This week Øya Festival has received three very nice answers from artists who have been high on their wish list. The sensation DAVE, the man behind the bestseller Psychodrama, is coming to Øya 2020. Not long ago he played a huge concert at a sold-out Park Theater, which shows that there is already a great interest in Norway. In addition comes genre transgressor KAMAAL WILLIAMS and rap favorite MYRA.
 
After a few years of growing interest, DAVID OROBOSA OMOREGIE aka DAVE experienced his big breakthrough in 2018. Funky Friday, the singles collaboration with Fredo, took first place in the UK. In 2019, the same thing happened with the debut album Psychodrama, which also made sure he won the acclaimed Mercury Prize. Several of the songs on the record have been in the top ten in the home country. His success earned him a place in the program at Glastonbury. The young rapper from south London is predicted to be a big name for the coming decade.

DAVE is a popular collaborator and has already managed to get his name on the same releases as Drake, Ed Sheeran, Burna Boy and J Hus. Some have also joined Dave as an actor in the Top Boy series. In the summer on Saturday 15th August you will have the opportunity to experience this sensation live in Tøyenparken.

The multi-talented KAMAAL WILLIAMS is a musician, DJ and producer. He mixes elements from modern hip hop and club music with a look back to 70’s jazz and funk. He played in the band of Katy B, before moving on to other musical projects, including releases under his original name Henry Wu. Like half of the duo Yussuf Kamaal, he received a lot of attention for the album Black Focus (2016).

The solo album The Return (2018) continued the genre mix in a very successful way. Recently, his own contribution to the DJ Kicks series came. On that occasion, it was stated that “Kamaal’s inspired work in the studio and live arena has influenced a whole new generation of like-minded musicians who have helped make London one of the most musically exciting cities in the world”.

With her effortless rapping and playful lyrical style, MYRA (Regina Tucker) has established herself as a strong name in the Norwegian rap flora. It all started when she wanted to post her first song Hold An on SoundCloud, and Leo Ajkic’s statement on social media that “The industry is sleeping but waking up soon”. This led, among other things, to Dagbladet and Bergens Tidende writing in-depth articles about her, and by: Larm immediately secured her for her program. Since then she has played club concerts and major festivals all over Norway. Earlier this year, she released the singles Stylist, and This Is My Name, followed by Homeless In Own City. It is working on the debut album, which will be released in early spring. Then she is back in Tøyenparken, having impressed as a new name two years earlier.

In the next few weeks Øya festival organisers will be filling up their line up with varied music and current artists. Jamaican KOFFEE had to cancel this year’s festival appearance, but immediately promised that she would visit the Tøyenparken in 2020. SIGNE MARIE RUSTAD stands for one of the most beautiful albums of the fall, while DAGNY promises new and exciting music next year. In addition, organisers are looking forward to presenting British band LOS BITCHOS to a Norwegian festival audience.

In a few years DAGNY Norvoll Sandvik from Tromsø has established herself as one of the country’s leading pop artists. The breakthrough came in 2015 with the song Backbeat. In total, this and subsequent singles have over 200 million views on streaming services. DAGNY is a solid live artist and strong songwriter and in 2018, she was nominated for Spellemann for the latter. The same year she had a big hit with Drink About, a collaboration with Seeb. In 2019, she was co-composer on Katy Perry’s hit Never Really Over, which went into the top ten in many countries.

It is on stage that she enjoys the best, which she has shown on tours in the USA and Europe. New music is currently being worked on, and DAGNY promises that 2020 will be an exciting year.

KOFFEE from just outside Kingston is one of the most exciting young artists from Jamaica. Growing up with reggae and dancehall, she is a big fan of Protoje who played on the Island in 2019. It’s been an impressive fast since 20-year-old Mikayla “Koffee” Simpson performed at her own school, so that music fans around the world now follow her with excitement. In 2017, she released her first single Legend, a song about the homeland’s big star Usain Bolt. Since then, she has released an impressive array of varied songs, and an album is on its way. She is now signed to Columbia, which released the EP Rapture in 2018.

Now she plays on ever-larger scenes and this fall she sold out Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London. KOFFEE‘s debut album will be out in the spring of 2020. We do not wonder if she has a significantly larger audience before she comes to Tøyenparken.

After capturing the attention of the ever-growing Norwegian americana audience with the debut album Golden Town (2012), SIGNE MARIE RUSTAD from Elverum created waves with genre-crossing Hearing Colors Seeing Noises (2016).

She brings with her a fantastic merit band, consisting of folk musician and guitarist Annar By, drummer Alexander Lindbäck (The Jayhawks, Roger Græsberg & Foreningen, St. Thomas, etc.); pianist Bjørge Verbaan and bassist Njål Uhre Kiese. The band further enhances Rustad’s songs and brings the poetic dynamics of the records to life on stage.

LOS BITCHOS was formed in London, but includes members from Sweden, Australia and Uruguay. After some simpler recordings, the single Pista (Great Start) was produced by Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand. They followed up with the very catchy The Link Is About To Die. Soon the debut album will be recorded, also in collaboration with Kapranos.

They have shared scenes with artists such as Mac De Marco, Ty Segall, The Black Lips and Kikagaku Moyo. LOS BITCHOS makes wonderful pop songs with clear references to psychedelic rock, surf and Latin rhythms. It is danceable and mood-lifting, or as they themselves have said “instrumental psychedelic sunshine Cumbia”.

KAMARA flew out of the starting blocks in 2019, impressing us time and time again. After convincing at Camp Island, Club Day and the Library, we have no doubt that she had to enter the main program in 2020. Fatuma Kamara was born in Sierra Leone and raised in Bergen. She debuted with the single Call My Name and has contributed to several of Lars Vaular’s new songs.

She mixes RnB and pop in an energetic way, and shows her very own dissatisfaction on stage. We believe she will become many new favorite artist over the next year.

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