Good vibes, live-music, art and a lot of dust: MS Dockville festival 2025

With summer back in full force, this year's MS Dockville Festival couldn’t have started better. The festival first took place in 2007, and this year it celebrated its 18th birthday. With the festival coming of age, something was different this time: instead of three days, this year’s festival took place over just two. From August 15th until August 16th, around 50,000 music and art lovers were able to enjoy more than 100 live acts and art exhibitions spread across 10 stages in Hamburg, Wilhelmsburg.

Friday, August 15th

But the absolute highlight of night one: RAYE! Taking the stage at around 10:50 pm with her hit song “Oscar Winning Tears.”, she once again proved why she was nominated as “Best New Artist” at the most recent Grammy Awards. Remember the myth about sirens and their enchanting singing? How they could mesmerize people? RAYE brought that myth to life. With phenomenal vocals, a great band by her side, and a huge dose of charisma, she made everyone fall in love with her.

Her interaction with the crowd was particularly striking. Whether it was a quick anecdote, pointing out fans and asking their names, such as Theresa, whom she noticed singing along, or teaching the crowd lyrics to her songs, the set felt intimate and personal. Even though her name was shining in big, bright letters behind her, she outshone them all with the way she owned the stage.

After her headlining set, she even made a surprise appearance on the Butterland stage during the King Kong Kicks set! How can you not love her?

Saturday, August 16th

One of the best things about festivals is that you often get to see artists before they really blow up. A while ago, a video went viral showing a couple watching Billie Eilish, who also headlined MS Dockville a few years back, at CRSSD Festival in 2017 with maybe 50 people in the crowd. Nowadays, such a small crowd at a Billie Eilish show would be unthinkable.

Although Paula Engels’ set on Saturday drew a lot more than 50 people, I left feeling positive that her crowds will also grow exponentially. With her unique voice and catchy beats, she is definitely one of the national artists to keep an eye on. With her debut album “Kommt von Herzen” dropping on September 26th and a handful of shows later this year, fans have a lot to look forward to.

Speaking of growing exponentially: Nieve Ella and her energetic band were the first to grace the main stage on day 2. Starting from opening for artists such as Inhaler to now headlining her own tours, Nieve is currently one of the hottest upcoming artists from the UK. After postponing some of her “Watch it Ache and Bleed” tour shows earlier this year due to illness, she finally came to Hamburg to perform songs from her EP as well as her new single “Good Graces.” Switching guitars almost every song, she proved herself a true rockstar, exactly where she belongs: on the main stage.

Ikkimel, or “Mama Ikki,” as she calls herself (or “secret headliner,” as I would call her), performed on the main stage at around 7:40 pm. The crowd was packed. Really packed. No wonder, since she’s currently going viral on TikTok and is seemingly on everyone’s lips. Whether they adore her or criticize her, either way, she’s the talk of the country right now, at least in the music scene. Champagne rain, bold statements, daring lyrics, even locking fans in a cage? The crowd loved it. Other national highlights included Jassin, Kasi, and Levin Liam.

German fans got the chance to hear some of her older songs, tracks that might not see the light of day anytime soon, to make space for new material. The crowd sang and danced their hearts out to favorites like “Messy” and “One Thing,” before either heading home or keeping the party going, since the festival offered more sets until 6 am.

On Instagram, Lola thanked her fans for completing her festival run, sharing how emotional she felt and how much she is looking forward to performing her new album:

I feel emotional because it's the end of an era for me, as it's probably the last time I'll be performing this setlist, but it's okay because it's the beginning of a new one, and that is what evolving is all about. I can't wait to perform this next album and give life to my new songs. [...] I have days, even still, that I feel scared, lonely, insecure, and I feel like it's all just too much, but I get on stage, and feel seen, heard, and understood again, so thank you, all of you, for noticing.

And that’s a beautiful way to look at it, right? Every ending means something new is beginning. Just like MS Dockville! The festival has already announced next year’s dates: from August 14th to 15th, with early bird tickets available now for 99€.

See you next year!

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