BBC Radio 1’s Big weekend will be coming to Hackney next summer to coincide with the run up to the Olympics.
Among the acts already confirmed on the lineup are Leona Lewis and Plan B, who both grew up in the area.
Also representing Hackney are Olympic triple jumper Phillips Idowu and Radio 1 DJ Trevor Nelson. The pair have been named as ambassadors for the event at Hackney Marshes.
BBC Radio 1’s Hackney Weekend 2012 will run from 23-24 June. It is set to feature six stages of live music and will entertain up to 100,000 visitors.
The tickets will be available to the public and the majority of these are going to be handed to residents of Hackney and its surrounding boroughs.
BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra Controller Andy Parfitt said:
This is the most ambitious event in the station’s 44 year history. We aim to enhance the overall London 2012 summer with a celebratory event aimed specifically at the thousands of young people who live in the boroughs directly surrounding the Olympic Park.
The festival is being organized in partnership with Hackney Council as part of the London 2012 festival, which aims to celebrate British art and culture in the run up to the Olympic games.
Further acts for the festival’s line-up will be announced over the coming months.
Two tickets for free music festival