When I was spending some downtime around my tent at , somebody close by commented that this is the festival for The Guardian readership… and it made me giggle. Mixed in age – with plenty of children and young families running around – We Out Here is infinitely liberal and relaxed, with a nice inclusive edge to it. The festival caters to every single need and proves to be a viable alternative to a summer that has missed a Glastonbury festival. The variation in activities on offer ranges from a football pitch all the way to hot tubbing.
The -founded festival is now out of its infancy, celebrating its seventh year of running. The music features a multitude of genres spanning from jazz, funk and UK Funky all the way to Bollywood disco in the Roller Rink, where Brown Excellence performed to great applause.
This is a festival that has a nice mix of live and electronic music. At almost any time of day, you can alternate between the two. At night however, electronic music goes on until 4am on the Friday and Saturday nights, finishing slightly earlier at 12pm on the first and final nights.
The location for the event is the St Giles House estate in Wimborne. Besides housing a lovely manor house, the grounds also have a lake that was perfect for a morning swim or paddleboarding.
There were multiple stages, including The Bowl, a circular amphitheatre where artists performed on a slight hill. Rhythm Corner, a giant outdoor space dotted with hay bales and The Grove, a corner spot complete with wooden arches.
Of course, there was the Main Stage, where highlights of mine included the legendary , who performed their Grammy-winning single ‘Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat)’ to the delight of many fans on the opening Thursday night. CLASH caught the seminal crew offstage, with Butterfly reflecting of their communal creativity: “Each person has their own style and their own idiosyncrasies, so it’s an opportunity to showcase individualities within a group.”
“I don’t think we knew anything,” Ladybug Mecca said of their early days. “We were just focused on what we had created; we weren’t thinking about those particular labels like gangster rap and jazz rap. We were just doing what we loved.”
Another highlight on the Main Stage was , who played on Friday night and was met with the entire crowd singing his songs ‘Them Changes’ and ‘Funny Thing’. Thundercat made a touching tribute to his close friend, the late .
“I was always told by my parents to be yourself and explore what that means to you,” he told CLASH later in the weekend. Reflecting on his passion for jazz – a through-thread at We Out Here – he added: “The minute that it touches your heart and your emotions, you can’t unsee it. And there’s some music that I genuinely felt touched by. You know… you hear music, and you get emotional.”
Other highlights included who packed out The Bowl as a mega crowd attended their single turntable set, bringing dub reggae vibrations to the eclectic weekender.
A personal highlight for me was the Beat Hotel and the drinks provided by l; we were fortunate enough to attend a drink tasting where mixologists walked us through the history of the incredible company, which was founded by .
Standout DJ sets included , whose sets famously continue for hours. My personal favourite set was and , who went B2B at The Bowl. The quality of their mixing was on full display as they alternated between UK Funky and tech house – at one point they even pulled out Mariah Carey’s ‘We Belong Together’, which provided a moment for the crowd to sing along in unison.
We Out Here presents a fantastic weekend with a huge amount of variety – we’re already looking forward to 2027.