Morgan Wade to headline new Country and Americana festival at Royal Albert Hall 2023

Virgin Radio

2 Dec 2022, 14:49

Morgan Wade has been announced to headline a brand-new Country and Americana festival, Highways, next year at the Royal Albert Hall.

The London venue will be home to some of the biggest stars in country music right now, with acts such as Kip Moore, Jackson Dean and Stephen Wilson Jr. joining Wade for the line-up.

Highways festival will cover the whole of the venue, from performances in the main auditorium to “carefully curated showcases” taking place in the other rooms.

There will also be the opportunity to pick up something to eat at the first-of-its-kind festival.

Live Nation’s Vice President Touring, Anna Sophie-Mertens, says “I am thrilled to bring to life this incredible festival alongside our partners at the Royal Albert Hall. It is every artist’s dream to play this legendary venue, and delivering such an unforgettable occasion for the Country and Americana community has been a longstanding dream of mine.”

Saturday headliner of Highways and multiplatinum recording artist and songwriter, Kip Moore, also added: "It’s pretty overwhelming to think about playing such an iconic venue as Royal Albert Hall. It’s been a goal of mine for as long as I can remember. Audiences in the UK are some of my all-time favorites to play and I can’t wait to be back over there to launch Highways Festival. It’s going to be really special.”

Morgan Wade will also be performing on Saturday,  and she's had quite an exciting few years after her latest record Reckless was named Rolling Stones’ number one country album of 2021.

Earlier this year, she joined the Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to chat about the conception of that album and perform a few songs, including her hit Wilder Days.

Speaking about penning the record, Morgan said: “The process of writing ‘Reckless’ was just me being just honest and writing for myself because that's the only way I know how to write. That's the only thing I've ever done.

“So, I think that that's why it was so authentic and transparent.”

It’s not the first time Morgan has taken to the main stage at a country festival in the UK. During her trip in the spring, she also performed at the Country2Country Festival at the O2 Arena and revealed she was excited about encountering a British audience for the first time.

She joked: “I was told you listen like a sober crowd and react like a drunk one.”

Highways festival is set to take place at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday 20th May 2023. Further musical performances and offerings at Highways are to be announced soon.