Culture Heads to the Coast for RECESSLAND's 10-Year Celebration in Margate

For one weekend, Margate became the centre of UK nightlife culture as thousands travelled to Dreamland for RECESSLAND 2026. Held across May 23 and 24, the seaside weekender marked ten years of RECESS and the fifth edition of its now-signature coastal festival. What began as a London party movement has grown into one of the most influential events in Black British nightlife, bringing together music, fashion and community on a scale that continues to expand every year.

Photography by Victoria S

From the moment guests arrived along the Kent coastline, the energy was immediate. Dreamland's amusement park backdrop gave the festival its distinctive character, with fairground rides, open-air stages and crowds pouring through the venue from early afternoon. Across the site, soundsystem culture collided with festival culture as ravers moved between stages carrying the momentum of a bank holiday weekend that had become a summer tradition in its own right.

Photography by Victoria S

New Wave spent the weekend documenting the experience from inside the crowd, capturing the people, style and atmosphere that define RECESSLAND beyond the performances themselves. Between the music, the festival grounds became a showcase of contemporary youth culture. Football jerseys, archive designer pieces, vintage sportswear, mesh fits and custom looks filled the space, reflecting the influence RECESS has had on London's wider creative scene over the past decade.

Photography by Victoria S

The lineup reflected the global direction of Black music culture today. JT delivered one of the weekend's most anticipated sets, drawing huge reactions as fans packed out the stage area from start to finish. Ghanaian duo R2Bees brought Afrobeats nostalgia and singalong moments to the coast, while Tyler ICU pushed the crowd deep into amapiano territory with a set that transformed the venue into an open-air dancefloor. Across the weekend, Sarz, Crazy Cousins, Theodora and Charisse C added to a programme that moved effortlessly between rap, house, garage, dancehall and Afrobeats.

Photography by Victoria S

One of the strongest elements of RECESSLAND remained its ability to blend generations and scenes into one space. Groups travelled from London, Birmingham, Manchester and beyond, with many treating the weekend as a yearly reunion. Creatives, DJs, stylists, musicians, founders and music fans all moved through the same spaces, creating the kind of atmosphere that has become increasingly rare within larger festival environments. Conversations started in queues, continued at stages and often carried into after-hours linkups across the town.

Throughout the weekend, RECESS's roots remained visible despite the scale of the event. What has always separated the platform from many of its contemporaries is its understanding of community as a core part of the experience. That spirit could be felt everywhere, from friends reuniting after months apart to first-time attendees quickly becoming part of the energy. The festival's tenth anniversary carried a celebratory mood, with many attendees reflecting on how RECESS has soundtracked key moments in their lives over the years.

Photography by Victoria S

As day turned to night and the lights from Dreamland's rides illuminated the Margate skyline, RECESSLAND 2026 delivered the kind of weekend that explains why the event continues to grow. The music moved from rap to garage, from amapiano to dancehall, while the crowd matched that same diversity of sound and culture. For New Wave, documenting the weekend meant capturing more than performances; it meant documenting a generation gathering by the sea to celebrate music, identity and community at the start of another summer.