Australia’s most diverse and globally celebrated music and arts festival, WOMADelaide, has revealed the first 49 artists for its 2026 edition, promising a journey across continents, cultures and sounds. Returning to Adelaide’s Botanic Park/Tainmuntilla from 6 to 9 March 2026, the festival’s 29th year will once again transform the city into a melting pot of rhythm, art and discovery.
Since its inception in 1992, WOMADelaide, part of the global World Of Music, Arts & Dance movement founded by Peter Gabriel in the 1980s, has evolved into one of Australia’s premier cultural events. Each year, the festival brings together artists from around the globe, spanning everything from traditional folk and global fusion to contemporary jazz, electronic innovation and world dance.
The 2026 lineup showcases the festival’s trademark diversity, uniting over 30 nations on one stage. Iconic Australian band Yothu Yindi will headline, celebrating 35 years since their landmark album Tribal Voice, which produced the timeless anthem Treaty. Their performance marks a powerful return for one of Australia’s most influential musical and cultural forces.
Among the international highlights, Nigerian-born, London-based Obongjayar will deliver his distinctive blend of Afro-funk and experimental soul. New Zealand’s Marlon Williams will appear with traditional Māori Kapa Haka group Ngā Mātai Pūrua, while Indian-American artist Ganavya will bring her fusion of spiritual jazz and South Asian classical music to the WOMAD stage.
WOMADelaide has always shone a light on First Nations talent, and 2026 will feature Kankawa Nagarra, the revered 82-year-old gospel singer from the Kimberleys.
Palestinian electronic pioneer Sama’ Abdulhadi will make her long-awaited return after seven years, joining Cuban pianist Roberto Fonseca, formerly of the legendary Buena Vista Social Club, and rising American soul sensation Jalen Ngonda, fresh from his 2025 Glastonbury set.
European influences will also run deep, from the Scandinavian vocal group Åkervinda to the French collective Orange Blossom and Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s groundbreaking dance work Rosas Danst Rosas. WOMADelaide will also host its first-ever Bhutanese performers, the Bhutan Balladeers, representing a milestone in the festival’s expanding reach.
The 2026 program extends beyond music, as always, with performance art, circus, food and environmental engagement all part of the WOMADelaide experience. Festival-goers can look forward to Cie Hors Surface’s gravity-defying dance-circus acts, the creative hair and makeup installations of Spain’s Osadía, and the deeply moving data-driven performance piece Of All The People In All The World by the UK’s Stan’s Café, which uses rice grains to represent global population statistics.
Australian troupe Born In A Taxi will roam the park with five original shows, while long-time favourites like Taste The World, The WoMarkets, KidZone, and The Planet Talks will return, alongside fine dining at The Sanctuary Restaurant in the Adelaide Zoo.
WOMADelaide Director Ian Scobie said the 2026 event encapsulates everything that makes the festival unique, “Few festivals in the world are able to showcase the breadth and diversity of music, arts and dance from across the globe, especially on such a large scale, while appealing to audiences of all ages and tastes. WOMADelaide is a glorious opportunity to discover new sounds that are soon to be favourites and embrace artists you love.”
South Australian Minister for Tourism Zoe Bettison praised the festival’s cultural and economic impact, calling it, “One of the most popular and revered festivals in the country, loved not only by South Australians but people from all over the world. It highlights world-class artists and a full festival experience, while attracting visitors to the state, and filling hotel rooms and restaurants.”
The first announcement also includes Baker Boy, Iron & Wine, Beoga and Mantis, alongside global acts such as Troy Cassar-Daley, Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek, The Zawose Queens, Alogte Oho & His Sounds Of Joy, La Perla, and Džambo Aguševi Orchestra.
As The Australian once declared, “There is really nothing else like it anywhere on the planet.” WOMADelaide continues to stand as a vibrant symbol of connection, art and humanity. 2026 is once again set to be an unmissable celebration of the world’s sounds.
WOMADelaide 2026 – Full Artist Announcement (30 October 2025)
Åkervinda (Sweden)
Alogte Oho & His Sounds Of Joy (Ghana)
Annahstasia (USA)
Any Young Mechanic (AUS)
Ashkan Shafiei (Iran/AUS)
Asmâa Hamzaoui & Bnat Timbouktou (Morocco)
Australian Art Orchestra with Kojoe & Hikaru Tanaka – Raw Denshi (Japan/AUS)
Baker Boy (AUS)
Balaganesan & Bageswari (India)
BARKAA (AUS)
Beoga (Ireland)
Bhutan Balladeers (Bhutan)
Blinky Bill (Kenya)
Bobby Alu (Samoa/AUS)
Born In A Taxi – Higher Order, Illuminati, Please Wait Here, Sleep Keepers & Zebras (AUS)
BVT (Philippines/AUS)
Chloe Loftus Dance – The Air Between Us (NZ/Belgium)
Cie Hors Surface – Le Poids Des Nuages & HOME, Damien Droin (France)
Crazy P (DJ Set) (UK)
Daughters Of Donbas (Ukraine/Canada)
Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek (Turkiye)
Džambo Aguševi Orchestra (Macedonia)
Ganavya (India/USA)
GANNA (Ukraine)
Iron & Wine (USA)
Jalen Ngonda (USA/UK)
Jyoty (UK)
Kankawa Nagarra (AUS)
La Perla (Colombia)
The Lazy Eyes (AUS)
Lewis Major Projects – Triptych REDUX (AUS)
MĀ (NZ)
Mantis (Vanuatu)
Marlon Williams (NZ)
Maryam Rahmani (Iran/AUS)
My Chérie (South Africa/AUS)
Nattali Rize (AUS/Jamaica)
Obongjayar (Nigeria/UK)
Orange Blossom (France)
Osadía (Spain)
Roberto Fonseca (Cuba)
Rosas – Rosas Danst Rosas, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker (Belgium)
Sama’ Abdulhadi (Palestine)
Stan’s Café – Of All The People In All The World & The Commentators (UK)
Troy Cassar-Daley (AUS)
Xylourides (Greece)
Yothu Yindi (AUS)
Yuka Okazaki (Japan/France)
The Zawose Queens (Tanzania)
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