Banbridge’s Daniel Duke to play this summer’s Sunflowerfest

Having gotten his start as a busker, Daniel Duke took the The Voice by storm this year with his blind audition of The Proclaimers’ ‘I’m Gonna Be’ winning him three chair turns and a place on Team Tom.

“We are delighted to welcome Daniel Duke to this year’s Sunflowerfest,” said festival organiser Michael Magowan. “Known for our enthusiasm for music of all genres, Daniel will add to the array of music featured at Sunflowerfest which includes musicians and artists from metal and folk to indie, hip hop, reggae, punk and world music genres and offers testament to the amazing home-grown talent we have here in Northern Ireland.”

Sunflowerfest is especially known for its unwavering support of the local music scene in Northern Ireland, where it offers a platform for up-and-coming talent to be seen and heard as well as great opportunities for young musicians to meet and interact with well-known figures from the UK and Ireland’s music scenes.

“Having got its start in our back yard as a small-scale music festival to raise funds for our son’s school charity project, we soon realised that Northern Ireland was lacking in opportunities for young talent to build their followings and be heard by diverse audiences,” added Michael Magowan. “This year our local acts range from those who are just getting off the ground to acts that are on the fast-track to the becoming widely-known across the UK, Ireland, and further afield, to Northern Ireland legends like Henry Cluney of Stiff Little Fingers fame.”

Now in its sixh year, the annual festival held each summer on Tubby’s Farm in Hillsborough, has quickly become a must-attend festival for all things related to music and art and is attended by music lovers from across the UK and Ireland and as far away as Russia, Germany, China and America.

Headline acts scheduled to take to the main stage this year include the eclectic British dub, reggae, techno, folk and rock fusion Dreadzone, who will highlight the main stage on Friday July 31, and politically-charged UK rap rock band Senser, who will grace the main stage on Saturday, August 1.

Always preferring to keep a few surprises up their sleeves, festival organisers will be announcing Sunday’s headline act at the end of May.

A crowd favourite at last year’s Sunflowerfest, this year Waterford’s King Kong Company will have the honour of playing main support to Dreadzone on Friday night. “King Kong Company always brings the house down when they appear at Sunflowerfest,” said Michael Magowan. “We are delighted to welcome them back this year and pay them the respect that they are due as a hugely increasing success over the past couple of years. We promise that guests will not be disappointed by their high-energy performance.”

This year, due to fans’ requests, the popular Silent Disco will also be returning as a well-loved feature of Sunflowerfest, and offers a chance for festivalgoers to throw some shapes and show off their best dance moves after hours.

For more information or to purchase tickets to this year’s Sunflowerfest visit www.facebook.com/SunflowerFest.