Between the spilled beer, days-old glitter and megastar headliners, Reading and Leeds Festivals have always been a buzzy marker of youth culture — with the next generation of fans and bands both taking centre stage to set the pace.
This year, while headliners Chappell Roan, Bring me the Horizon and Travis Scott packed out the main stage with avant-garde looks, staging and pyros a plenty, it’s also a place where rising acts have their finger firmly on the pulse of fashion as well as music.
ShortList went backstage to sit down with five of the most exciting breakthrough names — Nieve Ella, Antony Szmierek, Nxdia, Heather Baron-Gracie of Pale Waves, and New York’s Del Water Gap — to talk about their most unforgettable festival memories and their music style icons.
Nieve Ella, at Reading Festival 2025
For Nieve Ella, the indie-pop newcomer who’s building a dedicated following online, festivals still feel magical: “One of my most memorable ones was actually at Leeds two years ago, when Inhaler played. I was on my tour manager’s shoulders and got on the big screen. I was so excited… and then we announced we were supporting them a couple of weeks later! It was just such a perfect time.”
Antony Szmierek, Manchester’s critically acclaimed spoken-word-meets-indie poet, still gets emotional thinking about Glastonbury 2010: “We were at the Park Stage waiting for a secret set wondering, ‘Who’s it gonna be?’ And it was fucking Radiohead! I was with my best mate from school. We’d never seen them together. It was emotional.”
Nxdia, at Reading Festival 2025
Nxdia, the Egyptian-Sudanese, Manchester-based artist fusing punk, pop and grunge for viral TikTok trending tracks, was still buzzing: “I’ve never done Reading before. I’m so ready. I realised I’ll never play Reading for the first time again, and I’m trying to sit in that feeling.” recent highlights? “BludFest this year was a real moment. I love Chase Atlantic; I love Denzel Curry.”
From across the pond, Del Water Gap brought New York energy: “I played Gov Ball a few years ago — growing up, I watched artists play that stage, and getting up there myself was surreal.”
And finally, we sat down with Manchester rockers Pale Waves, led by vocalist and guitarist Heather Baron-Gracie, who’ve established themselves as a leading voice in gothic synth pop around the world off the back of their fourth album.
Plus, all five acts prove what Reading always shows us — that music and fashion are inseparable.
From anime punks to Britpop lads, their icons tell us as much about their sound as their style. Here are nine of the greatest music style icons of all time... according to music’s hottest new stars.
1. Alex Turner, Arctic Monkeys
As chosen by... Antony Szmierek
“My big band growing up were Arctic Monkeys. I had every Alex Turner haircut as a teenager. I had it shaved, grew it long; straightened it at one point. He was always my style guy.”
2. Damon Albarn
As chosen by... Antony Szmierek
“My style is football tops and 90s stuff - actually, it’s part of the theme of my record. But weirdly, it’s not really what I wear in real life. It’s kind of like a character. I wear a lot of tracksuits, because the album is supposed to feel like 1996. So, if you look back, Damon Albarn in the 90s - he’s a good one to reach for. That’s who I’m looking to right now - a young Albarn.”
3 & 4. Prince and David Bowie
As chosen by... Nxdia
“Prince and Bowie. I love the androgyny and the ways they used fashion alongside their music to create different worlds and play different characters.”
6. Jimi Hendrix
As chosen by... Nxdia
“I’m absolutely obsessed with Jimi Hendrix too. I love his stage fits and his style, I take a lot of inspiration from them!”
6. Nana Osaki, Nana
As chosen by... Heather Baron-Gracie, Pale Waves
“Fashion-wise, I’d choose punk heroine Nana Osaki from the anime Nana. She’s got black hair, green eyes, fishnets, short skirts, and cool guitars.”
7. David Byrne, Talking Heads
As chosen by... Del Water Gap
“David Byrne. I love his suiting. I’ve worn suits on stage a lot, and I think he does it really well. Or I’d also choose Benson Boone, probably.”
8. Stevie Nicks
As chosen by... Nieve Ella
“To be honest, I think about this a lot because I don’t think there’s one person that I genuinely look up to — it’s more like a bunch of people. So, when I’m feeling a bit floaty and I want to be a bit more acoustic, Stevie Nicks.”
9. Amy Taylor, Amyl and the Sniffers
As chosen by Nieve Ella
“Right now, I’d say, Amyl and the Sniffers. Every time I see Amy in any costume - I think ‘You’re so sick!’ I saw her today at the festival when she was walking around — she was wearing this metal chainmail top and these leather red shorts, and she had curlers in her hair. I was like ‘Oh my God!’”
The artists spoke to us at Reading Festival. Sign up for Reading 2026 at Reading Festival's official site...
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