The inspiring story behind the youngest band to ever play Glastonbury: “I don’t let my condition stop me”

nme.com:

Glastonbury, have spoken to NME about the honour of playing this year’s festival – and fighting diversity in the face of a rare condition.This year’s festival will see performances from giants including Arctic Monkeys, Guns N’ Roses and Elton John, but also the Glasto debut from the youngest-ever artists to perform at the Worthy Farm event.

Meet Askew, the 16-year-old indie rockers with an inspirational message.Remember where you were at age 16? Well for Askew — formed of Eli, Freddie, Alfie, Jay and Will – the answer is wildly different to most, as they take this week off from their GCSE revision to perform at Glastonbury 2023.Having formed roughly seven years ago, the band of five close friends explained to NME how meaningful their music is to them, with songwriting is a self-proclaimed sense of “therapy”, and an escape from the devastating circumstances surrounding their frontman, Eli Crossley.Diagnosed with a rare condition called Duchenne muscular dystrophy when he was just three-years-old, Eli’s parents were told their son would be in a wheelchair at 12, and most likely not see the age of 25.

The condition is caused by a faulty dystrophin gene — a protein that essentially acts like a coat hanger and stabilises muscle cells — and means that the singer is increasingly unable to complete everyday tasks.“I get challenges every day to do certain things that some people may find easier, but it hasn’t affected my music,” he told NME, reflecting on what inspired him to start the band. “Music is a sort of therapy.

It’s kind of a way to just escape and have fun with your friends.”He continued: “I think that that’s why I love music so much, because I’m able to do it and I’m able to really focus on it.