EDM staple Dillon Francis went on an electrifying run of LA shows from The Roxy to The Mayan Theatre before capping it off at Shrine LA to a packed house of electronic music lovers. Drawing inspiration from the infamous Nicole Kidman AMC commercial, Dillon Francis continued his comedy-infused electronic music brand by coming up with his own version to open the set, much to the delight of his audience (and really hitting home for those who really got the joke).
With a stacked roster of DJs playing from 8pm until the venue closed, the energy was building. The last headlining DJ of the night, Nitti (Formerly ‘Nitti Gritti’) built the crowd for Dillon Francis’ set, with intermittent moments of gratitude towards the audience and the city of LA. Many of his most known hits were in full effect, such as “Your Body” and “What You Got” sending shockwaves into the bouncing crowd.
Dillon’s closing set could only be described as a nonstop dance party filled with lots of lasers and EDM bangers. He dove into some of his classics like “Get Low” and “Move It”, while also treating the crowd to his newer tracks “LA On Acid”, “Can’t Stop Me Now”, and many other mixes from his 2023 release This Mixtape is Fire TOO. Fans also heard a few songs from anti everything, another album released this year in collaboration with DJ Hanzel, who was also featured as an opener for the night.
There was no shortage of good vibes at Shrine LA, and fans went home happy after dancing and vibing all night to Dillon Francis’ head pounding mixes. Check out the images below, taken by Kenny Jusino.
Nashville danced all weekend long during the Deep Tropics music, art, and style festival, paying no mind to the sweltering heat. It was a collective agreement that we were all grateful to be together, sharing love and sweating it out on the dance floor after a year where we were all so far apart.
Photos by Lauren Hayes.
One of the coolest parts about Deep Tropics was that it was set to be the greenest festival in the world. If you were there you noticed there were zero trash cans. That’s right! Everything was compostable or recyclable, including all the cutlery and even free ash try pouches. The commitment to being sustainable was refreshing to see, and it was incredible to see so many attendees who were passionate about the environment as well.
Whethan closing out Day 1.
The Friday lineup included Clozee and Whethan on the Meru main stage, and the amphitheater was packed for both of their sets.
Young Bae and Hourglass on Day 2 of Deep Tropics.
Hourglass kicked us off on Saturday. The crowd was slowly trickling in, but she had everyone up and dancing and ready for Day 2 in no time. Cassian and Young Bae followed on the main stage while people flaunted their outfits and much-needed fans.
Qemist and Daily Bread on the Congo Soundsystem stage.
And let’s not forget about the Congo Soundsystem stage! This stage was close to the heart of Tennessee. Memphis-native Qemist performed, as well as several hip-hop artists from Nashville such as A.B. Eastwood, $avvy, Brian Brown, and Tim Gent. The energy around this stage was always a vibe no matter who was playing!
As the night rolled around, more and more people streamed in. Bubbles filled the air, the VIP section was bouncing, and folks were captivated by the poi spinners around the park. Unfortunately, Moon Boots had to cancel on Saturday, whom I know many fans were looking forward to. But CharlestheFirst and Claude VonStroke kept the spirits alive, so any momentary sadness at that news was soon forgotten.
Deep Tropics was an incredible way to close out summer and celebrate the return of music festivals. Hopefully this helped pave the way to making all festivals sustainable, showing that we can do all of our favorite things while saving the planet, too. See you all next year!
Dallas-based musician Barret Turner has been writing music for many years but has only recently begun releasing the tracks. We’re excited to introduce you to his songs! Read on to learn about Barret’s latest single “Always You” and everything he has planned next.
CROWDSURFER MAG: Your latest single “Always You” came out last month. What does this song mean to you?
BARRET TURNER: I made it a long time ago, and it was about my friend’s mom battling cancer. I brought I back with the newer stuff I make, and now I feel like it represents his journey after his mom passed away. I feel like he kind of lost himself and now he’s getting back to who he was.
CSM: We’re fans of Will Jay, so we were excited to see him featured on this song. How did bringing him onto the project happen?
BT: I sent him an email! I sent him six songs, and he said he wanted to work on “Always You.” He was super easy to work with, we’d send each other lyrics and melody ideas back and forth, and that’s how the song came about. Quarantine hit so we had to do everything over email.
CSM:It’s so wild that this all had to go down over email!
BT: Yeah, and I wish it wasn’t like that, but I was like, man I’d love to work with Will Jay, he’s so good. So I feel very lucky that he accepted the offer.
CSM:“Always You” follows up “On Purpose” which came out one month earlier. Can we expect another song this month?
BT: I’m putting a song out every month! October 30th is the next one called “Never Stood.” It’s different than the other ones, it’s more vibey, chill-in-your-car-at-night kind of song.
CSM:“Always You” and “On Purpose” are both very emotional. What’s your writing process like when turning these personal stories into music?
BT: I like to write at night, and I’ll get an idea in my head and start dabbling with that. I normally start with the piano chords, and I’ll start building off of that. I like that epic, kind of sad build up towards the end that’s inspirational.
CSM:We all like sad songs! Who are your biggest inspirations in music?
BT: I always liked Martin Garrix and how his songs are kind of chill but at the end your brain is just mash because you’re so involved with the song. I also really like Hootie and the Blowfish. It’s a totally different type of music but it’s very emotional and real.
CSM:So you’ve got more singles to release, and do you have anything else in store for us?
BT: Yeah when I put this next song out I’ll have the lyric video and another music video for that. And then, next month, same thing. I’d like to play show but obviously that’s not happening right now!
CSM:Whoa, that’s a ton. How are you managing to get all of that out every month?
BT: I usually have someone do the lyric video, but I’ve been making the music videos myself, and It’s hard. It’s a learning curve, and it’s a lot. But it’s kind of fun, too, because it’s rewarding when it’s done!
CSM:What’s one of your goals for 2021?
BT: I’ve been trying to get all of my songs finished and getting them out is really the only goal right now. Just trying to keep going up! There’s no plan B right now, it’s just this, and I’m excited about it. I just don’t want to one day be old and say “damn, I never even tried.”
CSM:Last question, even though holidays are weird this year, do you have any plans for Halloween?
BT: No, I’m sure I’ll do something though! This weekend I’m going to the Chiefs game.
CSM:Wait, you’re in Dallas but going to the Chiefs game?
BT: Oh yeah, my grandpa played for them so it’s a family thing.
CSM:That’s crazy!
BT: Yeah, he played in the first Superbowl. And a lot of the songs I made . . . I lived with my Grandma for a year and a half, and I was making these songs and she would listen. And then she passed away, and the Chiefs went to the Superbowl the next week and won it. We went to the game and it was the best thing I’ve ever been to. It felt like she was there, you know?
You might know electronic duo NOTD from their songs “I Wanna Know” featuring Beat Miller or “So Close” featuring Georgia Ku, which came out in 2018. NOTD continues to prove that they can create hit after hit with their latest single called “I Don’t Know Why.”
The song, released today, features Astrid S. Her ethereal vocals complement the upbeat track, resulting in a mix that will make you want to dance and sing along with her. We dare you to try to not break out any dance moves during the chorus! Catchy from beginning to end, you’ll find this song stuck in your head. Even if you don’t know any other words than “I don’t know why / oh, I don’t know why,” we bet you’ll be humming the tune throughout the day.
Images provided by Island Records
Take a listen here, watch the official video here, and be sure to keep your eyes and ears on NOTD! We sure will be!
Godlands opened for Steve Aoki at Avant Gardner in Brooklyn, NY this past weekend, and we went to check it out. Annabel Hartlett, known by her stage name Godlands, is an Australian musician and DJ. Her new single with Samplegod, Smoke Em Up, is out now. See all the shots from her set right here:
Elohim kicked off the Group Therapy tour this weekend with a sold out show in Brooklyn at Elsewhere with opening acts Bahari and Mehro. Check out our shots from the show below!
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