WOMADelaide @ Botanic Park, Adelaide 9/3/2026

The final day of Womadelaide 2026 was another incredible day, blessed with fantastic weather and some brilliant musical acts. I am a punter who mainly concentrates on the musical acts and carefully plans what I go to see. This year, I had more friends and cousins joining me, which made the experience even more enjoyable. Over the four days, the temperature hovered around twenty seven degrees, which was considerably more comfortable than the intense heat of previous years.

For me, there has never been a year when the band selection at Womadelaide has been anything less than immaculate. The festival has an incredible knack for choosing the right mix of old favourites and magnificent new acts, and I have come to trust their programming completely.

The first act I saw today was Annie & the Caldwells, performing directly from their Mississippi church roots on the Foundation Stage at Womadelaide. Annie’s career has spanned forty years, yet she only recently received a proper recording contract after she and her family released their 2025 album on David Byrne’s record label, following his discovery of their music and his strong interest in them. They play joyful gospel music that makes you want to move along with the rhythm, and they brought a wonderful charm to the stage. The band is led by Annie and backed by her husband, Willie Caldwell Sr., on guitar; their sons Willie Jr. on bass and Abel Aquirius on drums; and their daughters Anjessica and Deborah, along with their goddaughter Toni, on backing vocals.

Annie’s voice reminds me somewhat of Sia, with its controlled cracking and rasping quality while remaining perfectly pitched. The opening song, Wrong, had a wonderful rhythm that immediately drew me into the performance. The screen behind the band showed photos and videos from throughout their career. My highlight was the album’s title track, Can’t Lose My (Soul), a ten-minute epic that begins with bass guitar and organ before slowly and hypnotically building momentum through call-and-response vocals between Annie and her daughters. It was incredibly smooth and a great way to start the day.

Next up was Obongjayar on Stage 2, who was nothing short of a revelation. I had been looking forward to seeing him for a few years, and he certainly did not disappoint. Due to current international flight issues, some acts at Womadelaide this year were able to perform multiple days because other artists could not reach Adelaide in time. I had seen Obongjayar the previous night and was so impressed that I had to see him again.

He is a Nigerian singer based in London who released his first album in 2022 and his second, Paradise Now, in 2025, which formed the majority of his set. His style is difficult to categorise, blending elements of soul, rap, indie, and electronic music. His stage energy was unparalleled—he barely stopped moving, constantly circling the stage throughout the entire performance. He also had a playful rapport with his band, consisting of trumpet, drums, bass, and guitar, and they were incredibly tight musically.

Obongjayar encouraged extensive crowd participation, frequently asking the Womadelaide audience to sing along. Every song sounded fantastic, but my favourites were Born in This Body, with its irresistibly catchy chorus, and the breezy West African groove of Holy Mountain. I was especially pleased that he performed six different songs compared with the previous night’s set. I would see Obongjayar again in Adelaide in a heartbeat.

After a short rest, I saw Annahstasia from Los Angeles on Stage 3. Like Obongjayar, she had also performed on Sunday and was given another set on Monday. I do not usually see acts twice at Womadelaide, as I prefer to discover something new, but both Obongjayar and Annahstasia were so extraordinary that I decided to bend my rule. I was also keen to hear Annahstasia without the distraction of the bats that had been present during her Stage 7 performance.

On recommendation, I listened to her extraordinary 2025 album Tether and was thrilled when she was announced for Womadelaide. Annahstasia sings and plays guitar, and throughout the entire set, the audience was entranced—quiet and respectful except for enthusiastic applause after each song. She possesses a spectacularly beautiful voice that is deep and raspy. Interestingly, when she was younger she was removed from her choir because her voice was too deep and stood out over the others.

The songs I loved most included the short but punchy Silk and Velvet, which offers a mature reflection on the music industry, and Slow, which she sings on the album with Obongjayar—although sadly, he did not join her on stage for it today. She also performed several wonderful unreleased tracks, including Garden, about our troubled relationship with the earth, and Open Door and Passing Strange, which I eagerly await hearing again when they are released.

Next on the main stage was Orange Blossom from France, who perform a blend of Middle Eastern and electro-world music with songs sung in Arabic. Formed in 1993, they have gone through several lineup changes over the years. I was very impressed by their style, especially the singing of Maria Hassan and the manic violin playing of Pierre-Jean Chabot, which pushed the songs into exhilarating dance territory. My favourite tracks were the opening song Ya Sidi, which blended snippets of Clint Mansell’s Lux Aeterna into their performance, and Mawj from their latest album.

On Stage 2 was Fantastic Negrito, whom I last saw at Womadelaide in 2023 and who remains enormously fun to watch. He and his band deliver a powerful blend of blues, soul, and funk with gritty vocals and extended jams. He performed I Hope Somebody’s Loving You from his latest album Son of a Broken Man, which was a beautiful soul ballad. I also loved the funky keyboards on Working Poor, from an album released ten years ago, a song that addresses wage disparity. An extended version of In the Pines, with newly adapted lyrics, was a blues masterpiece. He finished with two of my favourites, Chocolate Samurai and Plastic Hamburgers.

Next on the main stage was Marlon Williams from New Zealand, whom I have been lucky enough to see several times over the years. Marlon performs folk, alt-country, and rock and roll with his superb backing band, the Yarra Benders. Last year, he released his fourth album, Te Whare Tīwekaweka, his first album sung entirely in te reo Māori. Although he has not spoken the language all his life, he has been singing in it and spent five years working on this deeply personal album exploring his Māori heritage and language.

At the Adelaide Film Festival last year, I was also fortunate to see a film about his career and the making of this album. For this concert, he performed many songs from the new record alongside key tracks from his previous albums. Among my favourites from his earlier work were Don’t Go Back, his catchiest song, and Party Boy, which share similar themes. He also performed Nobody Gets What They Want Anymore, which, with its tender delivery, explores the aftermath of a real-life breakup.

At one point, Marlon performed the beautiful Kāhore He Manu E solo on piano. This is my favourite song from his latest album, perhaps because Lorde sings it with him on the recording. For the next song, Huri Te Whenua, Marlon and the Yarra Benders were joined by the Māori performing arts group Ngā Mātai Pūrua. They remained on stage for the rest of the concert, adding beautiful harmonies as well as traditional dance. Their presence added a ceremonial gravity to the performance. They performed many wonderful songs from the latest album as well as the traditional song Ngoi Ngoi, finishing with the incredible Pōkarekare Ana, a love song sung by New Zealand soldiers during World War I.

Next up was the Canadian band BadBadNotGood, an instrumental group that is difficult to categorise. They combine jazz musicianship with hip-hop influences and have collaborated with an incredible array of artists over the years. Very popular within the indie music scene, they are currently touring the world celebrating their fifteen-year career. The huge crowd at Stage 2 danced throughout the entire hour.

Highlights for me included their cover and reinvention of J Dilla’s track Rico Suave, which became a phenomenal Brazilian-style jam. They also performed Setima Regra from their latest epic album, a track with a wonderful groove that really showcased the keyboards, flute, and trumpet. They finished with Lavender, the most psychedelic piece of the set, and promised to return soon.

Finally, the last act on the main stage was Arrested Development, the famous hip-hop group from Atlanta. They released their debut Grammy-winning album in 1992, 3 Years, 5 Months and 2 Days in the Life Of…, which was the first hip-hop album I ever purchased. It still holds up remarkably well today, and they performed most of it for us tonight.

Their style of hip-hop focuses more on catchy choruses and clever raps, contrasting with the gangsta rap style that was prominent at the time. Led by Speech and backed by a full live band, they delivered a vibrant showcase performance to close Womadelaide 2026. Crowd participation was constant, and the band radiated positivity.

An early favourite for me was the super-groovy Ease My Mind from their Zingalamaduni album, a classic nostalgic hip-hop track. Their medley of covers—Jump by Kris Kross and Jump Around by House of Pain—was enormous fun. The crowd and I were thrilled to hear Mr Wendal and Tennessee, but everyone’s favourite final song was the uplifting People Everyday, which provided the perfect ending to Womadelaide 2026.

As I left the festival, I felt both sadness that it was over and happiness knowing that the event had already locked in dates through to 2029.

WOMAD Review By Richard De Pizzol