Press room

New shows announced today at the Barbican for 2025, with more detailed information following below:

Mustafa

Sudanese-Canadian sensation Mustafa makes his Barbican debut, embarking on a European tour of his latest record Dunya (Jagjaguwar, Sep 2024) with his only UK date in the Barbican Hall. 

Dunya, the title of Mustafa’s masterfully crafted and tender full-length debut, roughly translates from Arabic to “the world in all its flaws.” It’s a lofty subject for a young songwriter, but as with every theme at the heart of this artist’s work—from religious devotion to childhood trauma, gang violence to romantic intimacy— Mustafa approaches it through a personal lens. Blending genres and moods, weaving novelistic details into instantly memorable folk songs, he has crafted a record that feels like a series of personal breakthroughs, arriving one after the other. 

Mustafa evolved swiftly from a child prodigy reciting poems throughout his native Toronto to a behind-the-scenes pop songwriting force for artists like The Weeknd, Camila Cabello, and Justin Bieber. He now becomes a full-on auteur in his own right. Speaking on his lyrical inspiration, he says: “I’m trying to preserve and celebrate the ordinary life in the hood”. Exploring his upbringing and onward trajectory, the songs are equally disarming in their simplicity and multilayered in their emotional breadth. The album features appearances from collaborators such as Aaron Dessner, Rosalía, Clairo, Nicolas Jaar, and more. With contributions from Mustafa’s longtime creative partner Simon Hessmann too, the music reveals a confident, distinctive voice.

Praise for Dunya:

Mustafa’s ‘Dunya’ is a gorgeous treatise on rage and faith – Rolling Stone

A quite singular record from a singular voice, ‘Dunya’ is testament to the strength of Mustafa’s ambitions, and his desire to be heard. – Clash 

Produced by the Barbican in association with Amigas

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Fatoumata Diawara

Malian singer-songwriter Fatoumata Diawara returns to the Barbican, inviting audiences on a cosmic journey through Afrofuturism.

Continuing her mission to reinvent traditional African music, Fatoumata Diawara presents her latest album London Ko (Wagram, 2023). Sharper than ever with her words, the GRAMMY award-nominated artist strikes a perfect balance between synthetic sounds and traditional Malian rhythms.

Angie Stone, Roberto Fonseca, -M- and Damon Albarn have all been part of the adventure into forging a new world through collaboration on London Ko. The perfect combination of electronic sounds and the traditional melodies of a kora or N’goni, Mandinka rhythms in the percussion and Fatou’s griotic voice culminate in a tribute to Malian culture, but also to its people’s struggle. By taking care of form, Diawara demonstrates not only care for the world, but also care for their ancestors, because, for this artist, everything is connected.

“I put all my love, spirit and entire body into the creative process and this album is pure.” – Fatoumata Diawara

Produced by the Barbican in association with Earth Cruises

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Cat Power sings Dylan ’66 

Singer-songwriter Cat Power takes to the Barbican Hall to perform her recreation of Bob Dylan’s historic 1966 “Royal Albert Hall Concert” – one of the most fabled and transformative concerts of all time.

The original 1966 performance was in fact held at Manchester Free Trade Hall in May 1966 but was long known as the “Royal Albert Hall Concert” due to a mislabelled bootleg. The transformative moment in music history nevertheless marked Dylan’s controversial switch from acoustic to electric, challenging traditional boundaries of folk and rock.

Cat Power’s rendition, featured on her live album Cat Power Sings Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert, presents a faithful yet personal interpretation of the legendary setlist, including tracks like Just Like a Woman, Mr. Tambourine Man, and Like a Rolling Stone. Her performance moves from an intimate acoustic opening to a full-band electric set, capturing the spirit of Dylan’s pivotal concert while offering her own distinctive perspective – lovingly honouring her hero’s imprint on history while bringing a stunning new vitality to many of his most revered songs. This evening will celebrate Dylan’s enduring influence through Cat Power’s deeply connected and heartfelt tribute.

Produced by the Barbican

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