The most enduring artists don’t just make songs: they invite you into an entire world. That’s the mission in a nutshell of Wasia Project, aka London-based siblings Will Gao (20) and Olivia Hardy (18), whose intoxicatingly honest alt-pop has generated an entire ecosystem of like-minded fans with deep connections to the band’s scalpel-sharp take on adolescent growing pains. “Our fanbase is very young as well, and they’re growing with us,” says Olivia, “We’re so in touch with [our audience] because of social media, which helps us create a place of belonging where you’re not alone.”

That ethos has made Wasia Project one of the UK’s most exciting new pop acts. The band has an online audience of over almost 200K, eight million Spotify streams, and, in 2022, the duo’s music was streamed in 179 nations around the world. You’d be forgiven for not knowing that many countries existed. But their massive reach is a corollary of their pan-global approach to pop.
Will and Olivia’s music dynamically melds styles and influences that cut across genre lines — and even entire hemispheres of musical tradition. In their songs, hushed bedroom DIY combines with classical nous, and spiky disco melds with freewheeling jazz, in a merging that’s underpinned by the duo’s deep knowledge of both Western and East Asian Classical styles.

Access to the concert: 16 years old or over