Jay-Z, Rihanna to play London 2012 Festival

Jay-Z, Rihanna, Elton John and David Guetta will perform during the London 2012 Festival, a nation-wide cultural celebration in the United Kingdom tied to the Summer Olympics.

Kicking off on Thursday (June 21), the festival will include films by Alfred Hitchcock and Mike Leigh and art by Yoko Ono. It will run until September 9, include 12,000 events and performances throughout the Summer and Paralympic Games in London. Organizers will give away 10 million free tickets in addition to ticketed events.

One of the festival's biggest events will be a free BBC Radio 1 concert on June 23 and 24 featuring musical acts such as Jay-Z, Rihanna, Flo Rida, David Guetta, Jessie J, Lana Del Rey, Leona Lewis, Tinie Tempah, Plan B, Florence and the Machine and Jack White, among others.

The event is also part of the radio station's Hackney Weekend 2012 and is expected to attract 100,000 attendees.

Actor Jude Law will co-produce a concert in Northern Ireland for Peace One Day, an organization dedicated to the idea of having a year free of conflict. Elton John will also headline the concert at London's Wembley Arena in September to mark the closing of the London 2012 Festival.

(via Billboard)

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