Photo by Osmany Torres
Audio By Carbonatix
GroundUp Music Festival announced today it’ll be back for its tenth edition at the Miami Beach Bandshell. This year’s event, which, as always, will be centered around nightly performances by the jazz fusion collective Snarky Puppy, will be held on Saturday, March 14, and Sunday, March 15. Tickets for the event are on sale now with prices ranging from $109 for a one-day pass to $809 for a premium all-in pass, which includes attending a benefit concert on Friday, March 13.
This year’s line-up is as diverse as ever. Flying Lotus is a California-based electronic/avant-garde hip-hop music producer who has collaborated with Kamasi Washington and Kendrick Lamar; however, his laid-back live sets aim to transport attendees to faraway dimensions. Rickie Lee Jones is a legendary singer-songwriter whose self-titled debut album can still touch your soul 47 years after its release. Patrice Rushen is a pianist and singer, who even if you think you don’t know her music, you do, as her 1982 song “Forget Me Nots” has been sampled by everyone from Will Smith’s “Men in Black” to George Michael’s “Fastlove”. Also on the bill are Bilal, Julian Lage, Isaiah Sharkey, Arooj Aftab, Alain Perez, and Varijashree Venugopal.
As mentioned earlier, each night is centered on a full set by Snarky Puppy, who also perform a second daily set, dubbed a “family dinner,” where the full band backs a featured singer. Before last year’s GroundUp, Michael League, the organizer of the fest and bandleader of Snarky Puppy, explained to Miami New Times what Family Dinner is all about. “Family Dinner was a late-night concert series where we invited guest vocalists to sing with us. We’d choose a few of the artist’s songs and change up the arrangements.”
League went on to say what qualities he looks for in both collaborators and when filling slots in the GroundUp lineup. “We’re always looking for diversity. Diverse genres, places, generations, concepts. We’re putting together a meal. We look at what artists complement each other and create a balanced diet for the listener.”
GroundUp Music Festival. 1 p.m. Saturday, March 14, and Sunday, March 15, at Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; groundupmusicfestival.com. Tickets via tickets.venuepilot.com.
