Red Bull Unlocked Brings 70 Artists to Cape Town’s Waterfront [Sept 26]

Red Bull Unlocked returns to Cape Town on Saturday, 26 September 2026, taking over Makers Landing at the V&A Waterfront’s Cruise Terminal for one night. Doors open at 14:00 and more than 70 artists and DJs play across 10 venues built under a single roof. One ticket covers every room.

• Date: Saturday, 26 September 2026, doors at 14:00
• Venue: Makers Landing, Cruise Terminal, V&A Waterfront, Cape Town
• Headliners: A-Reece, Jullian Gomes, Dwson, Babalwa M, Oscar Mbo, Dee Koala and 60+ more
• Tickets: one ticket, all 10 venues, pricing still to be confirmed
• Where to buy: the official Red Bull South Africa event page

Lineup and what to expect

The Hub carries the headline weight. A-Reece leads the hip-hop side, while Jullian Gomes, Dwson and Babalwa M anchor the house and amapiano rooms. Oscar Mbo, DJ PH, Sliqe, Dee Koala, Teddy Tumi, CA MA GU and Chelsea Sloan are also confirmed, with Tristan Urwin, DJ Phil, Enrico Celento, Inkosi YaMandebele and Les-D filling out the bill.

The venue list mixes returning favourites with new names. Broke, Fools Gold Social Bar, Souk, Destiny and Drama come back from earlier editions, and Texas, HALO, Beluga, Club Paradise and The Athletics Club & Social join for the first time. You move between bars, clubs and creative spaces without leaving the building, which is the whole appeal of Unlocked: Cape Town’s nightlife compressed into one night and one wristband.

Gqom listeners have a specific room to watch. DJ Abu and Surreal Sessions sit on the Broke lineup, and chatter about those sets started before the full bill dropped. If log drums and gqom rhythms are your pull, get in early and hold that room before the bigger sets drain it.

Tickets, transport and timing

Tickets are live through the official Red Bull South Africa event page. No public price, tier breakdown or sold-out notice has been confirmed yet, so check the page directly before locking in plans. There are no separate door fees per room, one ticket covers the full night.

• Buy tickets: official Red Bull Unlocked page
• Platform: Red Bull South Africa’s own event page, no third-party ticketing confirmed
• Price: not yet published, watch the official page for updates
• Entry: one ticket for all 10 venues, doors from 14:00

Logistics are straightforward. The Cruise Terminal sits inside the V&A Waterfront, so you’re within reach of MyCiTi buses, waterfront parking and a short ride from the CBD. Past editions partnered with Uber on safe rides home, and previous Unlocked nights ran from the afternoon deep into the night. Age limits for 2026 haven’t been published, so confirm on the ticket page if that matters for your group.

What the gqom crowd is saying

Scrolling the gqom side of X this week, Unlocked keeps popping up in end-of-month plans. One post lists “Red bull unlocked end of the month” among the dates worth keeping open, while joking that the wider gqom calendar looks dry otherwise. For plenty of gqom listeners, this is the event holding the month together.

Promo activity backs up the interest. Red Bull ZA has been rolling out lineup reveals and Absa ran a ticket giveaway around the event, which usually points to solid demand. No date clashes, venue complaints or major fan friction have surfaced this round.

History explains the confidence. Unlocked launched in Johannesburg in 2023, debuted in Cape Town in 2024 with 10 venues, expanded in 2025 and now returns to Makers Landing with a blend of returning rooms and first-timers. It slots into the Red Bull music events we’ve covered before, and the format has settled into something Cape Town knows how to show up for.

The bottom line: if amapiano, Afro house, gqom or hip-hop is your lane and you want a full night of it without venue-hopping across the city, this is the easiest ticket in Cape Town on 26 September. Buy through the official Red Bull page while details are still being finalised, and aim to arrive when doors open at 14:00 so you can work through all 10 rooms before the headline sets pull the crowds.