Cover Serrini will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong / Tyler Yeung)
Serrini will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong / Tyler Yeung)
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From Serrini to DJ Mr. Ho, some of Hong Kong’s hottest music talents are performing at the city’s biggest music festival. Tatler talks to some of them to find out what they’ll be playing at Clockenflap and more
Hong Kong’s premier music festival Clockenflap is back, and it promises to be bigger and better than ever. Running from November 29 to December 1, it will take over the Central Harbourfront once again, with multiple outdoor stages, a range of food and beverage stalls, art markets, family activities and plenty of scintillating performances.
While many eyes are on international acts, such as Central Cee, Jack White and Air, Hong Kong-based artists are also shining through this line-up—and it’s time to highlight them.
From Canto-pop singer Serrini to DJ Mr. Ho and R’n’B singer $alty Chick, and covering a spectrum of genres including techno, afrobeat, indie-rock and neo-soul, here are seven of our favourite artists and bands that will be taking to the stage at Clockenflap.
You might also like: What you shouldn’t miss at Clockenflap 2024, from the international acts to local artists and other activities
Mr.Ho
Above Mr. Ho will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Friday
When: Friday, November 29 at 7:30pm
Where: Electriq Stage
Genre: Acid, Electro, House
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap?
It feels good, it’s my first time to play there.
What energy would you like your set to bring to the festival?
I want people to get lost in the music. I’m going to play big room acid, electro and house. Maybe some of my own well-known tracks. Rough but fun.
What has been your biggest challenge in preparing for your performance?
Not a challenge, but need to choose records that translate well onto the particular sound system.
Who do you want to meet backstage?
I’d like to catch up with Romain FX, I haven’t seen him in a while.
Tayla Siswojo
Above Tayla Siswojo will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday (Photo: Instagram / @taylasiswojo)
Tayla Siswojo will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday (Photo: Instagram / @taylasiswojo)
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When: Saturday, November 30 at 1pm
Where: Hang Seng Stage
Genre: Pop, folk
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap
So unreal. I’ve been to Clockenflap a couple of times with my parents and to be performing on the same stage as so many incredible artists is absolutely unreal (I’m so scared).
What energy would you like to bring to the festival?
Like they’re sitting on my bedroom floor with me, listening to these songs I wrote for the first time.
What has been your biggest challenge in preparing for your performance?
I’d say the biggest challenge is just how overwhelming this whole experience has been. I’m so immensely grateful for the opportunity but also as an independent artist, it’s been pretty hard to get everything together. Thankfully, I’ve had the best band of such experienced musicians (KB, Mike Orange and Jacky Man) and they’ve helped me so much, I feel a lot less scared.
What song are you the most excited to perform and why?
That’s a hard question, I’m just so excited to play all my songs but I’d say Stars won’t align for us because it’s the first song I ever put out and I’ve never played it live so I’m really looking forward to that.
Who do you want to meet backstage?
Oh God, everyone. Probably MEMI, she’s actually the coolest person ever and I adore her music. Also, Mother Mother—who’s performing a day before me—I was so obsessed with their music during quarantine and to see them perform is so insane, I might start sobbing.
Clave
Above Clave will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday
When: Saturday, November 30 at 1:45pm
Where: Harbourflap Stage
Genre: Neo-Soul
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap?
It’s so exciting, unbelievable! It’s the first time we’re going to play there, and we’re so glad to bring our music to such an international platform. Such a precious opportunity!
What has been your biggest challenge in preparing for your performance?
Our set includes both old and unreleased songs, so it’s been challenging to create a storyline out of our set. So, yes, definitely merging the new and old Clave and showing our growth to our fans. We hope it'll create a fun experience for everyone.
What song are you the most excited to perform and why?
We’re very excited to perform White Suite: this is an unreleased song from our upcoming album. We love the arrangement of this song, and it’s our first time to play this song live. In general, we’re looking forward to playing our Cantonese songs.
Who do you want to meet backstage?
Everyone! But we’d love to meet the Japanese band Toe, and if he’s there, Daru Jones—he’s a drummer who played for Jack White.
R.O.O.T
Above R.O.O.T will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday
When: Saturday, November 30 at 3:15pm
Where: Harbourflap Stage
Genre: Neo-jazz
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap?
We’re incredibly excited! We’ve been attending this festival almost every year, and this year, being able to perform on stage is a completely different experience for us.
What energy would you like your set to bring to the festival?
This time, we want to bring a performance of Hong Kong Cantonese pop songs to everyone. We’ll include our original songs along with some of our own arrangements, hoping to surprise the audience and create a contrast with the overall vibe of the festival.
What song are you the most excited to perform and why?
We’re most excited to perform our new song, which is a duet. It’s our first time singing it live, and we’re honoured to have Jaime joining us for this performance.
Who do you want to meet backstage?
We’d love to see familiar faces of the crew and fellow musicians backstage. It would be great to chat, have a drink, and enjoy a weekend filled with music together.
$alty Chick
Above $alty Chick will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday
When: Saturday, November 30 at 2pm
Where: Park Stage by Martell
Genre: R’n’B, indie-pop
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap?
It’s very exciting to perform at Clockenflap, it’s been my dream since I was a kid! I remember the first time I went to the festival while studying at university, I thought it would be amazing to perform there. And then I gave up music for a bit—Asian kid stuff you know—but here I am again, 8 years later!
What energy would you like your set to bring to the festival?
My previous shows were kind of like a “cult performance,” but this time I really want to win new audiences over by performing different genres. So this time, the setlist will include City pop, R’n’B, indie-pop, shoegaze and trip-hop. So very different from my previous performances. I just want people to enjoy the music regardless of the language and context. I believe music speaks for itself. So come over even if you don’t speak Cantonese.
What has been your biggest challenge in preparing for your performance?
The biggest challenge was to bring my bandmates from England to work with me in a Hong Kong setting. We only have one week to rehearse face-to-face in Hong Kong until the festival, so this is going to be an experience. Hopefully, everything will be fine!
You just released a new album. What song are you the most excited to perform and why?
I will play two songs from my new album. I think it’ll be like a So it’ll be like a summary of my $alty Chick career. For the past few years, I feel that my life has been heavily dominated by $alty Chick in the sense that I’ve used songwriting as a coping mechanism. Maybe I’ll change my process after Clockenflap!
Who do you want to meet backstage?
I want to meet Wisp. It’s a a shoegaze/dream pop American band. I’ve been listening to their songs a lot. I’d love to meet Jack White, but I have a feeling it might be complicated. In general, I’m just happy to come back and hang out with the Hong Kong community.
Serrini
Above Serrini will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday
When: Saturday, November 30 at 7:15pm
Where: Hang Seng Stage
Genre: Canto-pop
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap?
Very honoured to be on stage. I can’t wait to sing to the stunning harbour view. Getting invited to Clockenflap has always been on my list of career goals.
What energy would you like your set to bring to the festival?
Main character energy for sure! My fans are usually quiet and I love seeing/hearing them lose it when I come on stage. I’ll bring a full band sound set with my full witchy energy. I hope to wow the non-Cantonese speakers too.
What has been your biggest challenge in preparing for your performance?
I work with professionals. I don’t feel any challenge concerning the presentation of my set. The challenge could be recovering from jet lag because I just got back from my shows in Canada. I’m always tired!
What song are you the most excited to perform and why?
I have an unreleased song called Hell Fire. It’s pure vibes. I love performing it live with my musicians. I hope the stage can breathe fire. I think it’s a great song to drink along to.
Who do you want to meet backstage?
If I get any photo opportunity with St Vincent or Suede, I’ll probably command so much respect from my friends and they will see my artistry as serious (finally).
You might also like: Serrini on her new song, dressing like a ‘drag queen’ and the importance of conscious philanthropy
The Afroseas
Above The Afroseas will be performing at Clockenflap 2024 on Saturday
When: Sunday, December 1 at 2:15pm
Where: Park Stage by Martell
Genre: Afrobeat
How does it feel to perform at Clockenflap?
Performing at Clockenflap is super exciting! It’s Hong Kong’s biggest festival, and it’s our first time there. We can't wait to hit the stage and share it with so many amazing artists.
What energy would you like your set to bring to the festival?
We want to fill the room with uplifting Afrobeat vibes that get everyone dancing and singing along. Our goal is to create a fun atmosphere where everyone feels included. We want the crowd to walk away with awesome memories and a feeling of togetherness.
What has been your biggest challenge in preparing for your performance?
The toughest part has been nailing down our setlist and making sure every song transitions smoothly to the next. We want to keep things exciting, so mixing crowd favourites with new tracks has taken a lot of planning and practice.
What songs are you the most excited to perform and why?
We’re really looking forward to playing our latest single 6am. It shows how much we’ve grown as artists and really connects with our fans. Our classic hits like Anything and To the Boat also get the crowd going, and it’s such a thrill to see their reactions!
Who do you want to meet backstage?
We’d love to bump into some of our musical heroes, like Jack White. Meeting fellow artists and swapping stories would be such a cool experience. It’s always inspiring to chat and celebrate the creative process together!
Salomé Grouard was Digital Editor and Front & Female Content Lead at Tatler Hong Kong. Primarily focused on managing Tatler Hong Kong’s digital platform and content, she also covers gender equality, the music scene and sports through interviews with industry leaders, experts and trendsetters.
Interview highlights include renowned conservationist Dr Jane Goodall, Korean actor Park Seo Jun, singer Jorja Smith, Chinese TV host Yue-Sai Kan, YouTuber Kimono Mom, Japanese rapper Awich, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighter Mikey Musumeci.
She has also produced stories on revolutionising sexual wellness in Asia, activism within the surfing community, Asian trans musicians reclaiming their narratives through music and looked at the toxicity of gym culture through the lens of the plus-size community. She also covers music festivals, such as Hong Kong’s Clockenflap and Bali’s Suara.
