Music
Line-up
Reading Between The Line-up: Strawberries & Creem Festival
Festival co-founder Frazer Robinson talks us through the names he's most excited about seeing on his stages this June
Strawberries & Creem is back. Returning to Childerley Orchard between 17-19 June 2022, “the UK’s tastiest festival” signals the real start of summer with some of the biggest names in hip-hop, garage, drum and bass, R&B, Afrobeats and dance music.
2022 marks the biggest coup for the festival yet as Lil Wayne is booked for his first UK show in 14 years – headlining alongside the likes of Ella Mai, Mabel, Tems, Ghetts, Sub Focus, ENNY and Wilkinson.
“The balance is just so perfect this year”, says Frazer Robinson, one of the founders of Strawberries & Creem. “And it’s really tough to get that right, to tailor a line-up throughout all the days and make sure that people aren’t peaking at five o’clock in the afternoon. It’s all about balancing that energy and that mood.
We asked Frazer to pick his own highlights from the Strawberries & Creem line-up and tell us know who he’s most looking forward to seeing this June.
Lil Wayne
“Getting Little Wayne is… quite wild. I grew up listening to Lil Wayne – me and my group of friends from back home used to absolutely rinse Lil Wayne in our cars when we first started driving, so it feels a bit surreal that he’s going to be coming to Cambridge. And coming to the UK for the first time in 14 years too.
“It all came about quite organically as well. When we saw that he got pardoned, we just floated the idea to his team and they took to it really well. We didn’t over exert ourselves, which can often be the case when you try to get someone to play, so there’s a nice feeling about it – the artist wants to be there, their team wants them to be there, and we’re all going to do everything we can to make it a really good show.
“If he plays ‘Drop It Low’… I’ll be very, very excited. It’s not one of his mad popular songs, but it’s a tune from my teenagehood that just means so much to me. That’s the one that makes me think of being back home with my friends again. I’ll have to put in a request! [laughs]”
Sub Focus and Wilkinson
“So I book the drum and bass stage and this year we’ve got Sub Focus and Wilkinson headlining. Nic [Nicolaas Douwmak] and Mark [Wilkinson] are, you know, top of the game really. In terms of drum and bass, their crossover into pop has been pretty mental to watch over the last 10 years. And it’s nice to have them playing for us and playing at the top of the bill on that stage as well. It was originally going to be them back to back but sadly they’re doing that somewhere else but as it’s still nice to just have them both playing to be honest. They’re both gonna be great.”
Tems
“Tems is a Nigerian Afrobeat singer who is just flying up to the stratosphere at the moment. I’ve heard rumours of tunes with Drake and all kinds of other stuff, but she really is just so good, and her songs are fantastic. Such an incredible voice. I only got put onto her about a year and a half ago, but I’m really looking forward to that set. Especially because it’s on the Sunday and it’s a bit more of a chilled vibe, so I think it will be such a nice place to be at her set – being with like-minded people, being in the sun and just having a good time.”
Children Of Zeus
“Children Of Zeus are an absolutely incredible act from Manchester with kind of neo-soul vibes. Tyler Daley’s voice is just amazing. There’s a standout tune from DRS featuring LSB and Tyler Daley called ‘The View’, which was absolutely seminal. I heard that probably six years ago at Outlook festival in Croatia. It was on a boat party, the sun was setting and I just heard Daley’s voice on this track and I was just absolutely taken away. Ever since then I’ve been on a mission to get Children Of Zeus on our main stage.”
Katy B
“Another one from my teenage years! I mean, those tunes from that album. On A Mission?! I think everyone who liked electronic music back then knew the lyrics to those songs and heard them out in the club or out a festival. So yeah, her heading up the Girls Can’t DJ stage with Lisa Maffia… that’s gonna go off.
“That stage was really popular last year and I heard the energy was just so good. I want to try and spend a lot more time there this year so I can witness it firsthand.”
Ella Mai
“I think there was some deliberation between the festivals that she wanted to do, but she ended up picking us, so we’re the only festival that you can see Ella Mai at this year. We’ve we’ve been told about the new music and everything we’ve got to look forward to… I’m not revealing any secrets, but when that music comes out, it will put Ella Mai firmly at the forefront R&B and New Soul. It’s so exciting. But, yeah, I kind of want her to get those tunes out ASAP really, because it’ll be even better if everyone already knows the lyrics at the festival!”
Weekend, day, 2 day, VIP and hospitality tickets are still available for Strawberries & Creem festival here.
