Roots to Rhythm – 40 Years of Black Music Festival celebrates four decades of Black music, culture and community in Leeds through a special exhibition and live conversation at Leeds Playhouse.
Presented by Black Health Initiative, the event takes audiences on a journey through the history of the city’s Black Music Festival, highlighting memorable performances, important milestones and the people who helped establish and sustain its legacy.
For forty years, Black music events in Leeds have provided far more than entertainment. They have created spaces where communities could gather, artists could develop and different generations could celebrate music rooted in Africa and its diaspora.
Roots to Rhythm looks back at that history through a timeline exhibition documenting the festival’s development and cultural impact. The archive provides an opportunity to reflect on how Black music in Leeds has changed over four decades while recognising the individuals and organisations whose work helped make those celebrations possible.
Alongside the exhibition will be a live panel conversation featuring previous event organisers, who will share personal memories and perspectives from different moments in the festival’s history.
Their stories will explore both what has changed and what has remained constant, from the importance of creating opportunities for Black artists to the role music plays in strengthening community identity and bringing people together.
The event also looks towards the future, asking how the legacy created over the past forty years can be preserved while continuing to evolve for new generations.
Taking place during Black History Month 2026, Roots to Rhythm offers an important opportunity to recognise Black music as part of the cultural history of Leeds itself.
Whether you remember earlier editions of the festival or are discovering its story for the first time, this special evening combines music history, community memory and conversation in a celebration of four decades of creativity and cultural achievement.
More Leeds Listings MORE
Black Music Festival 2026
Join the 40th Anniversary of the Black Music Festival in Leeds, a vibrant celebration of Black music, culture…
Women of Soul Play Left Bank
Women of Soul returns to Left Bank Leeds for an evening celebrating the women who have kept Northern…
Roots to Rhythm – 40 Years of Black Music Festival
Roots to Rhythm – 40 Years of Black Music Festival celebrates four decades of Black music, culture and…
Kiell Smith-Bynoe: Kool Story Bro
Comedian and actor Kiell Smith-Bynoe brings his hit improv show Kool Story Bro to Leeds, following sold-out runs…
Ralph and John Went to Church: Ralph Thoresby & John Lewis, the First Recorded Black Person in Leeds
An extraordinary moment recorded more than three centuries ago provides the starting point for this fascinating Black History…
PJ Morton
Six-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, musician and producer PJ Morton comes to Leeds for an intimate live performance…
Jembaa Groove – Afrosoul Meets Highlife Direct from Berlin
Berlin-based Jembaa Groove comes to Leeds with an infectious combination of highlife, Afrosoul, jazz and contemporary Afro-fusion at…
Community Black Achievers Wings Awards 2026
The Community Black Achievers Wings Awards returns to Leeds for an evening recognising excellence, resilience, leadership and positive…