As Coachella gears up for its opening weekend, there’s a great deal of hype around the major headliners: Eminem, Beyoncé, Cardi B, Post Malone, and other big names. In their superstar shadows, the music festival is also a gold mine for other lesser-known talented hip-hop artists on the come up.
Some major acts to watch for during the event this weekend include:
Kali Uchis: Fusing jazz, hip-hop, reggae, and R&B with her native Columbian flavor, Kali Uchis has collaborated with major artists such as Snoop Dogg, Gorillaz’, Diplo, Tyler the Creator, Kaytranada, Lana Del Rey, and others. Her Coachella performance, which will take place on Friday, April 13, comes exactly a week after the release of her highly-anticipated and critically acclaimed album, Isolation, where she was favorably compared to Outkast due to her range of diverse sounds.
TroyBoi: Putting his own British spin on trap music, the London-based rapper started out remixing rap, R&B, electro-house, and pop tracks before releasing work under his own name. The native of South East London, England arrived during the early 2010s and is most frequently for his most popular collaboration, “Afterhours,” featuring Nina Sky and Diplo. It seamlessly combines trap and house music making for a hypnotic banger. Other jams such as “Do You?” and “OG” take from Middle Eastern and EDM influences, a talent that few other artists can boast. TroyBoi performs on Friday, April 13.
Flatbush Zombies: Another group whose album, Vacation in Hell, just dropped last week, Flatbush Zombies are arguably one of the most talented, yet underrated names in hip-hop today. The group manages to lay down some of the most complex lyrics over a mixture of club beats, trap hop, gospel, and battle-rap influences and bring an energy that’s sure to get the crowd going Saturday, April 14, when they perform at the festival.
Can’t make it to California? No problem. The festival will be streaming live via Youtube. Stay tuned for weekend two’s preview as well!
