HOLLY HUMBERSTONE

What began as the story of a shy girl who timidly peeked through the curtain to see if there was anyone in the audience at all to come and listen to her has turned into a fairy tale filled with sold-out venues, clicks and streams – lots of streams. HOLLY HUMBERSTONE, the girl with the guitar and the winning smile who left Belgium in 2023 after Rock Werchter with a few containers full of captured hearts in her wake, has evolved into a pop queen who has got used to no longer being able to look people in the back row in the eye, because they’re too far away.  What can you expect? When you’ve been the support act for Sam Fender and Taylor Swift, you’re probably no longer overwhelmed by the sight of a packed AB or a Grote Kaai. Like the one in Lokeren, for example, where on Saturday 1 August she’ll have to go head-to-head with a few other formidable ladies from the Low Countries.   It’s no coincidence, incidentally, that Holly is playing live this year; after all, there’s a new album eager to be heard by the world: “Cruel World”.  When we’re wandering around the centre of Lokeren with ‘To Love Somebody’ on endless repeat blaring from our ghetto blaster, a street party promptly breaks out, forcing the police to cordon off the street to keep the chaos somewhat under control. A song for eternity and at least five days longer, quoi.  By the way, have you had a look at the accompanying video yet? We haven’t seen anything quite so gothic since that time we watched Siouxsie Sioux putting on her make-up in our completely darkened backstage area. So Holly’s playing in Lokeren – don’t miss this chance, because the next time you want to see her, it’ll probably be through binoculars, in a stadium the size of the Memorial Van Damme.