Australian singer Vance Joy headlines first night of 2024 Vida music festival

Australian singer-songwriter Vance Joy headlines the Vida music festival on Thursday, the first night of the event, which takes place in the seaside town of Vilanova i la Geltrú, a 30-minute drive south of Barcelona.

During the first night of the event, there were several Catalan female singers, such as Julieta, Meritxell Neddermann, and Clara Peya, who did the opening act accompanied by Sílvia Pérez Cruz, who will be performing on Friday evening.

The music festival celebrates its 10th anniversary with "the most complete lineup of its history," as organizers explained that they formed the lineup in a "singular, sustainable, decentralized and with a financial responsibility." Their motto this year is '10th revolution.'

This year, aside from Vance Joy, there will be English singer M.I.A. on Saturday, as well as James Blake or Ride (Friday). One of the first to perform after "being awake since 4 am in the morning and flying directly from London," were London duo Dolores Forever featuring the two friends Hannah Wilson and Julia Fabrin.

Even though there was not a large audience as the gig started at 6:15 pm, few minutes after doors opened, the around 200 spectators enjoyed all the songs of the not-at-all exhausted duo that woke up very early in the morning.

Joy, who spoke with Catalan News, one hour before his gig started, said that this concert was “exciting” even though he has not “played a concert since September last year, because I became a father about five months ago,” he said.

”I am more nervous than usual but I am excited as well, as this is a special festival so it will be great,” Joy told this media outlet as he will be singing “to friends that came to the Vida Festival,” but he recognizes it “adds more pressure because you are playing to your friends.”

The concert started with ‘Missing Piece,’ and he said at the finish of the song: ‘Es chulísimo estar aquí!’ Which was followed by ‘Mess is Mine,’ and one of his most famous songs: ‘Like Gold.’

Joy performed in front of thousands, as organizers expected 10,000 attendees on the first night. The gig also had songs to the likes of: ‘Red Eye,’ ‘Wasted Time,’ or even ‘Clarity,’ one of his most recent songs from his latest album: ‘In Our Own Sweet Time.’

One of the most awaited songs from Vance Joy during the gig was ‘Catalonia’ a song that he “never really had an intention of: ‘I am going to write a song about Catalonia,’ but I am glad that we wrote the song, as I have a lot of memories here, and a lot of good memories, it is a tribute to this place, it is a special place,” he said to this media outlet before the gig.

The concert ended with ‘Riptide,’ his most famous song from his first album released in 2014, ‘Dream Your Life Away.’ He, as Vida Festival, is celebrating his 10th anniversary since his first EP was released.

“It does not feel that like long, I think I am pretty much the same, and I had no idea about the music industry, I went on a rollercoaster because Riptide became a popular song around the world, I was like on a rocket, learn as you go, now I am a bit more relaxed,” he told Catalan News.

Living in Barcelona for four years

Joy has already performed in Catalonia in the past. In fact, he wrote a song named 'Catalonia', which has a video recorded mostly on beaches in Costa Brava.

"I did not want the song's video to be cheesy or I did not want people from here to think: are you trying to tell our story?" Vance Joy told Catalan News back then. "I was lucky to work with some really talented filmmakers," he added back then.

Despite living here for four years, he is “nervous to speak Castellano” but he is aware that he must learn “chulisimo.”

Regarding his future, “I am doing it slowly, I have written one or two songs, not even they just came along, but I am enjoying my early retirement, so every four years, I have an album, so maybe I have two more years and then it is time,” he added.

Among the most different touches of the Vida Festival, organizers point out Sid Siriam, an Indian artist who mixes soul and sounds from their home country. As well as Madrid's duo Pipiolas, French Crystal Murray, or Catalan raper BOYE.

Ten years of celebration

The Vida Festival director, Dani Poveda, highlighted all their hard work during the first decade of the festival and ensures that after so many years of hard work, they have now the "reward," he told the Catalan News Agency (ACN) minutes after the first guests arrived at the event.

"We now see the smiles of our attendees, a loyal public that buys the tickets as soon as the year's edition of the festival is over without knowing what will be next year's line up," he added, one of the plans for the organizers is to continue using their motto 'This is not a festival.'

One of the main elements of Vida Festival is the amount of new artists that "balance" the main international singers, one of them was back in 2017, Rosalía before she became an international pop star. 

Around the festival-goers there are many of different ages, such as 11-year-old Queralt, and her father Xavier, who both came from Granollers, just north of Barcelona. This is the first music festival for Queralt, who is a huge fan of Vance Joy.

Among other guests, there was Carla, from Vilanova i la Geltrú, who had worked in the festival for five years, and now she enjoys the music as another spectator. She is one of the many that bought the tickets months ago before the line-up was even unveiled.