Grammy Award-winning rock star Yungblud cemented his status as a global phenomenon yesterday, headlining for a massive crowd of 20,000 fans at Bludfest Year 3.
Created by the 28-year-old British musician, the one-day festival expanded to Hradec Králové in Czechia, featuring three stages packed with stellar performances from iconic heavyweights and emerging talent alike. With a lineup boasting Primal Scream, Biffy Clyro, Palaye Royale, Pale Waves, Jesse Jo Stark, Nieve Ella, Destroy Lonely, Leap, Pam Rabbit, and more, the event proved to be an absolute masterclass in modern rock culture.
Taking to the stage to deafening screams, Yungblud opened his headline set with the brooding introduction to his nine-minute epic, ‘Hello Heaven, Hello’, before an enormous confetti blast ignited the crowd. Clearly exhilarated, the Doncaster-born artist launched straight into the raucous ‘Lovesick Lullaby’ amid bursts of pyrotechnics, greeting the crowd in Czech and shouting the instruction, “ruce nahoru” (“hands up”).
A Rock ‘n’ Roll Masterclass
Across a career-spanning set, Yungblud ripped through material from all four of his studio albums alongside tracks from his collaborative EP with Aerosmith, including fan favourites like ‘The Funeral’, ‘My Only Angel’, and the Grammy-nominated ‘Zombie’.
As has become a staple tradition at his shows, he scanned the audience for handmade signs when it came time to play the anthemic ‘Fleabag’. Spotting a young face in the crowd, he declared, “There are a lot of signs out there tonight. There’s a very young kid, in a Nirvana t-shirt back there… bring him up!” The youngster was quickly escorted onstage to take on rhythm guitar duties for the song, prompting Yungblud to exclaim to the roaring crowd, “This is what Rock n’ Roll is about.”
The high-octane energy kept going with ‘Lowlife’, which had the entire 20,000-strong crowd bouncing in unison. In a poignant shift of tone, a stunning rendition of ‘Changes’, his traditional tribute to the late Ozzy Osbourne, drew a respectful, emotional hush over the audience.
Toward the close of the main set, Yungblud brought the festival’s female-led production and management team onstage to pay a heartfelt tribute, telling the audience, “I just want to say, that this festival is built by powerful fcking women. Thank you.”*
Huge Main Stage Moments and Alluring Desert Rock
Long before the headliner took the stage, the festival was alive with incredible talent. Main stage proceedings began with Czech pop and R&B star Pam Rabbit, who kicked things off with an energetic hometown performance while Yungblud watched supportively from the side of the stage. Midway through her set, she raised a glass to the crowd, toasting, “Yungblud, Bludfest, and all its artists.”
Following on, 23-year-old rising star Nieve Ella commanded the main stage with a set of epic, crunching ballads. She treated the crowd to an exclusive milestone, debuting a brand-new song titled ‘Standing on a Pane of Glass’ and telling the audience, “This is a new song that we haven’t played to anybody yet.”
The newly introduced Stage 2 brought a completely different flavour to the day. Garage-punk outfit The Velvet Hands tore through a high-octane set including fan favourites ‘Telephone Love’ and ‘Holiday in My Head’. Shortly after, Jesse Jo Stark mesmerised the crowd with an alluring set of desert rock and psychedelia, featuring tracks like ‘Dandelion’ and ‘Fire of Love’.
Heavyweight Anthem Singalongs
As the clock ticked down toward the headline slot, Scottish rock heavyweights Biffy Clyro took to the main stage to deliver a blistering, stadium-level performance. Ripping through mega-hits like ‘Mountains’ and ‘Many of Horror’, frontman Simon Neil thanked the sea of fans, stating, “It’s an honour to be here. You’re going to have the night of your fcking lives.”*
The crowd then swarmed over to Stage 2, where indie legends Primal Scream led massive, hymn-like singalongs to ‘Movin’ On Up’ and ‘Loaded’, setting the perfect atmospheric peak before Yungblud’s arrival.
Elsewhere on site, the Gibson Stage showcased a brilliant wave of emerging talent. It featured sets from Daland, Seb Torgus, Precious Pepala, Bothworlds, and Ruworr!ed. Ruworr!ed is the project of Šimon Zahradník, whose remarkable story began when Yungblud originally invited him onstage during a 2024 festival appearance. Since that fateful moment, Zahradník has performed at major European festivals before earning his official, well-deserved spot on the Bludfest Year 3 lineup.
More Than Just Music: The Bludfest Experience
This year’s festival introduced several immersive new installations for the community. Fans flocked to the official YBHQ Club, a shaded indoor hangout, as well as the ‘Beautifully Romanticised Accidentally Traumatized’ store. Both spaces were beautifully decorated in an ornate, gothic style, featuring genuine 18th-century wooden doors.
The popular ‘Make A Friend’ tent, a dedicated space for solo festivalgoers to connect and build community, also made a welcome return. Early in the afternoon, Yungblud himself was spotted zipping around the festival site in a buggy, high-fiving delighted fans as he visited the installations and checked out the daytime artists’ sets.
Bludfest Year 3 proved that Yungblud isn’t just creating festivals; he is creating a global community. Stay tuned to Pop Scoop! for more international festival coverage coming your way all summer.
Yungblud at Bludfest Year 3 Setlist:
- Hello Heaven, Hello
- The Funeral
- Idols Pt 1
- Lovesick Lullaby
- My Only Angel
- Fleabag (With a fan on guitar!)
- Lowlife
- Changes (Ozzy Osbourne cover)
- Time
- War
- The Postman
- Loner
- Ghosts
- Zombie
- Suburban Requiem
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