On Saturday, 14 November 2026, Berlin’s Festsaal Kreuzberg becomes the setting for a very special celebration: 20 Years of F-Cat Festival. To mark two decades of bringing international and local artists to German stages, F-Cat has assembled a genre-crossing line-up across two stages - moving from funk, jazz and hip-hop to Arabic rock, punk, soul, breakbeat and house.
Doors open at 6:00 pm, with the show beginning at 6:30 pm. Tickets are available through DICE, and the evening is expected to stretch well beyond the final live set thanks to an afterparty with a DJ set from Kraak & Smaak.
A Festival Built on Curiosity
F-Cat has spent twenty years presenting artists from around the world, and this anniversary night feels less like a single concert than a miniature map of the label’s musical interests: global sounds, live instrumentation, dancefloor energy and artists who refuse to stay inside one genre.
The line-up includes French collective DELUXE, honey-voiced soul newcomer Charlotte Colace (appearing with another standout artist/band - blues guitarist extraordinaire Will Jacobs - a transplant from Chicago - and his backing band The Unit; Danish trio Smag På Dig Selv, Berlin-based Palestinian singer-songwriter Rasha Nahas, local underground acts Sonic Interventions, Ziggy Zeitgeist and Sorvina, plus a closing DJ set from Dutch outfit Kraak & Smaak.
DELUXE: Absolutely guaranteed to get the party started
If one act embodies the festival’s spirit, it is probably DELUXE. Formed in Aix-en-Provence in 2007, the French group began as street musicians before developing into a six-piece collective known for its playful, high-energy blend of funk, jazz, rock, pop, electro and hip-hop.
Their live shows are built around groove, charisma and collective joy. Qualities that make them an ideal headliner for an anniversary party, not a conventional seated concert. Expect brass, rhythm, danceable basslines and the kind of stage presence that turns a venue into one large, sweaty celebration.
Charlotte Colace with Will Jacobs and The Unit as backing band - this collaboration is worth the ticket price alone
One of the standout artists coming up in Berlin at the moment - especially if you like a bit of soul - is the French/Cuban singer Charlotte Colace. Singing backup for various acts since coming to Berlin in 2018, she's more recently been blowing people away as an artist in her own right.
Will Jacobs is a blues guitarist and singer in the classic mold. Having moved to Berlin from his native Chicago, he's been doing the round of Berlin clubs over the last few years, having also become a mainstay of the legendary jazz/blues venue Quasimodo. His project with The Unit features classic soul, blues and funk from a startlingly good guitarist and performer.
Charlotte Colace with Will Jacobs and his backing band The Unit should be a concert to go down in history.
Smag På Dig Selv: Punk Meets Dancefloor
Denmark’s Smag På Dig Selv bring one of the more unusual sounds of the night: a trio built around two saxophones and drums, mixing acoustic techno, raw punk energy and 1990s-inspired dance music.
Since 2018, they have developed a reputation for intense, euphoric performances. Their debut album, SPDS, arrived in 2024, and that same year they received a Danish Music Award for “New Live Act of the Year.” For anyone who likes experimental club music with a rebellious edge, this is likely one of the discoveries of the evening.
Rasha Nahas: Poetry, Punk and Belonging
Berlin-based Palestinian artist Rasha Nahas offers a contrasting but equally compelling side of the programme. Born in Haifa, she creates music that moves between Arabic and English, combining electric rock, poetry, punk, folk and trans-traditional influences.
Her debut album, Desert (2021), explored migration, identity and inner transformation after her move to Berlin. Her performance promises something more intimate and layered than pure dancefloor escapism: music that asks questions about home, language and belonging while still carrying a strong live pulse.
Berlin’s Underground Takes the Stage
The festival also gives space to Berlin’s own scene. Sonic Interventions work within spiritual and experimental jazz, while Ziggy Zeitgeist blends jazzy, funky textures with breakbeat and house, drawing listeners toward the dancefloor.
Sorvina, alongside the above-mentioned Charlotte Colace and Will Jacobs and The Unit, adds a soulful Berlin dimension to the bill. The collective’s live configurations centre on Sorvina Carr’s vocals, with support from keyboards, bass, drums and guitar, making them a strong fit for an evening that moves fluidly between concert and party.
Kraak & Smaak Close the Night
The afterparty belongs to Kraak & Smaak, the Dutch trio whose sound sits at the intersection of jazz, electronic music, soul and funk. Rather than ending the night with a conventional final song, the organisers seem to be treating the afterparty as part of the festival experience itself.
For anyone who enjoys discovering music across borders and genres, 20 Years of F-Cat looks like one of Berlin’s most exciting November nights: a celebration not only of an anniversary, but of live music as a space where funk, punk, poetry and club culture can share the same room.
Featured photo by Yvonne Hartmann