Iconic vocalist discloses that police recommended against her headlining Glastonbury.

Suzanne Vega opens up about the death threats she received before headlining Glastonbury (Picture: Lorne Thomson/Redferns)

Suzanne Vega has shared that police ‘advised’ her not to play her historic headline show at Glastonbury in 1989. Vega’s performance at the Worthy Farm festival marked the first time a woman had ever headlined Glastonbury.

In a new interview, she revealed that not everyone was happy about the step forward for female musicians, disclosing she received death threats ahead of the performance. She said: ‘Scotland Yard sat me down and said, “We advise you not to do the show.” I was like, “Are you kidding me?”’

Both Vega and the bass player she performed with had received violent threats, some even on the day of the gig. The singer continued, remembering that she agreed to wear a bulletproof vest during the show.

‘A man from Scotland Yard took his and said, “You’ll have to wear this.” He was twice my size, so I had to gaffer tape myself into this giant bulletproof vest, and then put a denim jacket over it.’

‘It felt like every song was 20 minutes long,’ she continued. ‘It was not comfortable. We were all nervous.’ Despite the difficulties, she said, ‘I’m proud of being the first woman to headline,’ she said. ‘There’s nothing diminished about that.’

An American singer-songwriter and author, Vega is widely regarded as one of the leading figures of the folk revival movement that emerged in the 1980s.

Vega wore a bullet-proof vest during the performance (Picture: Christian Rose/Roger Viollet via Getty Images)

She was the first female headliner of the festival (Picture: Publicity Picture)

She said there’s nothing ‘diminished’ about the experience despite the death threats (Picture: Publicity Picture)

She gained international acclaim with her 1987 album Solitude Standing, which featured the hit singles Luka and the a cappella Tom’s Diner, later famously remixed and becoming a global dance hit. The track earned her the nickname ‘the mother of the MP3’ due to its role in early digital audio experiments.

Since Vega’s trailblazing performance at Glastonbury, many female headliners have taken the stage, with this year’s festival kicking off on June 25. The event has announced headliners including Neil Young, The 1975, and Olivia Rodrigo taking the top Pyramid Stage spots, alongside Rod Stewart in the Sunday legend slot. Elsewhere, artists like Doechii, Charli XCX, Biffy Clyro, Alanis Morissette, Raye, The Prodigy, and Noah Kahan are all set to perform across various stages, with legendary bands such as The Libertines, The Maccabees, and The Scissor Sisters also featured in the lineup.

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