Apple Music Festival Bringing Pharrell, One Direction, and More to London

Apple today announced its 2015 Apple Music Festival lineup for next month, a free concert series that will bring Pharrell, One Direction, Florence + The Machine, and more to London's Roundhouse. A revamped version of the previous iTunes Festival, the 2015 version will see a scaled-down lineup with ten dates from September 19–28, down from the usual 30 nights extending throughout the month.

Apple will broadcast performances to music fans around the world for free, which can be viewed live and on-demand on Apple Music. The Apple Music Festival lets fans get even closer to their favorite performers with coverage on Beats 1℠ alongside backstage news and footage straight from the artists on Apple Music Connect.

“We wanted to do something really special for music fans this year,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “The Apple Music Festival is a greatest hits set of ten unbelievable nights featuring some of the best performers on the planet appearing live and interacting directly with their fans on Connect and Beats 1.”

With only a handful of artists announced so far, the remainder of the concert schedule will be filled out in the coming weeks. MacRumors has heard Take That will be part of the lineup, but Apple did not include the band in its initial round of announcements.

Admission for all concerts is free, but only UK residents can apply to win tickets with additional passes being made available through media partner giveaways.