New Zealand has been confirmed as the first-ever focus country at The Great Escape 2026, with the New Zealand Music Commission and Live Nation New Zealand set to take over Patterns on Brighton’s Marine Parade with a 10-act showcase running from 12pm to 4pm on Thursday, 14 May.
The event marks a historic milestone for Aotearoa’s music industry, coinciding with The Great Escape’s 20th anniversary edition in Brighton, which runs across the city from 13–16 May 2026. As previously announced, the New Zealand Music Commission was confirmed as a key partner for the 2026 festival, and this showcase represents the centrepiece of the country’s official programme, which also includes industry panels and a series of receptions throughout the week.
The Patterns takeover will span both the downstairs and upstairs areas of the venue. Ten artists have been confirmed across the afternoon, covering a broad sweep of New Zealand’s contemporary music landscape, from post-punk and Pacific psychedelia to soul-pop, alternative hip-hop and singer-songwriter fare.
Alan Holt, International Manager at the New Zealand Music Commission, said: “I am thrilled for New Zealand to be the lead country at The Great Escape this year. The festival has always been a significant part of the New Zealand Music Commission’s international activities and has consistently been a joy to attend both from a networking/showcasing perspective and as a place to experience fantastic music. Over the past few years, we have proudly supported artists like Aldous Harding, The Beths, DARTZ, LEISURE, NO CIGAR and Teeks, and this year we along with Live Nation New Zealand look forward to introducing the world to a new and sparkling collection of some of the best new music NZ has to offer.”
Mark Kneebone, MD of Live Nation New Zealand, added: “We’re stoked to be teaming up with the NZ Music Commission for the 20th anniversary of The Great Escape festival. Live Nation is about more than just putting on shows; it’s about being a genuine part of the local scene and helping our artists break through on the world stage. This partnership is a massive opportunity to give Kiwi talent a global platform, while also bringing that international energy back home to keep the local industry inspired and growing.”
The ten artists announced for the showcase are:
Luca George — A Wellington singer-songwriter with over 6 million streams and a nomination at the 2024 APRA Silver Scroll Awards for ‘Suit of Blue’. Troye Sivan hand-picked Luca as the only New Zealand artist for his personally curated APRA songwriting camp, and Rolling Stone named them one of its Future 25. Singles including ‘Better Apart’ and ‘Crying In The Bathroom’ have received support from BBC Radio 1 Future Pop and three major NZ radio networks.
Vera Ellen — The Wellington-born, Los Angeles-raised artist is signed to the legendary Flying Nun Records, which is also home to Ringlets (see below). Her 2021 debut album It’s Your Birthday earned her Best Alternative Artist at the 2022 Aotearoa Music Awards, and her 2023 follow-up Ideal Home Noise reached number seven on the NZ Official Album Charts, scored a write-up in Le Monde and was named by Rolling Stone as the third-best New Zealand album of that year. She has toured in support of Crowded House and appeared at SXSW and New Colossus Festival.
WHO SHOT SCOTT — Auckland-based artist and producer Zaidoon Nasir, who fled Iraq as a two-year-old and grew up navigating dual cultural identities in Aotearoa. His debut album HAIRY drops on 5 June 2026, exploring experiences of otherness, bullying and cultural displacement. His single ‘LONERS ANTHEM’ spent four weeks at number one on the NZ College Radio Network, and his work has been synced in the trailer for Borderlands 4. He performs his first-ever UK shows as part of this tour, with over 300,000 monthly Spotify listeners.
LEAO — A Samoan musical project led by guitarist/vocalist David Feauai-Afaese, their sound has been described as “niu wave” and “Pacific neo psychedelia”, blending non-traditional tonalities with a fa’asamoa spirit. Recorded at Roundhead Studios, their recent double single TAEAO / MEA UMA incorporates New Wave and Psychedelia into the Pacific music reference. A new full-length album is due in 2026.
Hemi Hemingway — The alter ego of songwriter Shaun Blackwell, his debut EP The Lonely Hunter was picked up by KEXP and led to sold-out London shows at the Moth Club and the Shacklewell Arms. His sophomore album Wings of Desire blends the familiar 1950s and 1960s pop influences with a gothy 1980s post-punk and New Romantic sound. Stuart Maconie called it “absolutely brilliant” on BBC Radio 6 Music’s Radcliffe & Maconie.
Jude Kelly — An independent singer-songwriter from Dunedin whose debut EP The Seven Spirits of Her, released in May 2025, was playlisted globally on Spotify and Apple Music, including by Ryan Schreiber, the founder of Pitchfork. Praised by Rolling Stone AU/NZ as “an intoxicating and brooding reflection on the magnetic pull of chaos”, she has supported Lewis Capaldi on his NZ arena tour and performed at Rhythm and Vines Festival.
Office Dog — The Auckland three-piece of Kane Strang (vocals/guitar), Rassani Tolovaa (bass) and Mitchell Innes (drums) released their debut album Spiel on Flying Nun Records in 2023, with an international release via New West Records in early 2024. Pitchfork called it “an album about the joy of playing together.” Their follow-up EP Doggerland arrived in September 2024, and the band subsequently toured 16 dates across the US, supporting indie legends Nada Surf at venues including Webster Hall in New York and The Troubadour in Los Angeles. Their sophomore album is due mid-2026.
ratbag — 23-year-old Sophie Brown is a multi-disciplinary artist whose universe is equal parts alt-pop, punk, shoegaze and new wave, delivered via DIY videos, feral drawings and immersive livestreams. Her music has been described as “everything you’ve ever known, but nothing you’ve ever heard.”
Ringlets — The first New Zealand act announced for The Great Escape 2026, the Auckland post-punk quartet has built a formidable reputation since emerging in 2021. Their 2025 sophomore album The Lord Is My German Shepherd (Time for Walkies), mixed at Abbey Road Studios, earned them a place on the Flying Nun Records roster. Rolling Stone’s Conor Lochrie called them “the most exciting post-punk band to emerge from the New Zealand music scene in years.” Their Australian tour culminated in eight sold-out shows, and they appeared at BIGSOUND, Laneway Festival and Twisted Frequency.
Muroki — The Raglan-based artist, whose platinum single ‘Wavy’ was famously played by Elton John on his Rocket Hour radio show back in 2020, is signed to Benee’s Olive Records label. His Timezones EP featured the Benee collaboration ‘Love Cocoon’, which topped the Triple J playlist, and his most recent singles were written and recorded in sessions in New York and Berlin. He blends his Kenyan and Coromandel roots into a sound strongly tied to Raglan’s sunbaked coastal identity.
New Zealand has previously produced a string of global success stories over decades, including Lorde, Neil Finn, Ladyhawke, Alien Weaponry, The Naked & Famous and Flight of the Conchords. The Patterns showcase represents the most concentrated international showcase the country has yet staged at the festival, and serves as a statement of intent for the next generation of Kiwi talent on the world stage.
Add as a preferred source