Southend City Jam headliners announced

August 8, 2024

Southend City Jam, the UK's largest street art festival, returns from 30 August to 1 September 2024, transforming the city centre, seafront, and pier into a vibrant canvas of creativity.

A vibrant and colourful mural painted on the side of two adjacent buildings. The mural features a bear on the left and an owl on the right, both rendered in a stylised, geometric design with a variety of bright colours and patterns.

This year's headliners, chosen from over 800 applicants, showcase top-tier talent from around the world:

SMUG (Sam Bates): An Australian artist based in Glasgow, Scotland, SMUG is renowned for his photo-realistic murals created entirely freehand.

WOSKERSKI: A festival regular known for his vivid illustrations, vibrant colours, and often ironic, seemingly absurd characters that carry relevant messages.

FARID: From Morelos, Mexico, Farid is celebrated for his vibrant, colourful murals reflecting his deep pride in Mexican culture and love for direct public engagement through street art.

ACHES: A Dublin-based Irish artist who first came to City Jam in 2022. ACHES specializes in unique, large-scale murals that fuse his knowledge of graphic design and graffiti.

In addition to these headliners, the festival will feature a host of other new and familiar faces in our biggest line-up of artists yet.

This year, the festival is thrilled to announce a new headline sponsor, Southend City BID. Their generous support is invaluable in making the festival a reality and helps us continue offering this amazing event free of charge.

Scott Dolling, Southend City BID manager, said: "Southend City BID is delighted to help bring this fantastic festival to the City Centre again. The artwork transforms many areas, and the positive impact on visitors and residents alike is unparalleled, bringing new audiences and footfall to our business community."

Councillor Matt Dent, cabinet member for culture, tourism and business, added: "This year's headliners at Southend City Jam look incredible, so don't miss this unforgettable celebration of street art! Experience the creativity of these world-class artists as they transform our city into an open-air gallery, where urban grit meets artistic brilliance."

For more information on headliners, attending artists, or the festival in general, visit the Southend City Jam website