Black Eyed Peas bring the love to Milton Keynes for the inaugural SMK Live
The trio brought the hits to Milton Keynes’ newest festival as a UK festival exclusive.
Photo: Press
Milton Keynes. Sure, it’s not the first place you think of for live music but, watch this space, and it’ll soon become the live music hub it has the potential to be. With Arena MK, Stadium MK, The National Bowl and numerous independent venues, like unofficial House of Rock Craufurd Arms — aka Yungblud’s favourite, and Lewis Capaldi was also spotted there — and MK11, known for showing football on a big screen, battle of the bands and putting lots of gigs on in their larger music space. Wolf Alice, Alien Ant Farm and even Lizzo have all played at Craufurd Arms.
All of these various venues make up a great network that courses through Milton Keynes’ vibrant, new-ish underbelly. Milton Keynes is the tender age of 59 years old, so it’s only getting started. It was only recognised as a city in 2022. It’s still got its baby teeth.
In recent years, more and more festivals have been appearing in the city, and more huge artists have graced the roundabout land. Yungblud held his first two Bludfests at The National Bowl, an open-air venue that has seen the likes of David Bowie, Queen, Oasis and Eminem grace its stage. In 2021, Reggaeland launched as a local festival, before 2023 saw them upgrade to The National Bowl’s huge space and welcome in massive household names — this year Burna Boy is set to headline. Forever Now Festival brought Kraftwerk, Billy Idol and Johnny Marr to our humble streets last year, adding to an unmissable summer line-up that truly has something for everyone.
SMK Live joins the ever-growing music sphere in the city, boasting two days at Stadium MK and a UK festival exclusive performance from Black Eyed Peas. It marked the trio’s first trip back to Milton Keynes in eight years, having last played the Marshall Arena on their Masters of the Sun tour.
Although this wasn’t your ordinary Black Eyed Peas show. The line-up was stacked with artist after artist, making it an undeniably incredible day for live music. After the likes of electronic duo Basement Jaxx and electronic-classical blenders Clean Bandit had already got the wheels into motion on the scorching hot Saturday, the Sunday delivered something different, with artists like the soulful Maverick Sabre, soul rejuvenator Jalen Ngonda, pop star-turned-Traitor Cat Burns and R&B pop icon Jason Derulo, as well as DJ sets from Jaguar $kills in between sets — not to mention Big Narstie taking on hosting duties.
Kicking off the day for us was Jalen Ngonda, who, when I had interviewed him a few months prior and asked him about the show, said he’d been to lots of “parties and sessions in Milton Keynes”. As an American who packed up his life to move to Liverpool and then London, the last thing I expected was for him to be knowledgeable about Milton Keynes. Having just released his second album, Doctrine of Love, the singer transported us back to the 1960s and ‘70s with his old and new material, holding onto that old-school charm of songs from times long behind us.
Recent Traitor on the celebrity versions of the BBC’s Traitors, who won the audience over with her authenticity and represented those who have also been diagnosed with ADHD, Cat Burns took to the stage with a laidback air that made her set one perfect for the sunny weather beating down upon the stage. The singer had the crowd at her fingertips, joking that she wouldn’t reveal her favourite cafe in Milton Keynes for fear of overpopulation and not being able to go there, but said her other favourite was Hide & Seek.
After her set came to an end, the audience waited in anticipation for Jason Derulo, whose performance marked his first-ever show in Milton Keynes. While his DJ got the crowd amped up for his set, the fifteen-minute wait meant that the cheers were incredibly loud when he walked onto the stage with his dancers in tow. Proving he was worth waiting for, the pop icon performed his way through classics like Whatcha Say, Ridin’ Solo and hits like Take You Dancing and Swalla. It was safe to say he captivated the audience, and then some, promising to be back in 2028 before waving the crowd goodbye.
The main event, of course, were the icons themselves, who had no fancy opening sequence like the performance before, but walked on stage as that’s all they needed — no fancy displays, nothing, just themselves and will.i.am donning a hat with a yellow arrow on it, just in case we didn’t know where he was.
Let’s Get It Started opened their set, wholly intent on getting the crowd amped up for the night that followed. When Fergie’s part came around, new vocalist J. Rey Soul bound onto the stage with a smile and a bold pair of sunglasses, fitting in while keeping true to Fergie’s undeniable impact.
After performing hits like Boom Boom Pow and Rock That Body (which has seen a revival on social media in the past year), will.i.am announced that his niece, Lily, would be joining them on stage to help sing Where Is The Love?, something he explained she had been doing since the age of four. In a sweet moment, the shy Lily joined her uncle on stage, wrapping her arm around him to ease her nerves. It served as a memorable moment, and she was brought back out with his other niece to sing Meet Me Halfway.
The crowd chanting Lily’s name to lessen her nerves was a beautiful moment that felt very much like seeing a new generation of talent blossom on the stage before us. It’s Lily’s world, and we’re just living in it.
The iconic band’s set symbolised a strong unity, still, after all these years, and SMK Live brought one of the world’s best bands to our city for a night we won’t forget for a long time.
