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If you’re an emerging musician looking for a platform, Fête de la Musique wants to hear from you.
The long-running free festival, now in its 15th year, has officially opened applications for its 2026 Johannesburg and Pretoria editions, giving musicians, bands, DJs and poets the chance to perform at one of the city’s most reliable showcases for new talent.
The Johannesburg edition takes place at Victoria Yards on Saturday, June 20, following Pretoria on June 13 as part of the wider national programme.
In a city with no shortage of gigs, it continues to stand out by doing something refreshingly simple: backing emerging artists, keeping things accessible and giving audiences a genuine shot at discovering what’s next.
Connected to new sounds across South Africa
For Aysha Waja of the French Institute of South Africa, that’s exactly why the festival has lasted. “The main aim of Fête de la Musique in South Africa is to support emerging South African musicians,” she says. “It keeps us connected to fresh talent and new sounds across South Africa.”
“By staying true to this approach, we’re able to reflect the incredible talent that young South Africans have,” says Waja. “It’s why Fête de la Musique is still such an important festival and remains such a significant highlight in the JHB cultural calendar.”
As the festival expands across Johannesburg, Pretoria, and Cape Town, its inaugural Cape Town edition takes place on 29 March. IFAS is making its free, open model available to more people.
“Having a national footprint enables IFAS to expand the free music for all concept,” she says, “which supports the broader music ecosystem. Not only are we supporting more musicians, but growing the audience and appetite for South African music.”
Through partnerships in each city, she adds, the festival can now “offer the festival experience for free to more South Africans of any age and background.”
Championing meaningful exposure
Bassline, which co-produces the event, sees it in much the same way.
“Fête de la Musique aligns very naturally with what Bassline has stood for over the past 32 years, creating platforms for live music and supporting artists at every stage of their journey,” Brad Holmes, co-founder of Bassline, says. More than that, he sees it as part of a bigger ecosystem, one that connects Johannesburg to an international circuit while also building local capacity through initiatives like the Live Music Lab.
For artists at an early or mid-stage of their careers, a decent slot on stage isn’t always enough, Holmes explains. “What artists need most is not just exposure, but meaningful exposure, the kind that leads to opportunities beyond a single performance.”
In other words, the real value lies in context: the right audience, the right industry people, the right energy, and the kind of platform that can actually move the needle.
It’s also why the festival doesn’t feel like a standard showcase. “Audiences aren’t just attending a show,” he says. “They’re exploring a curated musical journey across multiple stages, genres, and cultural expressions.”
In Joburg, where people are spoiled for choice and often sceptical of overhyped events, that still sounds like a pretty good proposition.
The essentials
For artists keen to apply, the deadline is April 14, though applications may close earlier if 300 submissions have been reached. Selected acts will need to be available for compulsory workshops in Johannesburg on June 18 and 19, and be ready to perform a 45-minute live set in a public-facing festival environment.
Waja’s advice is simple: “Be authentic, show us your best work and most importantly, pay attention to the application requirements and ensure that you have submitted what has been requested.”
To apply, artists must complete the application form and send a WeTransfer file with the required materials to fetedelamusiquejoburg@gmail.com.
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