Thousands entered Glastonbury’s free emerging talent competition, and now the 90 acts on the longlist have been announced. These ninety will be whittled down to eight who will perform at a live final in Pilton for a chance to grace one of the main stages at the 50th Glastonbury Festival. Who would you send through??

As one of the thirty judges in the initial part of the competition, I can now publish the three artists I put forward to the longlist. As in previous years, it was a nightmare getting the hundreds I listened to down to just three and my choices changed many times.

The full longlist can be listened to via Glastonbury’s Soundcloud playlist here.

MUSIC LIKE DIRT SELECTION

NUHA RUBY RA

Part avant-punk, part performance art, it’s impossible not to be captivated by Nuha Ruby Ra. The simmering ‘Sparky’ draws you in with its baseline and drawled spoken word but it’s live where the musical frissons really hit you. Unique.

LUCKY IRIS

Breezy electro pop with a chorus that burrows itself into your brain. Classy pop, topped with Maeve Florsheim’s sweet and jazz influenced vocals.
It’s second time lucky for Maeve and Jasper (Lucky Iris). Their previous band ‘Everyday People’ almost made it through to the Glasto longlist in pre-covid times but missed out narrowly, in part because they hadn’t submitted a live performance.

F.R.U.I.T.Y

Over an off-kilter lolloping beat, F.R.U.I.T.Y’s Northern Irish lilt is a delight. Wonderfully inventive, a little bit quirky and proudly ‘queer af’. One to watch.

Good luck to all ninety longlisters who made it through from thousands of entries.