Okeechobee Music & Arts Festival has announced the Phase 2 lineup for Okeechobee 2018, which takes place March 1-4, 2018 at Sunshine Grove in Okeechobee, FL. The PoWoW! superstar mashup is set to include Snoop Dogg, as well as other headlining artists TBA. Additionally, Lil Dicky, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Ski Mask The Slump God, The Funky Meters, Smino, NoMBe, Berhana, Liquid Stranger, and more have been added to the Okeechobee 2018 lineup. Tickets are still on sale with Tier 1 pricing set to end this Friday Dec. 15 at 11:59PM.
Earlier this month, about 50,000 music enthusiasts gathered at Carson Creek Ranch for the 6th annual Euphoria Music Festival, held from April 6-9, 2017. Tucked away along the Colorado River and on the outskirts of Austin, this year’s event included a diverse lineup of live music, DJs, and hip-hop artists, including artists like Alesso, Chromeo, Zeds Dead, Pretty Lights Live, The Floozies, Oliver Heldens, Moby, Papadosio, Yotto, Wiz Khalifa, and a slew of other musical talent. In addition to the music, Euphoria continued its successful Ecophoria initiative: a comprehensive program that aims to preserve Carson Creek Ranch and its surroundings. The Ecophoria initiative tackles some of the issues that affect music festivals by setting up donation bins drop-offs (to keep campers from leaving unwanted items behind), encouraging carpooling and recycling, setting up water stations for filling up reusable containers, employing a Green Team to manage waste and encourage mindful participation, organizing river cleanups, and more.
With the venue being so close to Austin, one might wonder how Euphoria could serve as a traditional escape from the mundane and normal life that many attendants tend to look for in a music festival, but upon arriving at Carson Creek Ranch, all doubts would be washed away upon seeing the musical sanctuary that hosts Euphoria. The festival features three stages, the largest of which is aptly named Euphoria, sporting pyrotechnics, fireworks, and a traditional array of lights and lasers to complement the musical performances. Due to unfortunate circumstances with flights, The Knocks were left grounded in Atlanta, with The Disco Biscuits filling in on Friday. In addition to the two sets of The Disco Biscuits, Pretty Lights Live closed out the main stage on Friday, putting on a display of live music, lights, and lasers—a relaxed way to kick-off an eventful weekend.
Pretty Lights closing out the main stage Friday night at Euphoria 2017
The weekend kicked it up a notch at the main stage on Saturday evening. Poolside put on a show that was naturally appropriate for an early pool party vibe. Towards the end of their set, the percussionist jumped out into the crowd to join the dancing fans and to preach a message of love and friendship. Artists Bakermat and Bob Moses continued the trend of live instruments mixed together with DJing as Bakermat incorporated a live saxophonist, while Bob Moses performed with a live guitar, drums, and keyboard. The tempo increased later in the night as Oliver Heldens and Alesso played the last two dance-heavy sets of the main stage. Meanwhile, Chromeo’s Sunday performance felt retro with their Nu Disco style.
The Elements Stage displays a large colored cutout of a coyote’s head, with lights projecting onto the cutout, and illuminated eyes that scan the crowds at night—watchful eyes overlooking the dancing madness of the weekend. Friday night, Chet Porter put on a sunset performance, which was followed up by heavier acts like SPAG HEDDY, Minnesota, Mija, and Knife Party. Saturday night saw a mixture of dance music like CID and Alan Walker, mixed in with some hip-hop and rap like Post Malone and Young Thug. Sunday’s Elements Stage worked its way through some crunchier sounds, with artists like BREDE, The Widdler, and ill-esha, giving way to more dance-centric artists like The Funk Hunters, Lost Kings, and the legendary Moby. Zeds Dead closed out the main stage Sunday night with a grimey dubstep set that had the whole crowd going wild.
Z’s up for Zeds Dead, closing out the Elements Stage on the last night of Euphoria 2017
The Dragonfly Stage sits adjacent to the Colorado River, with crowds facing the river. At night, projected lights bounce around the amphitheater and onto the river behind the stage, setting the tone for an immersive musical experience. FKJ (short for French Kiwi Juice) took full advantage of the Dragonfly ambience, getting the whole place groovy on Friday night. Meanwhile, Prince Fox incorporated his signature style of remixing old pop tracks into contemporary dance tunes. Later in the night, Yotto took the crowd on a musical journey through trance and house music.
Yotto at the Dragonfly Stage at Euphoria 2017
With a weekend full of musical diversity, taking place on sprawling fields and along the Colorado River, we found our euphoria at Euphoria Music Festival. Did you find yours?
BUKU Music + Art Project 2017 is right around the corner. If you’re interested in attending, but haven’t purchased tickets yet, all ticket options are still available for purchase. Make sure to check the schedule and plan accordingly. BUKU is slated to be an incredible exhibit of music and art. Check out some of the artists that we’re excited to see.
Malaa The mysterious Malaa broke into the scene in 2015 donning a black ski mask. The identity remains a secret, but the project seems related in some way to DJ Snake, Tchami, and Mercer, three artists that share the same manager, and have similar roots in the French House scene. Malaa regularly releases his Who Is Malaa mix series, showcasing his style. Malaa is scheduled to perform from 6:00-7:00PM on Saturday at the Float Den.
Chet Porter Chet Porter’s releases go back to 2014, with his remix of The Chainsmokers’ Kanye. Since then, he has honed his signature, chilled out dance style. Chet Porter continues to rise in popularity as people catch on to his feel-good aura. His recent release, Stay, was released on the Foreign Family Collective label. Expect a good show of talent from this budding producer. Chet Porter will be performing Friday from 9:00-10:00PM at the VIP S.S. BUKU stage.
Grizmatik Grizmatik is the collaboration project between GRiZ and Gramatik. Both artists have hugely successful solo projects, but occasionally join forces to “show you how to weaponize the Uranium and cause Electro Soul devastation.” Their jazzy saxophone sounds will surely complement the local New Orleans jazz scene. Grizmatik will be taking the stage from 7:45-9:00PM at the Power Plant.
Lane 8 Daniel Goldstein, better known by his stage name, Lane 8, hails from Denver, CO and is signed to Anjunadeep. He made headlines last year on his “This Never Happened” Tour, when he had all attendants place a piece of tape over the cameras on their phone, so that people spent the show dancing and listening to music instead of on their phones. This move was generally well received; Lane 8 was widely applauded by attendants for the positive effect this had on the event. Lane 8 exhibits a style that seems rarer in the dance music world these days: extended sets that take you through a gradual musical journey, drawing on traditional House and Trance styles. Lane 8 will be performing from 8:45-10:00PM on Saturday at the Back Alley.
Opiuo Hailing from New Zealand, Opiuo describes his sound as “Broken-frog-stomping-funkadelic-hippo-hop-monkey-crunk-chunky-bouncy-stomach-morphing-bassdolloping-scrumptious-bowl-of-glitchy-bass-love.” Opiuo has been gaining a strong foothold in the US music scene recently, joining festival lineups that cater towards Bass, Glitch, Funk, and Dubstep styles. Opiuo keeps things fresh with his genre-defying sound. Opiuo performs from 6:30-7:15PM on Friday at the Ballroom.
Zhu Zhu was thrust into the limelight in 2014 with his release of Faded. Although his identity is not a secret like some of his contemporaries, he puts the emphasis on his music and keeps the focus away from his personal identity. Zhu is now a household name. He draws influences from seemingly all styles of music, with a penchant for remixing classic pop and hip-hop songs with his dark style. One’s for sure, Zhu knows how to throw a late night party, which will be perfect for his 11:45PM-1:00AM set on Saturday at the Float Den.
