Ultra Music Festival 2018 Lineup: The Chainsmokers, Virtual Self, Eric Prydz, and Others

It was almost 20 years ago that Ultra Music Festival began as a one-day party on the sands of Miami Beach. Located in the present-day Collins Park area, the festival brought together acts such as Josh Wink, Baby Anne, and Paul van Dyk as a way to cap off the Winter Music Conference events that took over the city every March.

Two decades later, Ultra has eclipsed WMC in scope and influence. It's become a global brand with festivals in Japan, Brazil, Croatia, South Korea, South Africa, and other countries. But the crown jewel still remains the Miami edition, which is set to take over Bayfront Park once again.

Tickets for the 2018 edition have been on sale for a while, but Ultra has finally released the Phase 1 lineup. And, well, you have Empire of the Sun to thank. It seems as if the Australian band accidentally leaked the lineup, forcing Ultra to post the entire thing at 8 p.m. (The lineup announcement was overdue, though. Last year, Phase 1 was announced in November.)

The usual suspects are on the bill: Afrojack, Jamie Jones, Carl Cox, Hardwell, and others. However, there are a few curveballs.

You either love them or love to hate them, but the Chainsmokers will bring their bro-friendly brand of EDM to the festival. (There's an argument to be made that their music isn't so much EDM as just plain pop music.) The duo kicked off the Memories Do Not Open Tour in Miami this past April, and the results were, well, not good. It will be interesting to see if they work better in a festival setting.

Porter Robinson will show off his new side project, Virtual Self, which Billboard describes as blending "house, happy hardcore, garage, and techno into some kind of wonderful, nostalgic/futuristic brilliance." Robinson has proven time and again that there's no predicting what he'll do next, and Virtual Self seems to be a continuation of that mindset.

And the most-perplexing-act-in-the-lineup award goes to the Wailers, who will perform with Julian Marley. Previously, Ultra has presented live acts such as Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg, but the Wailers definitely go beyond vocals by also offering live instrumentation, and it will be interesting to see if attendees give the group a warm reception.

Here's the full Ultra 2018 lineup:

• Afrojack
  
• Armin van Buuren
  
• Axwell & Ingrosso
  
• Carl Cox
  
• The Chainsmokers
  
• David Guetta
  
• DJ Snake
  
• Dubfire B2B Nicole Moudaber B2B Paco Osuna
  
• Eric Prydz
  
• Flosstradamus
  
• Hardwell
  
• Jamie Jones
  
• J.E.S.u.S. (Jackmaster, Eats Everything, Skream, and Seth Troxler)
  
• Joseph Capriati
  
• Kaskade
  
• Maceo Plex
  
• Marshmello
  
• Nicky Romero
  
• RL Grime
  
• Sasha & John Digweed
  
• Steve Aoki
  
• Tiësto
  
• Virtual Self (Porter Robinson)
  
• Azealia Banks
  
• The Crystal Method
  
• Empire of the Sun
  
• Infected Mushroom
  
• Tchami x Malaa
  
• Rabbit in the Moon
  
• The Wailers featuring Julian Marley
  
• Andrew Rayel
  
• Andy C
  
• Andien
  
• Brohug
  
• Carlo Lio
  
• Estiva
  
• Fedde Le Grand
  
• Frank Walker
  
• GTA
  
• Gabriel & Dresden
  
• Ghastly
  
• Grandtheft
  
• Hot Since 82
  
• Josh Wink
  
• Joyryde
  
• Kayzo
  
• Keys N Krates
  
• Lost Kings
  
• Matoma
  
• Nastia
  
• NGHTMRE & Slander Present Gud Vibration
  
• Ookay
  
• Patrick Topping
  
• Paul Oakenfold
  
• Popof
  
• Rezz
  
• Salvatore Ganacci
  
• San Holo
  
• Slushii
  
• Stefano Noferini
  
• Sub Focus
  
• Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano
  
• Valentino Khan
  
• Vini Vici
  
• What So Not
  
• 4B
  

Ultra Music Festival 2018. Friday, March 23, through Sunday, March 25, 2018, at Bayfront Park, 301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami; 305-358-7550; bayfrontparkmiami.com. Tickets cost $379.95 to $1,499.95 via ultramusicfestival.com.

Additional reporting by Zach Schlein.