n black and white, the 2025 edition of We Out Here feels timeless. A weekend distilled into light, shadow and motion. Loyle Carner’s quiet focus backstage. The intensity of Fulu Miziki mid-rhythm. The soul-stained elegance of Incognito and the stripped-down beauty of Jalan Ngonda as dusk fell. These photographs move beyond the noise. They find stillness in sweat, shape in the crowd, and poetry in the pause between notes. This was the sixth gathering of a growing tribe. Dancers, artists, elders and new blood, each bringing their story to the woods and each returning home changed.

Now in its sixth year, We Out Here remains a vital convergence of sound, community, and cultural memory. 2025 brought an electric blend of past, present, and future, from Loyle Carner’s commanding set to the deep soul legacy of Incognito, MJ Cole’s reimagined Sincere, and the raw, handmade rhythms of Fulu Miziki. This colour series captures the richness of the weekend: Jalan Ngonda’s velvet tones at golden hour, Rotary Connection echoing through the woods, and countless unscripted moments between the dancers, crews, and families who make this festival more than just music. It’s a portrait of a movement still in full flow; joyful, defiant, and gloriously alive.

Co-founded by Gilles Peterson and Noah Ball, We Out Here is more than a festival — it’s a meeting place for artists, DJs, dancers, and music lovers from across the globe, rooted in the UK’s ever-evolving scene. This monochrome series distils the fifth edition down to its purest elements: the light, movement, and emotion that give the weekend its heartbeat.

Co-founded by Gilles Peterson and Noah Ball, alongside Brownswood Recordings and Worldwide FM, We Out Here brings together the best of the UK’s jazz, soul, and club culture in one weekend. Now in its fifth year, the 2024 edition pulsed with connection, rhythm, and shared energy — captured here in full colour across stages, dancefloors, and those unplanned moments in between.

Born from a late-’80s London ritual, this legendary session was originally hosted by Gilles Peterson and Patrick Forge at Dingwalls in Camden — where vinyl lovers, jazz-dance crews, and rare-groove faithful came together every Sunday to celebrate rhythm, spirit, and the magic of joining the dots. Now in its new chapter at NEON194, Piccadilly, this April 2025 edition brought that timeless legacy into a fresh space, with resident DJs Patrick and Gilles joined by special guest Mark Murphy, and a standout live performance from the legendary Brian Jackson. It carries forward the same energy and global recognition that has made “Another Sunday Afternoon at Dingwalls” a touchstone for London’s music community.

The Another Sunday Afternoon at Dingwalls sessions have long been a beacon for London’s jazz-dance and rare-groove scenes, attracting devotees from far beyond the UK. This edition at NEON194 kept the tradition alive in a new space, pairing the warmth and openness of the original Camden gatherings with a forward-looking energy, and proving that the legacy is as relevant now as it was three decades ago.

Since 2003, Jazz Re:freshed has been a vital force in championing UK jazz talent, creating a platform that bridges grassroots energy with international recognition. Known for its residency in West London and its expansive festival work, the collective has helped launch countless careers. At the Southbank Centre, the music spilled into every corner — foyers, balconies, and hidden spaces — as musicians and audiences fed off each other’s energy in one of London’s most iconic cultural hubs.

Curated by Gilles Peterson, the Worldwide Awards celebrate music without borders — a night dedicated to the innovators, boundary-pushers, and genre-blenders shaping global sound. The 2013 edition at KOKO brought together live acts, DJs, and a crowd that came to dance, discover, and immerse themselves in music’s ever-expanding world, cementing its reputation as one of London’s most forward-thinking nights.

In the cooler months, Dingwalls takes on an intimacy that’s hard to match. Once the home of the seminal Sunday Afternoon at Dingwalls sessions that shaped London’s jazz-dance and acid-jazz scenes, the venue’s winter gatherings carry that history in every note. The 2022 edition drew a loyal crowd ready to shake off the chill, filling the space with groove, connection, and the easy warmth of a scene built on decades of shared history.

Founded in 2000, Shambala has grown from a small gathering of friends into one of the UK’s most beloved independent festivals, celebrated for its creativity, environmental ethos, and wildly eclectic music. Shot in black and white, this 2013 series focuses on the textures, expressions, and fleeting moments that colour can’t always hold — revealing the festival’s character in its most distilled form.

Part carnival, part music festival, part creative playground — Shambala thrives on costumes, performance, and the unexpected. The 2013 edition burst with life, captured here in full colour: vivid outfits, painted faces, glowing stage lights, and the unmistakable feeling that, for a few days, the outside world didn’t exist.