By Jordan Henderson

The ninth edition of the TRNSMT festival is scheduled to take place in summer 2026 and yet again, there is a clear lack of female representation at the top of the bill. This has been an issue that many have had with the festival’s organisers for several years now.

With no signs of things changing despite the rise of various female artists in recent serious questions now need to be asked as to why the same people seem to be getting booked in these slots.

Richard Ashcroft, Kasabian and Lewis Capaldi are the confirmed headliners for the festival in 2026. All three have performed there before, with Capaldi headlining in 2022 and Kasabian headlining in both 2017 and 2023, respectively.

Kasabian front man Serge Pizzorno (Getty Images)

While these acts do bring attraction to the festival, there is a feeling that it is starting to become quite stale. TRNSMT should be a real highlight in the Scottish Calendar, with the price of tickets rising and the quality of the line-ups being questioned that the festival is just another thing happening throughout the summer.

Back in 2019, festival organiser Geoff Ellis had this to say after fans criticised the lack of female representation on the announced line-up. Out of 13 acts originally announced, only two were female.

Ellis said: “It will be a while until there's a 50/50 balance. That's definitely several years ahead for any major festival to achieve because there's far, far less female artists.

We need to get more females picking up guitars, forming bands, playing in bands.”

Since this quote in 2019, we have seen bands such as Pale Waves, Wolf Alice and The Last Dinner Party, all female-fronted fronted having great success here in the UK. Despite this success, none of these bands has headlined the festival. Ellis previously promoted T in the Park before its demise back in 2016. Famously, T in the Park also had a lack of female headliners.

The excuses given by Ellis lack any conviction, and it is clear, the promoter caters to his own taste rather than what the audience wants to see. We have seen other big festivals in the UK showcase female artists, Chapel Roan co-headlined Reading and Leeds this year.

We’ve also seen acts such as Billie Eilish, Lana Del Rey and Halsey headline this festival in recent memory. Dua Lipa and SZA headlined Glastonbury, arguably the biggest festival in the world, on the same weekend back in 2024.

In a different interview from 2019, Ellis said: “Would I prefer to have more female artists on the bill? Yes. But it’s also about developing female artists to make them into headliners.”

Six years later, nothing has changed. Why can’t you showcase some of the current female artists who are more than ready to headline while also developing artists for future headline slots? Avoiding fresh artists for nostalgia acts and repeat headliners will only result in poor attendance and lack of attractions form consumers. A revamp is needed for TRNSMT to remail relevant in the festival circuit.

TRNSMT Festival Snubs Female Headliners for Ninth Straight Year