The annual Festival d’été de Quebec unveiled the lineup for 2024, with no shortage of talented acts. This year, Post Malone, J Balvin, Jonas Brothers, 50 Cent, Nickleback, Zac Brown Band, Mötley Crüe, The Offspring, and more will be headlining the festival when it runs from July 4 to 14.
Other performers on this year’s stacked bill include Carly Rae Jepsen, Uproxx cover star Ava Max, Rise Against, Killer Mike, Jessie Murph, Fleet Foxes, Future Islands, Seether, Nas, Mt. Joy, Killswitch Engage, Ben Howard, and many more genre-spanning acts.
Tickets for the Festival d’été de Quebec are currently on sale now. The General Admission pass started at CA $150 (about $110 US) but is currently sold out. Those interested in attending will have the chance to purchase other ticket tiers starting on April 4 at noon.
The Silver Front Stage Zone pass starts at $560 ($413 US) and includes closer access to the stage, along with “exclusive bathrooms.” The Bell Signature Zone pass starts at $640 ($472 US), providing a top-of-stand view of the Bell Stage.
The Gold Stage Front Zone ticket starts at $970 ($715 US). This includes access to the viewing area directly in front of the Bell Stage. Finally, there are single-day tickets through Jardin Air Canada that start at $75 ($55 US) and will increase in price, depending on which day and headliner you choose.
For additional information, visit the Festival d’été de Quebec’s website.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Superbloom Festival is bringing premiere acts to Olympia Park and Olympiastadion Munchen in Munich, Germany, on Saturday, September 2 and Sunday, September 3.
The 2023 edition is headlined by Martin Garrix and Imagine Dragons, but that’s far from all that the versatile lineup has to offer. The festival shared the full schedule of set times across its nine stages: Olympic Stage, Super Stage, NeoNeo Stage, The Hideaway, and Spectacular, Spectacular Ground, Younique Stage, Your Planet, and Super Brain.
On Saturday, September 2, Dermot Kennedy will perform on the Super Stage from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. local time. Ellie Goulding (3:45-4:45 p.m.) will warm up the Olympic Stage for Garrix’s headlining set, which will run from 9:15 p.m. to 10:45 p.m. local time.
The Olympic Stage lineup is even more stacked for Sunday, September 3: RAYE (1-1:45 p.m.), Giant Rooks (2:15-3:15 p.m.), Sam Fender (4-5 p.m.), Ava Max (5:45-6:45 p.m.), Jason Derulo (7:30-8:30 p.m.), and Imagine Dragons (9:15-10:45 p.m.).
The Super Stage will also host Zara Larsson from 4:50 p.m. to 5:50 p.m. local time, while Nessa Barrett (7-7:45 p.m.) and Cat Burns (8:15-9:15 p.m.) will perform over on the NeoNeo Stage.
Check out the full lineup and schedule below, and find more information here.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
On September 18, 2020, Ava Max released her debut album, Heaven & Hell. Around that time, she celebrated the project’s release with a launch party. The event didn’t take place in some personally meaningful place like her hometown, or in a major city among the big lights. Instead, it happened on Roblox.
Some context: Earlier that year, the COVID-19 pandemic (you might be aware of it) forced the world to essentially shut down. This put the live entertainment industry on pause. Concerts and other in-person events were temporarily no more. Oof!
More context: Roblox, an online game creation platform, launched in 2006 and has grown substantially since then. It was reported in 2022 that Roblox had 57 million daily users (and that half of them were under 12 years old).
So, with both of those things in mind, Ava Max and her team decided to launch Heaven & Hell on Roblox. On September 25, the event began. After a countdown, a pre-recorded video message from Ava Max played, in which she spoke about the event, discussed her new album, and answered some questions. She then sang two songs before the video ended.
It was a neat experiment, as IRL events weren’t super possible at the time. So, Ava Max made the best of the situation and came through with something intriguing and different. Different, but also something of a return to normalcy: While the music industry was on hold, Ava Max pressed forward via the means available to her and delivered as close to a familiar experience as was possible.
It was also just the start.
A few weeks later, Lil Nas X got in on the Roblox fun. On November 14 and 15, the rapper put on quite the show. He opened with a performance of “Old Town Road” before a digital costume change and a rendition of “Rodeo” as bats flew above him. The environment allowed for some fantastical elements not possible in a real-life concert. As the Roblox Wiki describes, the show involved tornadoes, a shift to a futuristic setting, Lil Nas X levitating in front of the moon, and a black hole.
Those were the first two concerts experiences on Roblox, and from there, artists like Elton John, Mariah Carey, aespa, Soccer Mommy, Saweetie, and others hosted their own virtual events. Were they worse than in-person shows? Well, that’s hard to say.
Leaving the house, bringing your physical body to a different environment, and seeing artists in front of your face isn’t something that can be replicated on a phone, computer, or game console. It’s a special experience than can really only be felt that specific way. The thing is, though, that virtual concerts don’t need to be that. In terms of what an in-person show offers, virtual shows can’t do it. They just can’t. In other ways, however, they can present much more.
Stage design for major tours can be incredible, but Lil Nas X isn’t getting functional tornadoes and black holes on a real-life stage. Roblox has long been an open forum for imaginative expression for its users and the same has been true when it comes to virtual concerts. It’s an opportunity for artists to put on a concert in ways they could never pull off otherwise. Give the world’s most talented and creative entertainers a limitless environment and special moments are bound to result.
Furthermore, sometimes, committing a few hours to going downtown, finding parking, getting to the venue, watching a concert, and making your way home is a lot. Nights when that seems overwhelming are the perfect occasion to just open an app on your phone/computer and catch some more convenient live entertainment, to still get the feeling that you’re watching something grand unfold in the moment.
Worth noting is that as novel as this whole thing may seem, a Roblox virtual concert isn’t a completely new idea (and not just because Fortnite did it before them, like with the Marshmello event in February 2019). Roblox events represent what the live entertainment business has long been about: meeting people where they are.
Really, performers have been bringing their shows to the people for a long as it’s been possible: Shortly after the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869, circuses started traveling to the western half of the US. People were in their hometowns and most of them presumably didn’t have the means for significant travel (especially for leisure), so the entertainers went to them.
From there, music tours eventually became a major business, and some performers went beyond even just showing up in people’s cities. In the ’90s and ’00s, music lovers young and old spent a lot of time at the then-thriving malls. So, artists like Britney Spears and Avril Lavigne got set up between Claire’s and the food court to get a performance in. That’s where the people were, so that’s where the artists were.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought more popularity to remote-friendly practices like working from home and consuming the majority of entertainment online. Folks were in their rooms and on the internet, so that’s where the artists went.
Again, Roblox isn’t the first video game platform to host a virtual concert: Shout out to Duran Duran for performing a Second Life show in 2006. Roblox was, though, a leader in bringing them to the mainstream at the perfect time. It’s where the people were, and it’s where the artists could be whatever they wanted to be.
In 2023, the live entertainment industry is at the point where concert tours have long been back in full swing. This doesn’t mean virtual events should go back and hide in their hole of obscurity, though. Video games and other online products are as popular as they’ve ever been, and musicians are more open-minded and creatively free than ever before when it comes to self-promotional strategies.
So yes, for most artists, in-person events will return to their spot as the live entertainment priority. There’s no reason why virtual concerts can’t be a piece of the puzzle, though. While they had to fill in as the main feature for a little bit, really, they’re a different side of the same coin, one that offers its own unique value. It’s all just meeting people where they are, and as where they are changes, artists, as they always have, adapt and push the industry in exciting new directions.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Anybody who thought the vinyl resurgence was just a fad was mistaken: The industry has experienced a legitimate revival. As a result, music fans are interested in physical media in ways they may not have if the decades-old medium hasn’t made a comeback. That doesn’t mean everybody is listening to just their parents’ old music, though. That’s part of it, sure, thanks to rereleases that present classic albums in new ways. A vital part of the renewed vinyl wave, though, is new projects being released as records, of which there are plenty.
Whatever you might be into, each month brings a new slew of new vinyl releases that has something for everybody. Some stand out above the rest, naturally, so check out some of the best vinyl releases of January below.
Bob Dylan — Fragments – Time Out Of Mind Sessions (1996-1997): The Bootleg Series Vol. 17
Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings
Over the decades, Bob Dylan has been generous with pulling back the curtain on parts of his career via his Bootleg Series releases (as evidenced by the fact that this new one is Vol. 17). This effort focuses on Dylan’s 1997 album Time Out Of Mind, and aside from all the extras, the base album has been given a new remix that promises to sound “more like how the songs came across when the musicians originally played them in the room.”
On Gloria, Sam Smith reaches a new career peak thanks to “Unholy” hitting No. 1 on the singles chart. Now the full album is out and it’s a work worth enjoying in its entirety, especially when you can get it on striking gold-colored vinyl.
Last year, Uproxx’s Steven Hyden declared that Wilco’s new album Cruel Country is the band’s “best in more than a decade.” Now they’re finally giving it a physical release, which includes the lovely blue and red vinyl pressing seen above. They’re going on tour, too.
Diamonds & Dancefloors leaked months ago (much to the upset of Ava Max), but now it’s officially out. The vinyl edition comes with alternate cover artwork with a bold red vinyl pressing that brings out the art’s highlights.
In a recent interview with Uproxx, White Reaper’s Tony Esposito explained what the band learned while making their latest album, “That we just have to persevere. That was the main thing, because there were definitely lots of times when I was like, ‘What’s the point of even doing this?’ Like, as soon as we make a decision, we’re going to get some email that’s going to blow everything up and push it back another month. And that just happened time and time again. Like I said, it was dark times there for a minute, but I’m glad that we stuck it out and finished, because it feels great now.”
In 1997, just a few years removed from their 1994 breakout album Dookie, Green Day dropped Nimrod, the parent album of one of their most recognizable songs, “Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life).” That was a bit over 25 years ago now, so the band is celebrating with reissues, the vinyl version of which features demos and a full “Live At The Electric Factory 1997” performance.
This one is still a bit of a mystery. What we do know about whatever Parton and Vinyl Me, Please have planned here is what VMP says of it: “Get ready to immerse yourself in Vinyl Me, Parton – the first of its kind, limited edition monthly record club curated with and dedicated to Dolly Parton herself. There will only be a limited amount of spots available. Join the interest list today and be one of the first notified when pre-orders open in February.”
Black Nasty — Talking To The People (Vinyl Me, Please Reissue)
Vinyl Me, Please
There was so much superlative funk that dropped in the ’70s, and among those release is the underappreciated Talking To The People by Stax Records act Black Nasty. Vinyl Me, Please is giving the LP its flowers with a new pressing featuring audio remastered from the original master tapes.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s 2011 self-titled debut album was beloved, so following it had to be tough. Admirably, though, the band came through with 2013’s II, a strong sophomore effort that was also well-received. Now that it turns a decade old this year, Secretly Society has given it an exclusive reissue pressed on “strawberry shortcake splash” vinyl.
Cloud Nothings — Attack On Memory (10th Anniversary Edition)
Carpark Records
Attack On Memory was the album that put Cloud Nothings on a lot of now-fans’ radars, and it turned ten years old last year. Now it’s getting a fresh reissue with a particularly enticing goodie: two bonus flexi 7-inch records that feature two previously unreleased songs from the original album sessions: “You Will Turn” and “Jambalaya.”
Back when Ava Max and Tiësto dropped their dark, clubby anthem, “The Motto,” the producer and pop star pair shared a pretty luxurious video to go along with it. The vibe made sense for Ava, who was fresh off a stint of stadium shows opening up for Maroon 5, but now she and Tiesto have released another visual to go along with the track.
Directed and choreographed by Charm LaDonna — who previously worked on Ava own “My Head & My Heart” video, along with the Weeknd’s Super Bowl halftime show last year — the video was shot in LA and features a number of dancers. Filling out the cast are Darrion Gallegos, Caho Kitaori, Joseph John Perez, Gato Waddell, Maggie Anne Wade, Cache Melvin, Candice Savage & Honey Balenciaga. As the third single off TIesto’s next album, “The Motto” has become a streaming hit since it was released last November. It was the first time Ava and Tiësto had worked together, and he was really excited to work with her on the song.
“Ava is such an exciting young talent and her beautiful voice adds such depth to the song,” the producer said of their collaboration. “I cannot wait for the world to hear our collaboration. ‘The Motto’ is the party anthem keeping us dancing into 2022 as we close out a crazy year!” Guess his prediction came true — and manifested in an even dancier video to go along with the song. Check it out above.
