FEATURE:
The Line-Up with Shaun Keaveny
Building Your Own Dream Festival
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I was spending a lot of time…
PHOTO CREDIT: Jade Masri/Unsplash
with podcasts during the pandemic. We are still in the pandemic though, when it first started, there was this sense that this thing will go on and we are not sure when it will get better. Now that there is a little bit of movement and a little less fear, I am still listening to podcasts a lot. As festivals are coming back, it has got me thinking about live music. So many artists have been living off hardly anything for over a year and a half. It will take a while before the live economy has been restored and we see the same amount of gigs as we did in 2019. It is good to see artists and fans come back to festivals. Scenes of revellers united is something we were unsure would return so soon. It is great that people can make plans in this area. It was a tragedy when Shaun Keaveny left BBC Radio 6 Music last month (or, as he said in his farewell speech, the decision was sort of taken out of his hands). He had been at the station for fourteen years and amassed legions of loyal listeners! It was an emotional day when he said goodbye to a station that he helped get to where it is today. Happily, he is keeping busy outside of radio – though we hope he gets his own show again very soon! Even though his podcast, The Line-Up with Shaun Keaveny, has been going for a few weeks now, I wanted to draw attention to it.
This Sony Music release explains more about what the podcast entails:
“The Line-Up is a new podcast created in collaboration with Sony Music Commercial Group and Cup & Nuzzle, where music-loving guests get the chance to curate their very own dream festival alongside veteran broadcaster Shaun Keaveny.
Each episode will see Shaun and his guest discussing their favourite festival memories, who tops the bill on their dream line-up, their food and drink of choice and the all-important question – are they brave enough to face the infamous portaloos?
“The Line-Up is a chance for me to essentially play God to all manner of great guests and grant them their ultimate festival wishes,” said Shaun. “Whatever they do desire – be it Hendrix jamming with Taylor swift, or a helicopter on site delivering their favourite curry. All I ask for in return, like any god worth their salt, is total eternal devotion!”
With no anecdote off limits, The Line-Up will showcase each guest’s true passions and musical spirit. People in the hot seat include artists Manic Street Preachers and Tom Grennan, actor Jodie Whittaker and comedian Shaparak Khorsandi.
Shaun was an instrumental part of the BBC 6 Music family for nearly 15 years, interviewing the most prestigious names in the music industry and further afield. Later this month he is co-hosting live coverage of the Isle of Wight Festival 2021 for Sky Arts, and he recently announced he is joining Absolute Radio for their comedy show, Rockanory.
Produced by Natalie Jamieson, The Line-Up kicks off on 15th September with Imagine Dragons and will be available weekly across all podcast providers – subscribe here”.
I have loved the episodes so far. The guests have been really interesting and different. I hope that there are many more series of Keaveny’s podcast, as the idea is one that has a lot of room for expansion. The series has the legs to run for a long time. I love the fact that a guest can assemble their own music festival. This is something we have all dreamed of at some point. You can name it, say where it is to be located and what sort of vibe there will be – in terms of ambience, food and the general look/feel. Keaveny’s guests get to choose five acts, living or dead, that will be in the line-up. Going from the dawn through to the night, it is a tantalising opportunity to construct the best festivals ever. It has been interesting seeing which direction each guest goes in. I like the fact Imagine Dragons’ Dan Reynolds (in the first episode) chose Paul Simon and Alanis Morissette – though the former could only play Graceland, whilst the latter had to perform Jagged Little Pill. Joy Crookes explained how, as she has anxiety and likes being close to home, her festival would be in South London. She opted for Billie Holiday and Prince in her line-up (who, she said, would play the entire festival; seemingly shredding and gyrating for the whole day!). There is a long way to go for The Line-Up with Shaun Keaveny. I don’t recall hearing many podcasts like this.
IN THIS PHOTO: San Diego, U.S.A./PHOTO CREDIT: Ameer Basheer/Unsplash
Whilst anyone can set up their own music festival, the cost, logistics and sheer scale of demand would put many off. In this podcast, music lovers can construct their dream festival without having to worry about red tape and expenses. Keaveny, as the host, would handle all of that. Rather than this being me getting a chance to pitch my own dream line-up, it is a recommendation for people to catch the podcast. Also, have a think about how your festival would go. For me, I would have a festival set in California. It might put off some British and international acts, but the wide-ranging and ideal landscape would be perfect. Perhaps setting it in Pasadena or San Diego. Calling it The Love Below Festival (as I really like the name; The Love Below was part of an Outkast double album (with Speakerboxxx) in 2003). With some great backdrops and plenty of entertainment and good food on site, it would be quite a cool and original festival. For food and drink, it would mix summer drinks like milkshakes and cocktails with international cuisine. There would be something for everyone. I would hold it in August. There would be a Glastonbury-like vibe to the site. So many different stalls and forms of entertainment. It is quite hard when it comes to narrowing down to five acts. In The Line-Up with Shaun Keaveny, our host has this great rapport with the guests. He helps mould their festival and provide this tangible joy – like you are part of the crowd and are ready to see the acts!
IN THIS PHOTO: Paul McCartney/PHOTO CREDIT: Mary McCartney
I would have to open the festival with an artist who could do mellow and upbeat. Dan Reynolds has already picked The Beatles. I would have Paul McCartney open. I would get him to (as much as you force Macca to do anything!) play solo stuff, The Beatles and Wings tracks. There would be a moment when Ringo Starr would join him. Possibly at the very end, the drummer could hook up with his former bandmate for a great finale. Maybe they could play Paperback Writer (The Beatles) or Band of the Run (Wings). It would get plenty of people in early. I would probably keep my line-up quite classic. I like new artists, though one would go with their all-time favourites if there were no limits. I never got to see Freddie Mercury perform with Queen. To hear that in a live setting would be amazing. They would have free reign over which songs were played. I think this would be a nice boost as we head into the afternoon. Following Queen would be Madonna. Ideally, one would like to see a 1990-Madonna perform (when she was on her The Blond Ambition World Tour). In terms of her fame and energy levels, this would be a good period. Not to say she lacks something as a live performer now. One feels that she is winding down her touring days. Few artists have such an illustrious and famous back catalogue!
IN THIS PHOTO: Madonna/PHOTO CREDIT: Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for A+E
I would insist that she plays songs from her debut, Madonna (1983) to 2005’s Confessions on a Dance Floor. I don’t mind her work after that, but she has so many big hits that she would need to cram in! I guess there would be a lot of costume changes, so it might be quite a long set! Honourable mentions go to Radiohead, Michael Jackson, Björk and so many others that I could not include. The penultimate act would be Beyoncé. Again, I have not seen her perform live. She has headlined Glastonbury and turned in an iconic set at Coachella a few years back. I would have her perform with JAY-Z, her former Destiny’s Child group-mates (Michelle Williams and Kelly Rowland). I think that this would be a perfect way to get the crowd going and up as we head to the final act. Whilst it would never happen in any situation and she has never played a festival before (although she did briefly appear at a Japanese music festival in 1978), Kate Bush would close the festival (as you might expect I’d say!). Able to keep the energy going but also take us down as we head into the night, it would be a special closer! I would ask if she could put together a special set uniting her albums, Never for Ever (1980), The Dreaming (1982), The Sensual World (1989) and 50 Words for Snow (2011). These are albums that have either never been performed live or have only had a song or two played.
IN THIS PHOTO: Beyoncé/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images
It would be a live set like no other. With great sets, costumes and effects, the icon would be playing tracks that she has never taken to the stage. Lasting about three hours, it would be an epic set that would definitely get the crowd crying and cheering! As she takes a bow and the set ends, there would be a visual display. Rather than fireworks (which are fuck*ng awful and noisy), there would be a spectacular display of lightning and visuals that would set people on their way. That is my desirable festival line-up. Every episode I hear of The Line-Up with Shaun Keaveny makes me wonder and imagine. I am sure, days from now, I will think of another artist that I would have at my festival – the temptation to move things around and fiddle! A great podcast series at a time when so many festivals are resuming (whilst others are planning their return next year), I hope that many more tune in and give it nice reviews. Although Shaun Keaveny is no longer at BBC Radio 6 Music, he is doing podcasts and other projects. He is definitely going to be kept busy for a long while yet! If you are a music lover who has always thought about what their dream festival line-up would be, then I can recommend you check out the excellent podcast from…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush during her 2014 residency, Before the Dawn/PHOTO CREDIT: Ken McKay
THE inimitable Shaun Keaveny.