‘We’d never done anything like that, [performing on a stage] with big screens either side,’ Westside Cowboy guitarist James (Jimmy) Bradbury tells M about the experience of performing on Glastonbury Festival’s Woodsies stage back in the summer.
Bassist Aoife Anson O’Connell adds: ‘We weren’t expecting anyone to be there, but there were — which was amazing.’ For guitarist Reuben Haycocks, meanwhile, the coveted slot ‘was a definite pinch-me moment’.
These reflections from the Manchester four-piece, completed by drummer Paddy Murphy, all feature in our new documentary, The Journey to Glastonbury: Westside Cowboy. You can watch it in full below.
Centred around their victory in Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent Competition 2025, the film features an in-depth interview with Westside Cowboy in which they discuss the origins of the band, the process of entering and performing in the ETC final, and their subsequent experience of performing multiple sets at this year’s Glastonbury.
The video also includes contributions from PRS Foundation’s Senior Grants and Programmes Manager Becci Scotcher, who speaks about the Foundation’s long-standing support for Glastonbury, ETC and new and emerging music creators from all backgrounds.
As winners of this year’s ETC, Westside Cowboy received a £5,000 Talent Development prize from the Foundation (as well as that slot on the Woodsies stage), while two £2,5000 Talent Development prizes were awarded to runners-up Nat Oaks and Mali Hâf.
Westside Cowboy’s next headline UK tour will begin on 18 November in Norwich, while their second EP So Much Country ‘Till We Get There will be released via Adventure Recordings on 16 January.
