Blossoms will be performing their biggest-ever gig at Wythenshawe Park this weekend, with massive support acts lined up.
Stockport’s finest will be back on home turf over the August bank holiday weekend, ahead of the release of their upcoming album Gary.
The group have become one of the biggest groups to come out of Manchester over the last few decades, rocketing to fame with their self-titled debut album back in 2016.
Blossoms earned BRIT Award and Mercury Prize nominations following their chartbuster debut album.
They’ve gone on to score two more UK number-one albums with 2020’s Foolish Loving Spaces and 2022’s Ribbon Around The Bomb.
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Blossoms frontman Tom Ogden said: “Headlining our biggest show yet at Wythenshawe Park is going to be THE moment of our career so far for us.
“It makes me think of me and Joe [the band’s drummer] going to watch Oasis and The Stone Roses at Heaton Park back when we were teenagers and how important these big summer Manchester shows are to people.
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“It made us want to be in a band, affected what we wore and changed our lives forever. To misquote Dorothy, ‘Lads, I’ve a feeling we’re not on Oldham Street anymore!”
Seb Lowe is supporting BlossomsThe K’s. Credit: Publicity picture
Blossoms have lined up some massive support acts to help them warm up the crowds at Wythenshawe Park this weekend.
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Dublin’s Inhaler, whose debut album It Won’t Always Be Like This topped the charts on its release in 2021, are the main support act, performing hits like Cheer Up Baby, Ice Cream Sundae, My Honest Face and many more.
Legendary rockers Shed Seven are also on the line-up, as they head up to their third decade in the industry. The group recently recorded their first-ever no.1 album, A Matter of Time.
Further support includes indie rockers The K’s, Oldham’s Seb Lowe and Ttrruuces, who’ll get things rocking and rolling.
Are there any tickets left for Blossoms’ gig at Wythenshawe Park…
You’re in luck! There are still some tickets available for the gig on Sunday.
Ticket options available are:
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Sunday ticket: £50.40
Weekend ticket: £89.60
Sunday VIP ticket: £126.50
Or you can purchase a full weekend ticket and you’ll be able to catch the New Order gig on Saturday on top of Blossoms on Sunday.
You can see the latest availability and buy your tickets with See Tickets HERE.
Stress-free travel and how to get to Wythenshawe Park
For travel to Wythenshawe Park, there are three tram stops close by – Wythenshawe Park, Moor Road and Baguely station.
Only Moor Road will be available to use when the gig has finished. Wythenshawe Park and Baguely station will be closed to help with crowd management.
But if you’re worried about such a big journey, Blossoms have saved the day, helping fellow Mancunians natives by launching their very own shuttle bus service.
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Buses are running via Stockport Interchange to the venue between 4pm and 8pm, every six minutes. The six-minute wait applies for the way back, taking giggoers from Moor Road back to Stockport town centre, between 10pm and 1am.
You can find out more about the shuttle bus service HERE.
Stage times for Blossoms
The set times are subject to change. Make PLENTY of time to get there!
The Guest List — 14:55 – 15:15
TTRRUUCES — 15:40 – 16:10
Seb Lowe — 16:35 – 17:05
The K’s — 17:30 – 18:05
Shed Seven — 18:35 – 19:15
Inhaler — 19:45 – 20:30
Blossoms — 21:00-22:30
Expected setlist for Blossoms’ Manchester gig
Blossoms will play at Wythenshawe Park in Manchester over the August bank holiday. Credit: Publicity picture
We don’t actually know what Blossoms will play, as this is the first show they’ve done on their current and upcoming tour.
Instead, they’ve been busy on the festival circuit, so the below setlist is the bunch of classics they played at Hardwick Festival.
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Your Girlfriend
I can’t stand it
Getaway
Oh No ( I think I’m in Love)
What Can I Say After I’m Sorry?
Honey Sweet
Perfect Me
If You Think This Is Real Life
At Most a Kiss
Gary
My Favorite Room
There’s a Reason Why ( I Never Returned Your Calls)
Charlemagne
You never know, with Blossoms returning to their native land, they might mix things up…
Hip-hop, soul and R’n’B legend Mary J Blige is coming to Manchester for a massive arena show
Danny Jones
Manchester is getting ready to welcome a global icon of hip-hop, soul, pop and R’n’B as Mary J Blige is set to put on a massive arena show.
With a music career spanning more than 30 years, Mary J Blige is an absolute legend of the American music scene, with nine GRAMMY Awards and nearly 40 nominations, along with a plethora of BET, Billboard, and AMA nods over the years.
Currently on ‘The For My Fans Tour’, jetting quite literally all over and recently adding on even more dates, not only has London been given some love, but so has Greater Manchester – and rightly so.
Announcing the special one-off show and Co-op Live debut this Wednesday, 16 April, Mary J Blige won’t have to wait too long to be part of the ‘Family Affair’.
The 54-year-old from New York will be coming to the state-of-the-art, one of the biggest indoor entertainment venues in all of Europe, in just a few months’ time.
On top of the already well-established AO Arena, this is the pedigree of truly worldwide artists that Co-op Live was built to further attract – and it looks to be working.
It’s been the best part of a decade since she was last in these parts, so she’s sure to get a huge reception.
While most audiences in the likes of North America have been treated to fellow R’n’B favourite Ne-Yo, those watching Ms Blige will be keeping things domestic as long-standing London collective and producers, Soul II Soul, will be joining her for the show.
‘Back to life, back to reality…’
So there you have it! Mary J Blige will be coming to Manchester on Friday, 4 July 2025, with her own pre-sale going live at 10am on Thursday, 24 April, but Co-op members can get there even earlier, with the venue’s early access available from the same time the day before.
As for general admission, you can get ready to grab your tickets HERE from 10am on Friday, 25 April.
Fri 18 April – London, UK – OVO Arena Wembley (Sean Paul, Ashanti and Big Joe)
Sat 19 April – Birmingham, UK – Utilita Arena
Sun 20 April – Manchester, UK – AO Arena
22 April – Cardiff, UK – Utilita Arena
23 April – Brighton, UK – Brighton Centre (Sean Paul ONLY)
24 April – Bournemouth, UK – BIC (Sean Paul ONLY)
Sean Paul and Ashanti tickets for AO Arena gig
Just like Ashanti’s 2002 hit, you’d have been ‘Foolish’ not to get tickets when they first came out, however, there’s still a chance for you to ‘Get Busy’ like Sean Paul’s ‘02 throwback.
There’s a limited run of tickets left throughout the venue, including standing, seated and even an option to watch the show from ‘The Mezz’ if you’re after a VIP experience – AllHERE.
There’s no official setlist yet, however, if you consider the past selection of hits from their previous separate gigs, fans are in for a jam-packed night.
Sean Paul:
So Fine
Get Busy
Ever Blazin’
Cheap Thrills
Baby Boy
Bailando
Hot Gyal Today
Infiltrate
Breathe/ Make It Clap
Give It Up To Me
Got 2 Luv U
Mad Love
No Lie
Boasty
Love Me Ladies
Tip Pon It
Volcano
Bring It
Greatest
I’m Still In Love
Light My Fire
Punkie
Rockabye
Like Glue
Deport Them
Trumpets
She Doesn’t Mind
Temperature
Ashanti:
Happy
Rock Wit U (Awww Baby)
Mesmerise
Only U
Baby
Southside
Down 4 U
Body On Me
What’s Luv?
Ain’t It Funny
Always On Time
Foolish
What are the stage times for Sean Paul and Ashanti in Manchester?
AO Arena has a curfew of 11pm; anyone attending this link-up of a lifetime can enjoy their night knowing they’ll be ‘Ever Blazin” after a full night’s sleep.
Doors for the ‘Bring It Tour’ are scheduled for 6pm with a kick-off time of 7pm, with no confirmed or mentioned support acts as of yet.
For those of you heading to AO Arena, luckily, it’s connected to Manchester Victoria Station and it has an integrated Metrolink stop to make your life even easier.
Head along the pink, light blue or yellow lines directly to the Victoria stop, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Train
Considering this live entertainment venue is situated right in the middle of one of Manchester’s most frequented stations, concertgoers should find no problem getting to the arena wherever they are.
Bus
A variety of buses cover AO Arena andVictoria Station on their route, such as the 2 bus, which stops just a one-minute walk away from the venue.
A full list of buses and their routes can be found HERE.
Getting there by car and parking
The Arena has its own official CitiPark, with 958 car parking spaces including 40 Blue Badge parking bays, which can be booked in advance.
Alternatively, anyone attending a gig can park at their nearest train station and jump on a train service or the various Metrolink park and ride facilities.
Walk/cycle
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes through the Beryl app, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app.
About the AO Arena
The AO Arena has a few strict policies to keep gig-goers safe, so make sure to check entry requirements carefully before you travel.
For example, only one small bag per person is allowed, and bags like backpacks, travel cases and laptop bags are not permitted inside the arena.
All bags are scanned on entry to check for prohibited items like laser pens, flares, projectiles, weapons, drugs and alcohol, and even selfie sticks.
Blake Keeble -
20th August 2024 
