Free music festival comes to St James Quarter featuring bands, buskers and rising star rapper

The capital will see a unique addition to this year’s Fringe programme with a new, month-long music festival at the St James Quarter, featuring emerging talent from local bands to buskers and a hotly tipped Scots rapper.

St James Quarter Sessions will include more than 30 free events and runs from the 5th to the 27th of August across two main stages on Level 4 and Level 3, as well as in restaurants at the centre.

Artists in the lineup include the acclaimed Chef The Rapper, Edinburgh band Lubana, SHEARS, Russell Stewart, Fright Years and Lewis McLaughlin. As well as established artists, the festival will give a platform to dozens of buskers taking part in the Fringe Street Events programme with the support of Essential Edinburgh.

Eateries Gordon Ramsay Street Burger and Bonnie & Wild will also host free, ticketed events showcasing artists including Amy Duncan, Brodie Barclay, Alice Faye and more. The festival will also see a secret gig on the programme. Sofar Sounds will be coming to an undisclosed location within The Quarter on Sunday 20th August at 6:00pm with three artists on the bill.

To mark the launch of the programme an event will be held at Everyman Edinburgh on Friday 4th August, featuring performances from dynamic rock duo Midnight Ambulance and Chef The Rapper, who has been dubbed a ‘rising star’ in the industry.

Susan Hewlett, Brand and Marketing Director, St James Quarter – “We are excited to be bringing such a diverse line-up of amazing music performers to this year’s festival, the ‘St James Quarter Sessions’ will offer our guests an undercover musical experience in luxurious surroundings.

“We are thrilled to be collaborating with Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society again after such a great 2022 and are delighted to be supported by Essential Edinburgh. Partnering with the Fringe goes beyond entertainment, as it is an incentive for tourism and a boost for the city of Edinburgh.

“At St James Quarter, we love bringing entertainment to elevate guests shopping experiences, which is why we are delighted to welcome some of the best up-and-coming talent that Edinburgh has to offer and bringing some of that renowned festival atmosphere to our Galleria and eateries.”

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