'Sheftival' is set to be the biggest outdoor experience of music, culture and sport in celebration of the Olympics. It's all taking place at the Don Valley Complex in Sheffield this weekend.
Spreading itself nicely across 25 acres, there'll be eight stages, over 1,000 performers, 25 sports, three markets, a huge fairground, a variety of food stalls, twelve bars, a giant bungee and for you sporty lot there's two free gyms.
A week on from the marvelous opening ceremony that got the whole country feeling proud to be British and in the mood to watch the Games, it seems perfect timing for Sheftival to come along. More than 50,000 people are expected to come to the city over the weekend.
This weekend Don Valley Bowl will become the home of the Tramlines Arena featuring a colourful collection of music with a brilliant pop concert planned by Real Radio; world music on the JuJu Club Stage; acoustic sets on the Busker's Barge and the Sharrow Family Village where children can make their own costumes for a carnival on the Sunday.
The line-up includes the legends of reggae, Toots and the Maytals, The Lightning Seeds, Dodgy, Stooshe, Lemar, Noisettes, Misha B, Marcus Collins, Joe McElderry and Ryan O'Shaughnessy.
I'll secretly be singing the words to Lemar (yes, I bought his debut album) and cannot wait to see Sheffield pop band The Crookes.
If you enjoyed Tramlines and discovered new bands – don't worry - there'll be plenty of homegrown musical talent to catch over the two days.
Aside from the music, you can get fit and healthy while you're there. The English Institute of Sport Sheffield will be the base for South Yorkshire's biggest ever sports participation event. Two pop-up boxing rings and crazy golf will feature among have-a-go sessions in sports with Sheffield Eagles rugby league, athletics, basketball, wheelchair basketball, Futsal, British judo, taekwondo, table tennis, Zumba, dancing, climbing, gymnastics and a lot more.
Welcoming Olympic squads to compete against each other, the Sheftival of Sport continues into the Don Valley Stadium with even more sports and activities taking place on the pitch. You can even watch the Olympic Games on a huge screen.
In it's first year, Sheftival will echo the mood of the nation while the Olympic Games are on and will hopefully welcome for more sunshine to the city.
Oh and it's only about ten quid. Pretty good, right?
Here's an interactive poster and a few of my recommendations, along with links to listen to, watch and read about, of the amazing music you'll be able to catch at Sheftival from Saturday 4th August to Sunday 5th August.
Buskers Barge
The Busker's Barge is a groundbreaking floating stage that will take people on a forty minute ride up Sheffield's historic canals with live performances from a variety of acts from Sheffield and beyond. There are too many to mention but keep up to date by following @BandsOnTheMove on Twitter. They're may even be last minute surprises.
Toots and the Maytals – JuJu Club Stage – Saturday 8pm
You must see Toots and the Maytals this weekend. I've been humming '54-46 (That's My Number) all week. It takes me back to the Shane Meadows' film, This is England, where the song features. The Jamaican musical group is best known for their ska and reggae sound. They were key figures in the start of reggae music and their frontman Toots Hibbert is pretty cool too. So definitely worth catching.
The Crookes – Tramlines Arena (Don Valley Bowl) – Sunday 6.30pm
One of the best bands to come out of Sheffield in recent years is the pop group The Crookes.
They impressed everybody at Tramlines Festival a couple of weeks ago playing in the hottest venue ever known to man (The Shakespeare) and embracing the Busker's Bus. This weekend they'll be enjoying some fresh air and playing some great guitar pop music.
In Fear Of Olive - The Jetty Side Chill-Out – Sunday 1:30pm
This new and emerging band are making an eclectic mix of music in South Yorkshire by pulling sounds from rock and roll, folk and even throwing some indie in there. Their songs will be great for the festival stage and they'll be sure to get the crowd going. I'm a fan of their name too because I hate olives. One of their videos also includes a great Sheffield shop called Rare and Racy. So you've got to like these guys. They're also hopping onto the Busker's Barge.
See Emily Play – The Jetty Side Chill-Out – Sunday 7.30pm
Emily Ireland is one of the best live performers I've seen in a long time. Those who saw her at Tramlines will surely agree. This time she'll be there without the Sheffield Chamber Orchestra but her powerful voice and dark lyrics will captivate the audience as they relax and enjoy her amazing songs.
Alvarez Kings – Buskers Barge
Sheffield's Alvarez Kings are a must see. Their energetic progressive pop sound will get everyone dancing. They blend catchy guitar riffs and distinctive vocals together to produce a full sound that will make an audience stop and listen. They could be the next band to break out of the city, so catch them while you can.
Sour Cherry – Tramlines Arena (Don Valley Bowl) – Saturday – 12.20pm
Want to see some bubblegum-tastic pop this weekend? Then Sour Cherry will definitely give you that. Fronted by Kortni Turner, the group started out in Sheffield two years ago. Taking to the stage together in April 2011 they've been growing from strength to strength. Kortni is a comical lyricist. She writes songs about young love, unreliable boys, Cherry Lambrini and even throws in references to Charles Dickens and Sweeney Todd. Intrigued? Go see for yourself.
Dodgy - Tramlines Arena (Don Valley Bowl) at 7.30pm on Sunday
No doubt when Dodgy http://www.dodgyology.com/ perform at Sheftival everyone will be joining in for those infamous lyrics: 'Staying Out For The Summer'. There couldn't be a more appropriate song to sing this weekend.
The power-pop trio was together for 7 years and sold over a million records worldwide. They reformed in 2008 and have returned to selling out venues across the UK.
They'll also be treating us to a special intimate performance on board the Busker's Barge, leaving the jetty at 3pm on the Sunday.
Oxo Foxo – Buskers Barge
This girl dresses like a fox – so there's already a reason to go and see her perform live. But another reason is her ability to pick up her guitar and sing pretty much any song you like. On board the Busker's Bus at Tramlines Festival she performed a whole array of Disney classics for all passengers to enjoy. So this weekend it's great to see she'll be on the Busker's Barge, which is very similar to the bus, only this time it's on water. Hopefully you'll get to hear her original songs because she's got a beautiful voice.
Here's the Spotify playlist:
Emily Brinnand is a freelance multimedia journalist, producer and broadcaster. She's on Facebook here, Twitter here and About Me here.
