There are festivals you attend, and then there are festivals that quietly rewire you.
For more than two decades, Splore has been the latter — a three-day fever dream of music, art, ritual and release set against the wild beauty of Tāpapakanga Regional Park. From February 20th–22nd, the beloved Aotearoa gathering will stage its final chapter, closing the loop on a cultural experiment that has long felt more like a living organism than a lineup announcement.
Yes, there’s the music: a globe-spanning roll call that stretches from Röyksopp’s DJ set to Sister Nancy, Nightmares on Wax, Parson James and Miss Kaninna, anchored by a fiercely local contingent including Tami Neilson, Jess B, Estère and Christoph El Truento. But Splore has never been just about who’s on the poster. It’s cabaret chaos and high-camp performance art. It’s Wendy’s Wellness and sunrise yoga. It’s the Lucky Star coffee cart morphing into an entertainment microcosm of its own. It’s a temporary city built on radical joy.
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For its swansong, the festival’s music programme has been co-curated by longtime Splore architect John Minty and DJ, artist and cultural force Shaquille Wasala, better known as Half Queen. Together, they’ve shaped a final soundtrack that nods to Splore’s past while pushing its frequency forward.
Ahead of the closing weekend, Wasala reflects on what it means to help score the end of an era — and why Splore’s absence may leave more than just a dancefloor-shaped hole in Aotearoa’s summer.
Rolling Stone: What did your friends in your music community say when you told them about your Splore news?
Half Queen: All the homies were incredibly gassed and excited. We’ve all been playing and attending for years, so it all made a lot of sense. Full circle.
RS: Tell us about your role at Splore. How did you approach being the festival’s music co-curator?
HQ: My approach to co-curating was to follow John’s lead. He’s incredibly open and always keen to hear my ideas, so the process has been really gratifying and genuine. When it came to booking DJs, he let me have free reign, so from there, and while looking at the past, we were able to co-create the sound of Splore 2026, and the sound of the future.
RS: How was it working with John Minty? He’s an absolute legend in the NZ festival scene.
HQ: John is truly a taonga and it’s been my honour + privilege to work beside him.
RS: It might be an impossible question, but is there one act you’re particularly excited to see at this year’s Splore?
HQ: It changes depending on my mood but right now Christoph El Truento and his avengers.
RS: What makes Splore so special?
HQ: I’ve said it before but it bears repeating especially in this climate: Splore (like many third spaces that need to be protected) is a kind of microcosmic utopia, that, by design, is a pathway for us all into self actualisation, community dreaming and collective catharsis. It grants us all the permission, the space and the time to participate and explore the edges of ourselves, and how we all magically connect, to each other, to art, to the planet. It’s also in the most beautiful location: Tāpapakanga, with tangata whenua as kaitiaki, alongside a very well-oiled festival machine run by a team of incredible people. When intention, creativity and care are at the forefront of communal kaupapa, it feels special. How beautiful and big and brilliant.
RS: On a wider point, what makes Aotearoa such a hotbed for music festivals?
HQ: I don’t think there’s enough to be honest! Feels like more of an ice bath at the moment.
RS: We obviously have to mention the fact it’s Splore’s swansong. Are you going to miss it next year?
HQ: There will be a huge Splore sized hole in all of hearts. I hope it activates people politically, because when there are processes of protection and care in place on a policy/government level, we see cultural stalwarts protected and prioritised. The silver lining is that there’s space for something new to grow.
RS: When you go to see a DJ, what are you hoping to hear from their curated setlist?
HQ: I always hope to hear DJs play whatever is on their heart, whatever is true to them and whatever gets the frequencies buzzing.
RS: When you’re playing a DJ set, what’s the main thing you hope a reveller gets out of it?
HQ: I hope they get to feel something, maybe just the music or them feeling closer to themselves/everyone else.
Tickets to Splore are on sale now.
SPLORE 2026
February 20th-22nd
Tāpapakanga Regional Park, Auckland
Lineup
Röyksopp (dj set) (NO) || Sister Nancy (JM) + Legal Shot (FR) || Nightmares on Wax (UK) || General Levy (UK) + Joe Airwa (UK) || Mind Enterprises (ITA) || Parson James (USA) || Miss Kaninna (AU) || C.Frim (AU) || Illustrious Blacks (USA) || Beatles Dub Club (UK) || Franca (DE)
Tami Neilson || Coco Solid || Jess B || Christoph El Truento (live) || Estère || Dick Move || Romi Wrights || Te KuraHuia || Benny Salvador || Chiccoreli + Tali || DylanBiscuit b2b ajhoneysuckle || BBYFACEKILLA b2b Snakelegs || GoldTooth || Half Queen || ilish || Kaiviti || Marjorie Sinclair || NymphLoads || ORIKoL || Vercetti || WAEWAEXPRESS || Arcadia || Love Language || Hudge || Bobby Brazuka || Dastardly Bounder || DJ Banty || Rose Alice
