7 Artists You Don’t Want to Miss at Sunset Music Festival 2022
Originating in St. Pete’s Vinoy Park, Sunset Music Festival has come a long way since 2012, when it first moved to its outdoor site at Raymond James Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
From finding its footing in the new venue, to dealing with the precarious nature of an outdoor Summer event in Florida, SMF has persevered to becoming a clamored for Memorial Day Weekend event in the Southeast. It returned last year after its pandemic-induced hiatus and delivered one of its most successfully produced events to date from the fan perspective, which gave it legs to expand to its first 3-day event in 2022.
Supplying the tunes for Memorial Day Weekend will be some of the best acts in electronic music today. We’ve broken down 7 Artist You Don’t Want to Miss at SMF this year below:
LP Giobbi
Featured on the cover of last year’s September issue, LP Giobbi has done nothing to impede her fast rise in the ranks of house music today. Utilizing her company Femme House to foster more equitable opportunity for women and gender-expansive individuals in music, LP Giobbi has used this platform to build others while educating on the history of the genre and issues it experiences today. Most recently, she’s led a nationwide tour that’s empowered creatives like QRTR and Nala, and rides into SMF as one of its most clamored for acts. Catch her at the Horizon stage Saturday from 8:15-9:15.
Mersiv
A fellow former cover artist at MP3 MAG, Mersiv is one of today’s innovators in modern bass music. Last Fall, he dropped his debut full length LP, Pretty Dark Loud, which has furthered the evolution and prominence of ‘freeform’ bass. He’s spent most of 2022 on Liquid Stranger’s nationwide BALANCE tour, where he’s debuted the ‘PDL’ live show. He returns to Tampa after a Fall club appearance and debut at Suwannee Hulaween in 2021.
Moore Kismet
Moore Kismet is easily one of the most electric names in the US festival scene, even earning a nod on Billboard’s 21 Under 21 list. Kismet managed to find time to graduate high school in 2022, an impressive feat considering the 17 year old’s high profile gigs at Ultra, EDC Vegas and Coachella. Last week, Kismet dropped their latest single, “Wasteland,” which encapsulates the high energy, experimental approach that has made this one of the most exciting projects to look out for.
Walker & Royce
Few artists can be depended upon for a good time like house duo Walker & Royce, who have a heavy history of touring throughout the state of Florida. Steadily becoming one of the most recognizable names in today’s house scene, the duo has furthered their impact with last year’s inception of their label, Rules Don’t Apply. The imprint has legitimized their radio show, and provided a platform for a diverse cast of artists including Life on Planets, VNSSA and QRTR.
John Summit
Whether his name is on a lineup, Beatport chart or Twitter feed, John Summit is easily one of the hottest and biggest names today. Storming onto the scene in 2021 with hits like “Make You Feel,” he’s paired his relatable, party boy persona with a consistent, high quality output. This year, he dropped another high-charting global banger in “La Danza,” and recently formed his own label, Off The Grid. The label’s first single, “In Chicago,” immediately debuted at no.1 on Beatport and is already closing in on 1 million streams in its first two weeks. Catch John at the Sunset stage before Tchami at 7:40-8:40 on Saturday.
PEEKABOO
One of SMF’s foremost bass names on the 2022 lineup is PEEKABOO, who has been making noise with new music and return to touring. Earlier this month, the producer dropped a clamored for ID in “Reload,” a collab with UK legend Caspa that released on Deadbeats. After taking to Twitter to announce a desire to return to underground vibes he launched the “Hide and Seek” tour, which will see the producer take on intimate venues with minimal production to focus on the music and soundsystems. For his performance Friday, however, fans can expect all the bells and whistles as performs at the Eclipse stage 9:50-10:50.
Wreckno
Last but certainly not least on our list is the undeniable star that is Wreckno. Featured on 2021’s Pride month cover issue, Wreckno has steadily risen in the ranks of the festival scene while becoming one of its most beloved figure. With as much attention served to performance as production, Wreckno’s live show has grown to feature raucous beats, choreography and rap bars from the producer himself. Most recently, Wreckno dropped a new single, “Everything,” which features Super Future and “Bass Down Low” icon DEV. Wreckno is on Saturday at the Eclipse stage 8:00-9:00 before Inzo and Mersiv.
Find more info on Sunset Music Festival, tickets here: https://smftampa.com/tickets
