American singer-songwriter Ethel Cain has been confirmed as the headline act for Depot in the Castle 2026, with a huge outdoor performance at Cardiff Castle scheduled for Friday, 19 June.
The Florida-born artist, whose alter-ego is the creation of multidisciplinary musician Hayden Anhedönia, will bring her acclaimed Willoughby Tucker Forever tour to Wales as part of an extended run of UK and European dates. The tour, which has already sold out arenas across the globe, has been hailed as one of the most in-demand live events of recent years.
Presale tickets for the Cardiff Castle show will be available from 10am on Wednesday via depotlive.co.uk, with general sale opening at 10am on Friday through both depotlive.co.uk and ticketmaster.co.uk.
Cain’s UK audience has grown rapidly, with her 2025 tour selling out within weeks. That run includes five consecutive nights at London’s Eventim Apollo and a highly anticipated opening performance at Manchester’s O2 Apollo next week.
Promoter Nick Saunders of DEPOT Live said: “Announcing Ethel Cain is coming to Cardiff is a coup for us. This tour has sold out globally so we are delighted to have secured a date here at the Castle for summer 2026. This will be a very special show.”
Cain first rose to prominence after releasing her 2021 EP Inbred, which she wrote, recorded, produced and mixed herself from the basement of an old church in Indiana. Since then, she has become one of the most talked-about names in contemporary music, with her powerful sound attracting the attention of none other than former US President Barack Obama, who recently included her on his annual playlist.
Earlier this month, Cain completed the US leg of her tour before being announced as part of the Coachella 2026 line-up. Her expansion into Australia and New Zealand also required extra dates to be added due to unprecedented demand, with more than 170,000 tickets sold globally in just a few weeks earlier this year.
Her Cardiff appearance will see her join an impressive summer line-up at the Castle, with Alter Bridge’s Blackbird Festival and David Gray already confirmed, and further announcements still to come.
