Entertainment Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, Queens of the Stone Age, Girl in Red and more lit up the Oslo mega festival, which had plenty of voices raised for Palestine Since its debut in 1999, Oslo’s Øya Festival has steadily grown in reputation, and 2025 might just have marked its biggest edition yet. The lineup included pop stars like Chappell Roan and Charli XCX, plus Norway’s own big export Girl in Red and one for the rock crowd, Queens of the Stone Age (who were perhaps making good on their promise to play the festival after dropping out last year due to an illness besetting frontman Josh Homme). If you can withstand the occasionally distinctly sharp winds that cut through Toyen Park on the regular, Øya was a high-energy summer festival for all intents and purposes. Taking place from Aug. 6 to 9, 2025, some locals said it was one last big festival before the end of summer (read: when the sun sets at 9:30 pm and sunrise is around 5:30 am) and luckily for us, there was just about an hour of heavy rain during these four days, when most people took refuge under the tent of the Sirkus stage before American guitar ace Mk.gee stepped up on day four. He asked if everyone was staying dry, but also faced a few sound issues, which he attributed to the weather. “The rain is doing some funky stuff to our gear right now, but we’ll get through it,” he said. The headliners aim high Music festivals all around the world have become the platform for artists to speak out about death, starvation, and conflict in Palestine over the last couple of years. At Øya Festival—amid attendees sporting flags and keffiyehs, wearing T-shirts condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza, and even food stalls selling Palestinian cola and donating proceeds to those working actively to aid Palestinians—the messages felt more heightened than ever. The front row crowd at Charli XCX’s headline set at Oya Festival 2025. Photo: Oyafestivalen – Helge Brekke Without a doubt, the likes of Chappell Roan and Charli XCX delivered power-packed, clout-worthy performances on day one and two, respectively. On day one, fuzzy pink cowboy hats, white face paint, and plenty of Chappell Roan merch were abound among fans in the roughly 20,000 in attendance. Roan played her new single “The Subway” for the first time since releasing the song, while also giving the crowd a fantastical dose of her world with hits like “Pink Pony Club” and “Good Luck, Babe!” plus a cover of Heart’s “Barracuda.” It was Roan in rockstar mode with her band, even as she presented a castle-like stage décor and Disney-like animated visuals alongside pyrotechnics. Cheered on by audiences, even cuts like “The Giver” were punctuated with humor that involved Roan reading out crowdsourced complaints about partners. It was the Midwest Princess’ world, and we were just living in it (with her mom in the crowd!) for a solid 90 minutes. Chappell Roan live at Øya Festival 2025 in Oslo, Norway. On day two, the U.K.’s Charli XCX kept her Brat summer in full swing, delivering the festival’s most high-energy set entirely solo. As a headliner, she made time fly, claiming space and partying down in a way that feels frenetic and freeing at the same time. Her setlist moved from “Von Dutch” and “360” to “Sympathy Is a Knife” and “Party 4 U,” with remixed takes on “Guess,” “Girl, So Confusing,” and “365” (alongside its original), all while sporting her signature black shades. She sprinkled in lighthearted moments too—spotting a fan dancing to “Apple,” sharing banter about her recent wedding before “Everything Is Romantic,” and revving up the energy on “Speed Drive” with nods to fast cars. If day one belonged to Chappell Roan’s cosplay army, day two of Øya Festival was drenched in Brat green—flags, banners, T-shirts, nail art, tote bags, even knitted keepsakes—topped off with plenty of Y2K sunglasses. “I love coming here,” Charli told the Oslo crowd. “You have great tap water, coffee, interior design, and phone makers, if you know what I mean. Just a generally good vibe.” Charli XCX live at Øya Festival in Oslo, Norway on Aug. 7, 2025. Day three’s headliners, Queens of the Stone Age, drew a clear shift in the audience—from the Gen Z and Gen Alpha festival-goers of earlier days to a slightly older, rock-loving crowd eager to watch Josh Homme and crew tear it up. Though at times visibly worn, Homme’s energy never faltered. He told Oslo they were there purely to have fun and even instructed security to let fans crowd surf and perch on each other’s shoulders. Opening with the curveball of “No One Knows” right out of the gate, the band kept the momentum going with heavy-hitters like “I Sat By the Ocean,” “Misfit Love,” and “Smooth Sailing.” For “The Vampyre of Time and Memory,” Homme lit a cigarette, and as lighters flickered across the field, he grew a little emotional, taking in the rare sight of a clear night sky. The crowd lapped it up, breaking into a unified sing-along for “Make It Wit Chu.” True to form, QOTSA leaned into their rockstar bravado—Homme and guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen trading playful shoves as drummer Jon Theodore powered through a solo—before closing with a thunderous finale of “Go With the Flow” and “A Song for the Dead.” Queens of the Stone Age bandleader Josh Homme live at Øya Festival 2025. Photo: Øyafestivalen – Johannes Granseth The message is loud and clear Girl in Red, headlining the final day of Øya Festival, was the only headliner artist on the Amfiet stage to relay a message to free Palestine toward the end of her set, during “I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend.” It showed just how resolute Marie Ulven Ringheim was to make her homecoming match up to Norway’s stand on the ongoing humanitarian disaster. Girl in Red’s high-energy, soul-baring, endearing set was as good a marker as any for perhaps what Øya