Ms. Lauryn Hill’s Diaspora Calling! festival adds Erykah Badu, Giggs, Fireboy DML, plus Dave Chappelle as host

The newly announced acts join a bill built around Hill’s only confirmed UK performance of 2026. She will reunite with Wyclef Jean to perform The Fugees’ The Score in full, marking the album’s 30th anniversary, and will be joined by her sons YG Marley and Zion Marley. The completed programme spans soul, UK rap, Afrobeats and comedy, reflecting the event’s founding ethos as a celebration of the African diaspora’s creative breadth.

Erykah Badu’s addition brings one of neo-soul’s defining voices to the Bowl. UK rap pioneer Giggs, whose weighty, deliberate flow helped redraw the possibilities of British hip-hop, further roots the bill in homegrown legacy. Nigerian star Fireboy DML extends the festival’s global reach, arriving as one of the most visible artists in the contemporary Afrobeats wave.

Chappelle, meanwhile, will steer the day as host. The comedian and commentator’s involvement, the organisers note, aligns with Diaspora Calling!’s wider interest in dialogue and shared cultural experience rather than straightforward performance. The latter may draw raised eyebrows from many, though, given Chappelle has been criticised for transphobic, ableist, and homophobic jokes in the past, calling LGBTQ+ people "transgender lunatics" among other comments.

Ms. Lauryn Hill first launched Diaspora Calling! in 2016 as a music and arts platform, debuting it with an exhibition and live show in Brooklyn. The project has since moved through various formats while holding onto its focus on artistic expression and exchange across diaspora communities. This summer’s staging marks its first full-scale UK outing, offering a single main stage plus a food village at one of the country’s largest outdoor venues.