Meet the festival that started in a mate’s mum’s back garden

What started as a birthday BBQ celebration for a mate has snowballed into a fantastic widely adored festival with solid headliners. Here's the story of MattsBBQ.

Date published: 6th Jul 2023

The story of MattsBBQ is such an admirable one. Inspiring, even. Among festival giants like Glastonbury, R&L, and Download, MattsBBQ is a buzzing little festival with a community vibe, impressive headliners, and a capacity of 7,000. But what makes the story of MattsBBQ so endearing is how it all began. 

The first edition of MattsBBQ kicked off in a back garden in 2006 as a birthday celebration for... Matt. Organised by Matt’s mates, it seemed to quickly gather quite a bit of attention from the local community. 

As it grew bigger and bigger, the party became too big for Matt's mum's house to hold. So in 2012, MattsBBQ moved to a bigger venue. The event quickly became an unmissable party marked in the local community's calendar before heading to football clubs and cricket grounds in six cities. It got so big it even secured winter and Halloween editions! 

Nowadays, MattsBBQ attracts some of the biggest artists and DJs on the scene who are dying to party with 7,000 partiers at MattsBBQ. 

In 2023, Matt and his buddies welcome Chip, Afro B, Black Chiney, Dynamite, More Fire Crew, DJ Pioneer & Coldsteps, and more to their party at Mote Park in Maidstone. Celebrating the best summer music - house, UK garage, hip hop, afrobeat, soca, and dancehall - if you ask us, there’s literally no better way to spend a sunny July evening. 

MattsBBQ goes down in Mote Park in Maidstone, Kent on Sunday 30th July 2023. Considering its rapid growth, we reckon this is one to check out before it gets massive. 

Secure your tickets at the bottom of this page and say happy birthday to Matt for us! 

Check out our What's On Guide to discover more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.