The 2023 editions of Mostly Jazz Funk & Soul Festival and Moseley Folk & Arts Festival - both being held in Moseley Park, an 11-acre woodland glade on the outskirts of Birmingham - are set to be the biggest and best yet. Festival Manager John Fell tells What’s On why the independent three-day events continue to be so popular and what audiences can expect this year... 

Both this year’s festivals are selling really well, and will be the best performing ones we’ve ever had... We’re definitely heading towards a sell-out, and now it’s all about delivering the best events we can. 

A lot of thought’s gone into the shows this year, and that’s been reflected in the ticket sales... When I think back to last November, when we started planning, we didn’t understand quite how bad the cost-of-living crisis was. We thought it was going to be difficult to get people to part with their money, so we wanted to really overegg the pudding and not have any regrets from a booking angle.

We’ve invested more, especially into the folk festival, which means people are getting loads more for their money... It’s obviously gonna mean less profit at the end of the day, but we decided we wanted to deliver festivals that felt unmissable; that was the intention. Both festivals represent really good value for money, which is why ticket sales have been going so well. 

Mostly Jazz is a real nice mix this year... We’ve got a big party on the Friday, which will be non-stop all day, and features Fat Freddy’s Drop - who I’ve been trying to book for years - as well as Goldie, Kokoroko, Jungle DJ Set and Crazy P Sound System. Saturday we’ve got some really strong contemporary jazz-infused acts on the bill, and on the Sunday we’ve got an absolute legend in KC And The Sunshine Band, with Craig Charles and Incognito on the same bill. 

Saturday we’ve changed it up this year... Traditionally we’ve always had a heritage act like Candi Staton or the Average White Band, but we wanted to change things and have gone for Ezra Collective, who are probably one of the hottest jazz bands in the UK right now. I say jazz but I mean jazz-influenced, because they obviously go into hip-hop, soul, Afrobeat and all sorts. We wanted to deliver a contemporary band that people really buzz off, and they’ll be the show of the weekend, I think. It’ll be the one that really blows people away. 

KC And The Sunshine Band are another real coup for us... If you look back through their 50-year career, they’ve barely played in the UK, and their back catalogue has at least five or six tunes that everybody knows [That’s The Way (I Like It), Please Don’t Go, Give It Up, Keep It Comin’ Love, etc]. It’s interesting because people hear one of their songs and think it’s Kool And The Gang or whoever, but when you tell them and play them three or four more, they’re buying a ticket!

We’re adding a small fourth stage this year, exclusively for Birmingham acts just starting out... The festival has a real good leaning towards supporting new musicians, and we’re partnering with [musical community project] Amplify Sounds for that one. There’s an ensemble of teenagers coming along from [music charity] B:Music, and we’re also working with SoundLab-Brum, who give opportunities to people who might not traditionally think about going into playing music or forming a band.

Festivals can’t stand still... Musical tastes change, habits change, the demographic changes… and it’s our job to entertain and offer new experiences. What’s really cool about the jazz festival is that people come not necessarily knowing anyone on the bill but go away with six or seven new favourite bands.

We’ve had so many amazing acts at both festivals over the years... I’ve worked on both events for 12 years, and it’s been great to be able to tick off my record collection! One of the big ones at the folk festival this year is Graham Nash, who’s an absolute hero. I can’t believe he’s coming to Moseley Park - I’m getting goosebumps just talking about it. We’ve had a few of those moments - Burt Bacharach, Chaka Khan at Mostly Jazz - but that conversation - ‘Graham Nash is available’… Wow! We looked at the budget and said ‘It doesn’t matter - book him!’ I used to jokingly send an email to the agents every year asking for Crosby, Stills or Nash… we couldn’t afford all three but would take any one!

It seems like there are a lot of zeitgeisty moments for Moseley Folk this year, where things have just fallen into place... The Saw Doctors are a band I’ve emailed every year and finally got them, and we’ve managed to get The Mary Wallopers to go on before, so that gives the Saturday a really nice link to the Irish community. And then on Sunday, we’ve got Wilco. We’re all massive fans and can’t believe we’ve finally got them - I think it’s their first show in Birmingham in 20 years.

Every day we’ve got headliners pre-headlining... Five years ago, The Proclaimers and Graham Nash would’ve headlined, but this year they’re going on before the main act. It’s a testament to how much money we’ve put in to try and make it a really special event.

We’re bringing dance, rituals and processions back into the folk festival... There’s a real folk revivalist thing currently bubbling away, with a lot of really interesting people digging into folk traditions, renewing them and bringing them into 2023. It feels like we’re nicely positioned to offer them platforms to create talks, dances, processions and workshops, as well as give people an opportunity to experience it. 

The festivals are about more than just the music and headline acts... The experience element for both festivals is really strong - it’s a beautiful park - one of the most beautiful settings in the UK for a festival - and there’s loads of different things on offer. We’ve got the best street food around - we’re really honing in on the street-food scene in Birmingham, which is massive - and our drinks selection’s gone up as we connect with the craft beer scene in the UK, which has been growing year on year. Throw in the audience’s trust in the curation of the bands - people know they’re going to discover some new favourites - and it’s the perfect combination! 

I’ll never complain about the job I do because I love music and I’m a very lucky man... I used to work in a hospital, cleaning medical instruments after operations - that’s a proper job! Now I get to play the equivalent of Football Manager in real life - I get an empty spreadsheet at the start of the year, with all the slots, and go ‘Right, who do people want to see, who do I want to book, and how can we make it better than last year?’