Head in the Clouds Festival

Music festival
Head in the Clouds Festival
GenreHip hop, R&B
FrequencyAnnual
Location(s)Los Angeles (2018–19)
Pasadena (2021–present)
New York (2023–present)
Years active2018–2019, 2021–present
Founders88rising
Websitehttps://hitcfestival.com/

Head in the Clouds Festival is an annual music festival organized by 88rising. The lineups feature musical artists across the Asian diaspora.

Background

In 2015, Jaeson Ma and Sean Miyashiro founded 88rising[1][2][3][4] as a music collective and management company geared towards representing artists from the Asian diaspora.[5][6][7] Over two years, they began managing a small stable of Asian rappers focused on forming a hip hop collective.[7] Their first performance took place in 2017 in Los Angeles with Rich Brian, Joji, and Keith Ape all performing live and the Higher Brothers streaming from Chengdu.[8] The collective then embarked on a Double Happiness tour in February 2018, demonstrating the demand for Asian rap performances in the United States.[9]

2018

On September 22, 2018, 88rising presented its inaugural Head In The Clouds Festival at the Los Angeles State Historic Park. The lineup included acts based in North American and Asian music industries, including Rich Brian, Joji, Keith Ape, Niki, Higher Brothers, Dumbfoundead, and others.[10] Japanese rapper Kohh made their debut United States performance.[11]

Line-up[12]

2019

On August 17, 2019, 88rising held their second annual Head in the Clouds music festival at Los Angeles State Historic Park.[13] The lineup included the return of Rich Brian, Joji, Higher Brothers, Niki, and Dumbfoundead.[13] The festival also included artists established in the South Korean music industry, including iKON, Jackson Wang, and DPR Live.[14] Local food festival organizer 626 Night Market coordinated food offerings.[14] Outlets began referring to the festival as the "Asian Coachella".[15][16]

Line-up[17]

88rising Stage

Double Happiness Stage

2020

88rising had planned for the 2020 Head in the Clouds festival to take place in the JIExpo Kemayoran of Jakarta, Indonesia in March 2020, with a lineup including DAY6 and Chung Ha as well as label members, Rich Brian, Niki, Joji, Higher Brothers, Stephanie Poetri, August08, and Dumbfoundead.[18] It was eventually canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[19] In its place, 88rising held a free online concert called the "Asia Rising Forever Festival" to raise charitable funds for the purpose of combating the raise of anti-Asian sentiment.[20]

2021

For 2021, 88rising announced they would return to hosting live audiences and would hold the festival over the weekend of November 6 and 7 at Brookside at the Rose Bowl.[21] It would be organized by Goldenvoice, the promoters for Coachella.[21] The lineup included Saweetie, CL, Japanese Breakfast, Beabadoobee, Umi, The Linda Lindas, eaJ, keshi, Joji, BIBI, Niki, Seori, and Rich Brian.

Line-up[22]

Saturday, November 6

88 Stage

Double Happiness Stage


Sunday, November 7

88 Stage

Double Happiness Stage

2022

The 2022 festival was held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena from August 20–21, 2022. International editions will also be held in Jakarta at the Community Park PIK 2 on December 3–4, and in Manila at the SMDC Concert Grounds on December 9–10, 2022.[23]

Pasadena line-up[24]

Saturday, August 20

88 Stage

Double Happiness Stage

Club Year of Dance Tent

  • Camgirl
  • Hu Dat
  • B

Sunday, August 21

88 Stage

Double Happiness Stage

Club Year of Dance Tent

  • Venessa Michaels
  • JackJack

Jakarta line-up[26]

Manila line-up[27]

2023

New York City line-up[28]

Pasadena line-up[29]

2024

The 2024 festival will be held at the Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, New York from May 11–12, 2024.

Line-up[30]

References

  1. ^ "How 88rising Took Rich Brian From Meme To Mainstream". Genius. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  2. ^ Frater, Patrick (June 1, 2017). "WPP Buys Into Asian Content Platform 88rising". Variety. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  3. ^ Woo, Amaris. "88rising Tour Comes to San Francisco | The Pacifican". Archived from the original on September 13, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  4. ^ Green, Dylan "CineMasai". "8 Most Influential Internet Rap Collectives of the 2010s". DJBooth. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  5. ^ Leonard, Devin (December 5, 2017). "The Man Who Sold the World on Asian Hip-Hop". Bloomberg. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
  6. ^ Kenfe, Senay (August 3, 2015). "Get to Know Emerging Hip-Hop & Future Music Collective CXSHXNLY". The Hundreds. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  7. ^ a b Diep, Eric (August 12, 2015). "Dumbfoundead On the Future of Asians in Hip Hop". Mass Appeal. Archived from the original on August 6, 2018. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  8. ^ "BOILER ROOM". BOILER ROOM. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  9. ^ "Rich Brian and the Double Happiness tour brings rising Asian rap to L.A." Los Angeles Times. February 10, 2018. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  10. ^ "The Asian Hip-Hop Festival You Need to Know: On the Scene at 88Rising". Billboard. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  11. ^ "88rising's quest to find a Japanese hip-hop sensation". The Japan Times. January 23, 2019. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
  12. ^ "[CONCERT RECAP] 88rising 'Head in the Clouds' Festival in LA". Allkpop. September 24, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  13. ^ a b "88Rising's Head In The Clouds Fest Announces 2019 Lineup: Exclusive". Billboard (in Italian). Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Head In The Clouds 2019 Festival Adds Jackson Wang & More: Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  15. ^ Stuart, Gwynedd (August 17, 2019). "Head in the Clouds, aka the "Asian Coachella," Returns for Another Year of Representation". Los Angeles Magazine. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  16. ^ Chan, Tim (August 19, 2019). "Head in the Clouds: Rich Brian, K-Pop Group iKON at 'Asian Coachella'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  17. ^ Hodoyan-Gastelum, Alexis (August 18, 2019). "Head in the Clouds 2019: Niki, iKON and More Celebrate Asian Pop Culture With Performances". Billboard. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  18. ^ "HEAD IN THE CLOUDS JAKARTA – The Seoul Story". The Seoul Story – Connecting K-pop Fans In Asia Since 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  19. ^ "88 rising refund". bandwagon asia – Connecting K-pop Fans In Asia Since 2011. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  20. ^ Benjamin, Jeff (April 29, 2020). "88rising Taps Top Talent & Twitter For Asia Rising Forever Livestream Fest". Forbes. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  21. ^ a b "From Saweetie to the Linda Lindas, this fall's must-see music fest could be Head in the Clouds". Los Angeles Times. August 25, 2021. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  22. ^ Anderson, Shanicka (November 11, 2021). "Head In The Clouds is the biggest festival you haven't heard of (yet)". The A.V. Club. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  23. ^ "The 2022 Head in the Clouds Festival". Head in the Clouds Festival. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  24. ^ Chow, Aaron (May 24, 2022). "88rising Unveils Lineup for Head In The Clouds Festival 2022". Hypebeast. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  25. ^ Ordonez, Eli (August 17, 2022). "NIKI pulls out of Head In The Clouds festival due to COVID-19, Keshi added to lineup". NME. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  26. ^ Castillo, Madeline (September 19, 2022). "Head In The Clouds unveils full lineup: NIKI, Jackson Wang, Joji, EaJ, and more". Bandwagon Asia. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  27. ^ "88rising unveils lineup for Head In The Clouds Manila 2022". CNN Philippines. October 3, 2022. Archived from the original on October 3, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  28. ^ Williams, Aaron (May 15, 2023). "Here Are The Head In The Clouds Festival New York Set Times For 2023". Uproxx. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  29. ^ Olinger, Sandra B. (July 26, 2023). "Head In The Clouds 2023 Set Times Released". Grimy Goods. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  30. ^ Head In The Clouds New York 2024