‘Follow the Sun’ to the Airlie Beach Festival of Music

Xavier Rudd, Mark Seymour, Mental as Anything, The Whitlams, Conrad Sewell, Nathan Cavaleri and more, complete main stage lineup for November 2026

The call is out for fans of Xavier Rudd to ‘Follow the Sun’ to the 2026 Airlie Beach Festival of Music from November 6-8.

Set to arrive straight from a European festival tour, the popular Australian singer-songwriter says in addition to his much-loved catalogue of hits, a few surprises are in store for ticketholders at the Whitsundays’ iconic waterfront ‘party in paradise’.

“My music is definitely a celebration of our natural world, so a place like Airlie feels especially aligned with songs like ‘Follow the Sun’,” he said.

“These are the kinds of shows I love, and hopefully, weather permitting, we can actually pull down the tent and play under the stars!”

Hunters and Collectors frontman, Mark Seymour, is another homegrown success story who’ll be packing his bags to join Rudd at Queensland’s ‘ultimate music holiday’.  

“Think sunshine, beach, short trousers, open-toe shoes – it’s incredibly beautiful and a pretty unique part of the world,” he said, committing to both “a significantly updated set”, and the delivery of classics now etched into the musical story of the nation, like ‘Talking to a Stranger’, ‘Throw Your Arms Around Me’ and ‘Holy Grail’.

Also urging festivalgoers to ‘Live it Up’ in Airlie Beach is beloved Australian band Mental As Anything, whose performance will form part of a historic 50^th anniversary tour, comprising a limited number of exclusive festival appearances and select metropolitan headline shows.  

Original member and iconic pop artist, Reg Mombassa, is promising fans a rare and unforgettable opportunity to experience the band’s timeless hits live once more, and celebrate their unique blend of songwriting, artistry, and performance flair.

In total agreeance that there’s ‘No Aphrodisiac’ quite like it, are The Whitlams, whose frontman Tim Freedman says the band is thrilled to be one of the festival’s headliners for 2026.  

“I’ve been wanting to return to the Whitsundays for decades and now we have the chance,” he said, adding: “it’s a great line-up, music lifts the soul, and we rock!”

Chart-topper Conrad Sewell is similarly primed to add some signature tunes to the mix, including his juggernaut Kygo collaboration, ‘Firestone’, and platinum hit ‘Healing Hands’.  

Meanwhile, Nathan Cavaleri, the former child prodigy whose talents became the focus of a bidding war between the record labels of Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince, cites energy, presence, and human connection as qualities he’ll be bringing to the event.  

Other additions to the 2026 lineup include The Radiators, Adam Harvey, 19-Twenty, Skinny Living (UK), Little Quirks, Ben Ransom, Nicky Bomba’s ‘Bustamento’, Loonaloop, Salt & Steel and the Airlie Beach Festival of Music’s 2025 Passport to Airlie competition winners, Monroe.  

The Airlie Beach Festival of Music features more than 60 acts, spread throughout 16 venues, with a main stage on the water’s edge at the Whitsunday Sailing Club.  

Tickets are on sale now at www.airliebeachfestivalofmusic.com.au costing $340 for a three-day pass, or $1,200 for a VIP package, both including entry to the opening and after parties that bookend the main event.  

The Airlie Beach Festival of Music is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland, along with Whitsunday Regional Council and the Whitsunday Sailing Club.  

The event was a finalist in the 2026 Queensland Music Awards for the People’s Choice Award ‘Festival of the Year’.

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