KC and The Sunshine Band

Get set to put on your boogie shoes and party when disco legends KC and the Sunshine Band, Village People and Sister Sledge combine for a huge Australian tour this December.

Disco fever will Melbourne’s Margaret Court Arena and Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion this December, as well as touring the country with five a day on the green outdoor shows.

All artists will perform with full bands, including an impressive 15-piece outfit with KC and the Sunshine Band.

The Australian tour sees the welcome return of original lead singer and ‘cop’, Victor Willis – the first time he’s performed with the Village People in more than 25 years.

“The biggest initial break in my career was in Australia in 1976 when I starred as the Tin Man in the Australian version of ‘The Wiz’,” said Victor. “So really, it all started for me there. Therefore, it’s fitting that I kick off my return as the lead singer in Australia because the people there loved me first.”

Picture this: The king of boogie and the queens of disco sharing the same stage with a cowboy, a construction worker, a Native American, a policeman, a biker and a soldier at an event jam-packed with guaranteed party-starters.  Can you dig it! We’re talking: ‘That’s The Way (I Like It)’, ‘Give It Up’, ‘Boogie Shoes’, ‘Get Down Tonight’, ‘Shake Your Booty’, ‘Can’t Stop The Music’, ‘Y.M.C.A’, ‘In The Navy’, ‘Macho Man’, ‘We Are Family’, ‘He’s The Greatest Dancer’ - and that’s just for starters!

Get up and shake your booty with the kings of disco, KC and the Sunshine Band. Formed in Miami, Florida in 1973 by Harry Wayne Casey (KC), the band ruled the charts in the mid-’70s with four number one hits in a row – ‘Get Down Tonight’, ‘That’s The Way (I Like It)’, ‘(Shake Shake Shake) Shake Your Booty’ and ‘I’m Your Boogie Man’. The string of hits kept coming with ‘Keep It Comin’ Love’, ‘Boogie Shoes’, and 1980 saw them top the Australian and US charts with ‘Please Don’t Go’. In 1983, the band made a welcome return to dancefloors around the world with the chart-topping ‘Give It Up’.

With irresistible elements of funk, disco and R&B, KC’s music has resonated with fans for four decades. The Grammy Award-winners have sold more than 100 million records and were honoured with a star on the prestigious Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2015, KC and the Sunshine Band released Feeling You! The ’60s, KC’s tribute to the era that shaped him. Celebrating more than 40 years of making booties shake, they’ve been a frequent visitor to our shores over the decades and were last here in 2014.

Also celebrating 40 years in show business, Village People have sold more than 100 million records and ingrained themselves into pop culture history with some of the biggest hits and most memorable characters of all time. Created by French music producer and composer Jacques Morali in 1977, the Village People quickly became one of the most successful acts of the disco era with their flamboyant albums and catchy songs, including the Top 10 smash hits on the Australian charts – ‘Can’t Stop The Music’, ‘Y.M.C.A’, ‘In The Navy’ and ‘Macho Man’. The guys are also great mates with KC – he wrote and produced their 2013 single ‘Let’s Go Back To The Dance Floor’.

The Village People have always shared a special bond with their Australian fans. The Can’t Stop The Music movie – starring the Village People, Valerie Perrine, Bruce Jenner and Steve Guttenberg – found its biggest audience in Australia, and is now shown every New Year’s Eve on Channel Nine. In 2004, the band performed at the NRL Grand Final and even made a film here in 1998 called Village People Go North Down Under, sharing music and culture with Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory.

In 1979 Sister Sledge teamed with Chic’s Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards and released their iconic album We Are Family. The album’s first single, ‘He’s The Greatest Dancer’, shook up dancefloors around the world, while the follow-up title track skyrocketed the group into disco royalty.  Other hits include ‘Lost In Music’, ‘Thinking Of You’ and 1985 saw them back at the top of the charts with ‘Frankie’. As one of the original “girl groups”, Grammy Award-nominees Sister Sledge have collected a string of Gold and Platinum records and sold more than 15 million records worldwide. Known for their electrifying live shows, they have performed on some of the most prestigious stages in the world. As the Chicago Tribune said, “Sister Sledge has the stuff legends are made of.”

Joining the celebration at a day on the green will be Australia’s own disco royalty – Marcia Hines.

Marcia Hines came to Australia in 1970 from Boston to star in the stage musical Hair. She was just 16 and had no idea where Australia was – she thought she was going to Austria. But Marcia quickly became one of our most-loved stars, crowned Queen of Pop in 1976, 1977 and 1978, and having hits in three decades, with 11 Top 40 entries, including ‘You’, ‘From The Inside’, ‘I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself’ and ‘Music Is My Life’. She was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2007 and received the Order of Australia (AM) in 2009. Marcia shows no signs of slowing down, recently starring in the smash hit musical Velvet.

If you wanna feel the funk and get down with da boogie, this is the show for you!  Feathers, sequins and cowboy hats optional.   As the Village People say: You can’t stop the music!