06 February 2018
Newsdesk
Southbank Centre today announces the curator of its 25th Meltdown festival: The Cure's Robert Smith, promising a line-up of unique performances in the intimate and iconic Southbank Centre settings from 15-24 June 2018.
He will follow in the footsteps of 24 legendary artists selected to share their vision as curators of Meltdown - from the very first curator, British composer George Benjamin in 1993, though other luminaries such as John Peel, David Bowie, Nick Cave, Patti Smith, Massive Attack, Ray Davies, Yoko Ono and David Byrne to the most recent curator, M.I.A in 2017.
Robert Smith is the lead singer, guitarist, lyricist and principal songwriter of The Cure, and its only constant member since the group's formation in 1978. One of popular music's defining bands and an international phenomenon, The Cure's path to commercial success took the Alternative Rock genre mainstream around the world. The band has influenced the history of music and wider popular culture over a staggeringly successful 40-year career, releasing 13 studio albums, more than 40 singles and performing around 1,500 concerts to date, garnering numerous awards along the way including a Brit for Best British Band, an MTV Icon Award, a Q Inspiration Award and NME's Godlike Genius Award. Smith himself has also been presented with an Ivor Novello Award for International Achievement.
As well as leading The Cure, Smith is an iconic figure in his own right, with an influence reaching across popular culture, film, art, and fashion. Amongst his countless collaborations, he has appeared in Comedy Central's South Park,
