with an archival exhibit and pop-up shop selling records & merch.
The National Jazz Archive is a 0% volunteer led not-for-profit organisation that holds a vast collection of personal and commercial jazz artifacts, ephemera and audio that proudly protects, preserves and presents the innovation and evolution story of all forms of Great British Jazz In Great Britain. Established in 1988 with its UK HQ on the East London and Essex borders, and in demand by journalists, authors, musicians, students, filmmakers and broadcasters as well as the generally jazz curious from across the globe, the National Jazz Archive hold 50,000 + assets spread across nearly 1500 professionally catalogued collections of significant and important UK heritage and cultural value including books, journals, posters, merchandise, instruments and unique sound recordings.
Speaking on their involvement, they say, “as the Archive continues to grow, book, record and CD donations often become duplicated so with the permissions of the donor or their estate, we’re able to sell these to raise much-needed funds to deliver our work. We’re proud - and rather excited - to demonstrate our commitment to jazz in the community by bringing The NJA’s Jazz Hub to Brick Lane as the Jazz Festival’s Cultural Partner.”
Pro Pass tickets are available now from just £19. Full conference programme and tickets here
More information about Brick Lane Jazz Festival 2026:
Growing from its modest debut across four venues in 2022 to a 12-stage extravaganza spanning Brick Lane and Shoreditch in just five years, the festival was named #1 Best London Festival by The London Standard in 2024, and has earned plaudits from the likes of The Guardian, Metro, NOTION, Clash, The Line Of Best Fit, Jazzwise, All About Jazz, UK Jazz, Elle, Wonderland, TimeOut, Jazz FM, Rinse FM, One Jazz, Worldwide FM, and many more. Since 2024, the festival has also amplified its impact with the launch of BLJF Presents - a year-round series of events showcasing the UK’s most exciting artists, record labels, and parties. After sell-out shows in Manchester, Brighton, London and more, BLJF Presents is heading to new heights in 2025/26 with more regional stops in the likes of Bristol and Glasgow, as well as two international shows in Brussels.
Bringing together an eclectic range of genre-defying artists to play against the backdrop of some of the capital’s most renowned cultural hotspots. All the festival venues are within a short walk from the central hub at the iconic Truman Brewery space on Brick Lane, transforming the site and surrounding area into a vibrant hive of gig-hopping excitement for three days every April.
Reflecting on this fifth birthday edition Kennedy says, “From day one, Brick Lane Jazz Festival has been about shining a light on the incredible talent in London’s jazz scene. Five years on, Brick Lane Jazz Festival has grown into a landmark celebration of the UK’s underground music community. It’s been incredible to see the festival become a space where artists and audiences connect so powerfully – and this is only the beginning. Our ambition is to keep pushing boundaries and championing the next wave of talent for many years to come. We’re only just getting started!”
The first wave of 2026’s stellar line-up saw them bringing together a borderless array of artists that span jazz, alt-rap, neo-soul, R&B, neo-classical, electronic music, and more. It also included the announcement of the festival’s first headliner, jazz-funk legend and Gil Scott-Heron collaborator, Brian Jackson. Ahead of the festive break, multi-award-winning London jazz proponent Joe Armon-Jones joined Jackson as the festival’s second headliner. Armon-Jones is a significant player on the UK circuit, having earned widespread acclaim both as a solo artist with records on Brownswood and his own label AQUARii, and as a founding member of the Mercury Prize-winning band Ezra Collective, who sold-out Wembley Arena last November. In addition to all this, he has appeared on albums by everyone from Moses Boyd, Nubya Garcia, and SEED Ensemble, through to Tony Allen and Hugh Masekela.
The festival’s final headliner, anaiis & Grupo Cosmo, was also recently announced. Their appearance will mark the new collaborative project’s UK live debut. Having earned a BBC Radio 6 Music and Apple Music Best New Album nod, French Senegalese singer anaiis recently released a collaborative album titled “anaiis & Grupo Cosmo”, which saw her collaborating with the Brazilian outfit Grupo Cosmo. The album has been on the receiving end of plaudits from a vast array of press for their genre twisting blend of R&B, soul, and Brazilian music. In addition to the new headliners, the festival has also added a host of further exciting artists to the line-up, including Latin London outfit BONITA and Belgian Brazilian composer and singer Helena Casella, as well as beloved DJs such as Rohan Rakhit, Tina Edwards, and Tim Garcia.
In keeping with the festival's ethos of championing the most exciting new talent, the festival also recently announced that it will once again partner with jazz re:freshed and Tomorrow’s Warriors, both vital community organizations that nurture emerging talent in UK jazz. Each organisation will once again have its own stage, and will feature performances from the likes of rising tenor saxophonist Maddy Coombs, jazz-funk luminaries Resolution 88, emerging nu-jazz / UK soul artist MADELEINE, lauded percussionist Richard Spaven, the much-hyped quartet from multi-instrumentalist Genevieve Namazzi, flautist Poppy Helmer & Friends, and many more.
The full line-up so far is as follows:
A Grime Supreme • Aby Coulibaly • Alexander Flood • Alici • Amanda Whiting • Another Taste (live) • Arjuna Oakes • Bad Influence • Benji “chief” Appiah • Bibi Tanga & The Selenites • BONITA • BXL X LDN Interplay III • Celine Dessberg • Charlie Stacey • Christ-Stéphane Boizi • C-Sé Quartet • daoud • Eliane Correa • Five Points Project • Footshooter (live) • Gabriele Poso (live) • Genevieve Namazzi Quartet • Haseeb Iqbal • Helena Casella • IAMNOBODI • Jembaa Groove • Kassa GJ Quartet • KAU • Kianja • Kivnzogianna • Knats • Kwame Yeboah • Kyla Kilzer & Max Noir • Kyra • Leif Kaner-Lidström • Levitation Orchestra • Lucy Park • Maddy Coombs • MADELEINE • Marlon The Pannist • Meron T • Nídia & Valentina • Oliver Night • Poppy Helmer & Friends • Resolution 88 • Richard Spaven • Robert Luis • Rohan Rakhit Presents • Rhys Baker • Ruby Rushton • Saiming • Sam Wise • SHOLTO & Finn Rees • Stella & The Longos • Steppin’ Over • Sticky Dub • TABLE • Tanhai Collective • Tawiah • Tia Gordon • Tina Edwards b2b Tim Garcia (DJ Set) • Tomorrow’s Warriors • Yoni Mayraz • ZENA + many more TBA
Early bird tickets for the festival are now on sale with day passes starting from just £34.95 and weekend passes from £125.00. Payment plans are also available from just £11 per month. Tickets and more info are available here
As always, those without tickets can also enjoy free-entry spaces throughout the site, including special live performances at The Nord Zone, The Brick Lane Tap Room, the Main Bar at 93 Feet East, and Cafe 1001.
