UK Black Pride will be taking over one of London’s most iconic music venues this year for their three-day digital event.
The celebration will be broadcast live from the Roundhouse in Camden between 2-4 July, with a line-up of fierce talent, important conversations, and empowering speeches.
“The Roundhouse has proven to be a wonderful and enthusiastic partner for UK Black Pride, and we are thrilled to have their support in delivering our annual event,” said UK Black Pride co-founder and executive director, Lady Phyll.
“We know so many within the communities we represent have found the pandemic tough and with ‘Freedom Day’ recently postponed we’re so happy we can partner with the Roundhouse to create an incredible experience for our communities.”
Ruth Hawkins, Senior Producer at the Roundhouse, added: “We are super excited to be welcoming UK Black Pride to the Roundhouse.
“UK Black Pride is one of the most important events in the pride calendar, and while we may not be able to come together physically this year it feels more important than ever that we create a digital space that allows us to celebrate all that UK Black Pride and the Roundhouse stand for.”
UK Black Pride is Europe’s largest Pride celebration for LGBTQ+ people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Latin American and Middle Eastern-descent.
This three-day digital celebration will feature special performances from The Cocoa Butter Club, AfroSwagg, Jamaal Monarch, Haus of Melanin, Daniel Molyneaux and Aaron Carty’s The Beyoncé Experience.
There will be roof-raising DJ sets from the likes of DJ Biggie C, Toya Delazey, Mark-Ashley Dupé and Basmati throughout the weekend.
Also on the line-up is a live recording of the podcast Busy Being Black with special guest Ted Brown, a movement workshop from Lululemon over on the wellbeing stage alongside conversations on mental and emotional health, as well as a discussion around the ongoing impact of COVID-19, loneliness and isolation on older LGBTQ+ people hosted by Opening Doors London.
The theme for this year’s UK Black Pride is Love and Rage to acknowledge the difficult 12 months for so many people within ethnic minority communities.
“What we’ve seen firsthand over the past year is our communities’ persistent commitment to each other,” a press release for UK Black Pride 2021 read earlier this year.
“Our 2021 theme recognises the ways we continue to show what it means to love, to love hard and to love against the odds, and claps back against the many ways we are told who we are allowed to be, and how to grieve, love and rage.
“In the face of systemic erasure and institutional racism, we will not be quiet. We will be heard, and we will be loud.”
UK Black Pride will not be open to the general public at the Roundhouse, but you can join the celebrations by streaming the event live across the weekend at ukblackpride.org.uk.
Last year’s digital UK Black Pride celebrations were streamed out to more than 30,000 people and featured a number of community figures, famous faces and creative talent.