BST Hyde Park: LEWIS CAPALDI performs to over 65,000 for his biggest ever headline show

Lewis Capaldi headlined the first of two headline shows at BST Hyde Park, with Sam Fender joining him on stage for a duet of Rein Me In. The entire 90-minute set was broadcast live from Capaldi and BST Hyde Park’s YouTube channel, and has been dubbed the artist’s “biggest ever headline show”.

From the moment Capaldi arrived on stage, the audience was enraptured. Hollywood, Grace and the uplifting Heavenly Kind of State of Mind led the way for what turned into the performance of a lifetime – and one of the biggest shows of his career. “Hi Hyde Park, I’m Lewis Capaldi and it’s f***ing good to be here,” he announced. “Thank God the first three songs are done, I was f***ing sh*tting myself.

“There’s so many people here. Over 60,000 people. Thanks for coming, thank you for being here with me tonight…”

Wearing a black jacket and brown trousers, Capaldi pulled out song after song: Wish You The Best was next, and Love The Hell Out Of You followed. Then, there was Almost – and the extraordinary Bruises (Capaldi’s first single from 2017) had the entire audience singing along.

“Fucking Pitbull played here last night, what a f***ing buzz,” Capaldi commented, referring to BST Hyde Park’s Friday Night headliner. Getting the crowd chanting along, 60,000 people joined in with a chorus of Hotel Room Service.

The beautiful Something In The Heavens reset the tone just as the sun dipped beneath the horizon, taking the show into the dusky evening light. Then, the moment of the night came just over halfway through the set when Capaldi introduced his special guest. “On March 31st, I released my first single which was called Bruises,” Capaldi began. “And there was another man who also released his first single on March 31st 2017, and that man has since gone on to do some incredible incredible things – like recently becoming the longest running British number one.

“He’s played stadiums all over the world but mostly, becoming a dear, dear, dear friend of mine. You know him, you love him, please welcome… the f***ing incredible Sam Fender, ladies and gentleman.”

The pair embraced on stage before duetting on Fender’s most recent song – a collaboration with Olivia Dean – Rein Me In. Just yesterday, the song broke the record as the longest-running number one single of all time by a British act.

As the night rolled on, Capaldi ticked off even more of his most-loved tracks. Before You Go was as powerful as you might expect – but it was during The Day That I Die (a song that resonates so deeply with Capaldi) that the real emotion sunk in.

As he choked up, the audience began to sing: “Oh, Lewis Capaldi” – giving Capaldi the support to continue the song. His in-ears came out for Hold Me While You Wait, and a sea of people wrapped their arms around each other for the heartfelt Forget Me.

Returning for an encore with a cover of Credence Clearwater’s Have You Ever Seen The Rain, Capaldi had the crowd singing their hearts out once again. Survive, once again, was the reminder everyone needed – this show was going to be one to remember.

As the magical night came to a climax with the mesmerising Someone You Loved, Capaldi once again began to tear: “Thank you so much for sticking with me,” he said with sincerity. “After this, I’m going to go away for a while and I’ll make a new album for everybody. My name’s Lewis Capaldi and I’ll see you very soon.”

American singer-songwriter, Conan Gray, came all the way from California to perform at a select number of dates with Capaldi this summer. In fact, he was asked to be the main support artist at BST Hyde Park by Capaldi himself. “I’m so happy to be here, thank you Lewis for having me.” he addressed to the crowd. “What a beautiful day.”

Deeply bedroom-pop in sound and beautifully eclectic in nature, Gray’s tracklist included The Cut That Always Bleeds, Family Line and Eleven Eleven. The performance is a part of the singer’s Wishbone World Tour that’s taking him across the US, Europe and Australasia.

“Hello, Hyde Park. We are The Vaccines and I can see my house from up here,” announced frontman, Justin Hayward-Young, as the indie-rockers took to the stage. Opening their set with Blow It Up, the band made their way through their portfolio old and new. Wetsuit, Your Love Is My Favourite Band and Sunkissed were complemented nicely with the brand new 10 Years Too Far.

“Is everyone excited for Lewis Capaldi and Conan Gray?” asked Hayward-Young. “Us too. We’re big fans and haven’t seen them before. For a band from London to play this stage, the biggest stage in London I think, is an honour.” Favourites such as Heartbreak Kid and Teenage Icon weren’t missed. Closing with All My Friends Are Falling In Love, the band left fans suitably enamoured and sunsoaked.


Folk star, Jacob Alon, might still be at the early stages of their career, but playing to a buzzing Hyde Park came naturally to them – having already supported Capaldi on a selection of festival dates this year. “It’s a pleasure,” they said, looking out over the audience that stretched back towards the horizon. “You all look gorgeous in the sunshine.”

With their haunting vocals from Zathura drifting across the Royal Park, Alon also performed Of Amber, Don’t Wake Up and Liquid Gold 25 – all taken from their Mercury-nominated album, In Limerence. Confession hung in the air long after the last note on the guitar. “This is a song about lost love. This is a song for all the queer people, the trans people… and if you have a problem with that, my darling, you can shove it up your h*le,” they said.

Pushing to Pull Away was a brand new song that showcased Alon’s exemplary vocal range. The Brit Awards 2026 Critics’ Choice Award winner’s set came to an end with what is perhaps their most well-loved and known track, Fairy In A Bottle.

South London born singer-songwriter, Absolutely, dived straight into her latest album Paracosm – might to the delight of fans in the crowd who were familiar with her work. The 22-year-old, whose older sister is British star, Raye, has also contributed to records by Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne and Teddy Swims. “I’m very excited to play this set for you today,” she beamed. No Audience, Goodbye Glitter and I Just Don’t Know You Yet were highlights.

Headlining the Rainbow Stage presented by British Airways this evening was Nieve Ella, a Shropshire-based singer who has already supported the likes of Girl In Red and the Courteeners. The 23-year-old began dabbling in music in 2020, having picked up her late father’s guitar while stuck at home during the pandemic.

She wrote the song Four Years Gone just a week later, and has since gone on to write some deeply personal material that cover everything from insecurity to living with her partner. Performing At Any Cost to BST Hyde Park, Ella admitted that this was a track about the person she loves, and “how sometimes things can be pretty sh*t”.

Tyler Ballgame brought not only catchy Americana-style sounds that oozed both nostalgia and clever songsmithing, but also… jokes. “Hello, I’m Lewis Capaldi,” he said to the audience matter-of-fact. “Thanks for coming.” The LA-based artist presented tracks from his debut album, For The First Time Again, showing off his strong vocals in I Believe In Love and Got A New Car.


Their tagline is ‘Harmony Runs In the family’ and sibling trio, Neckbreakers, arrived on the Rainbow Stage ready to show us exactly how harmonious they are. Performing singles, Elephant and Waiting On Your Call, the band brought powerful goth-rock vibes to the afternoon. Ebony Rose Palmer said: “How we doing Hyde park? So hot. Does anyone want to dance? I wanna dance. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to a Neckbreakers Show.”

Self-declared acoustic-driven indie-pop artist, Benjamin Steer, opened the Rainbow Stage today, giving music fans a taste of his sound through tracks such as Be My Love, Dog Eat Dog and Trophy Lover. The American singer, who studied in Scotland, recently released his debut EP, Figuring It Out, and will be venturing on his own headline tour later this year.

On Birdcage, up-and-coming Glaswegian singer Kerr Mercer, performed his powerful tracks such as Stop Me Dead and Terrified to a huge audience. The 19-year-old has already supported the likes of Teddy Swims, Myles Smith, Bastille and Only The Poets – and has taken TikTok by storm. Luz (Luz Corrigan) supported Capaldi in 2022 after he heard some of her cover material online and loved it, this year she’s back on the bill with him, with tracks The Minute You’re Gone and Sustain. Luke La Volpe admitted that “excited is an understatement” when describing how he felt about supporting Capaldi at BST Hyde Park. The Scottish singer’s single Alter Ego has been making waves on the live circuit and online. Singer, actor and voice over artist, Sebastian Croft’s Tokyo and Better Than Ever warmed up the audience for a night of singer-songwriter magic.

The full list of BST Hyde Park 2026 headliners are Garth Brooks (27 June), ATEEZ (28 June), Maroon 5 (3 July), Mumford & Sons (4 July), Duran Duran (5 July), Pitbull (10 July) and Lewis Capaldi (11 July and 12 July).

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