The first thing that hits you when arriving at the bucolic Bois de Vincennes, the biggest wooded area on the outskirts of Paris, is the overwhelming sight of bright brat green outfits, popping out from in between the trees: if we didn’t already know it, most of the 40,000 attendees showed up on the Saturday for Charli xcx’s only concert in France of the year. The dominating colour is a fitting accompanying aesthetic for We Love Green’s motto: for the past 15 years, it has prided itself on being one of the most sustainable music festivals out there. Everything, from the transport of festival goers to the catering, which is 100% vegetarian, as well as the impact on the surrounding biodiversity, has been carefully thought-through to minimise impact on the environment. Does that mean superstar headliners swap up their jets for a night train? Maybe not.
For those unaware, We Love Green has a “cursed” reputation in the French collective imagination – despite taking place annually in early June, the past few editions have faced cataclysmic rainfalls and storms, leading to cancellations and evacuations. Temperatures peaked at 30°C in the days leading up to this year’s festival, only to wake up to grey skies on Saturday, prompting everyone to wear a raincoat over their lime green t-shirts.
After picking up an overpriced vegan kebab and what felt like an endless queue to the loo, it was time to explore the five different stages. Another of We Love Green’s priorities is its commitment to programming avant-garde French and international rap acts and the overall diversity of its line-up. South London’s Jawnino got the early birds going with his incisive delivery of a grime and jungle set on the ‘Canopée’ stage before the crowd moved to the main ‘Prairie’ stage where one of the most anticipated acts of the day was about to start – her name is Maureen and she’s the new ambassador of shatta, an undercelebrated hybrid genre from Martinique, which is a mix of dancehall and bass music. She kicked off her high-energy set by shouting out “all the new baby mamas – I see you, you’re beautiful and you’re doing your best”. Right after, the festival’s best and sweatiest stage, ‘La Clairière’ (clearing in English) which is the only one to be protected by a big top, bore witness to the incandescent energy of French-Korean indie-rock singer Spill Tab.
Three acts in, a break was needed and we headed to the Think-Tank tipi, where activists, artists and anyone who wishes really, come together to discuss some of our time’s most pressing issues. This year’s theme was “How to live in a +4° world?” Political experts took questions from the audience and fed off the sizzling collective energy in the tent to conjure up solutions.
8pm and only a few raindrops to be felt – although menacing dark clouds hung low over the treetops – time for Ezra Collective on the main stage. The band’s five members clearly got the memo: they were all dressed in matching khaki raincoats and couldn’t quite contain their excitement to be playing a main slot at the Parisian festival. Bandleader and drummer Femi Koleoso thanked the joyful crowd a thousand times and even congratulated PSG on their recent Champions League title “despite being an Arsenal fan”. Their festive, upbeat performance of modern jazz and afrobeat was a healing delight.
The famous Lalaland stage and its huge outdoor dance floor hosted some of the electro scene’s best current talent: Berlin’s very own HorsegiirL and her famous pony mask, who delivered a fiery hyperpoppy 2K set – then came Belgian techno queen Amélie Lens and another powerful performance. We would sadly miss Berghain royalty Marcel Dettmann closing the dance floor.
Next, it was time to head to what would turn out to be one of the evening’s most pleasant surprises: the iconic French duo Air, who reformed in 2023 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their cult classic record ‘Moon Safari’. The led backdrop suddenly faded to apple green and who did they bring out in a 70s white dress to sing the vocals to ‘Cherry Blossom Girl’? Miss xcx herself. It was an unexpected and unexpectedly moving tribute to one of the band’s most beloved anthems.
After catching a glimpse of pop masters Parcels, who stood strong in the now pouring rain, we sheltered under a tipi and had a little pick-me-up before braving the sea of fans waiting for the night’s main act: Charli’s set was due to start at 11:45pm and we got there nice and early enough to get a front row seat. Experiencing Brat live is exactly what they say it is: extremely hot, high-tempo and a very real feeling of sipping on zeitgeist.
June 7th also happened to be a highly symbolic date – the first anniversary of the release of what has become, one year on, a mammoth of a pop record. The crowd was buzzing with excitement, everyone holding on to their breath, expecting Charli to bring out a special something or somebody in celebration of this very special anniversary – but that moment never came, leaving all of the angels with a slightly disappointed aftertaste. She did thank her thousands of fans, old and new, for what had been “the wildest year of her life” and promised that Brat summer was a “forever thing”.
The only “Powerpuff Girl” of Pop (the other two being Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter) to make it fresh off her Primavera set in Barcelona, delivered after hit with the sweaty energy of 40,000 people dancing around you. ‘Von Dutch’ and ‘Vroom Vroom’ are definitely meant to be listened to in an xxl club setting.
To add emotion to it all, she accompanied slow-tempo fan favourite ‘Track 10’ by a now iconic and hyper-sensual dance under the rain, all whilst licking the stage. By the end of her show, right before 1am, the skies had exploded in ecstasy.
Words by Laetitia Collier
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