Music, Why Not!

ARTISTS TO KEEP ON YOUR RADAR AT ACL 2021

FRIDAY

Bleachers is an American indie pop act based in New York City. It is the official stage name of songwriter and record producer Jack Antonoff, who was also part of the bands Steel Train, Fun, and Red Hearse. The band’s debut album Strange Desire was released July 10, 2014, from RCA Records. Variance Magazine called the single “Rollercoaster” a “brilliant summer anthem. Since then Jack has gone to not only produce many more Bleacher’s records but also write for the likes of Taylor Swift, Lorde, and Lana Del Rey. With the release of new music, we definitely recommend checking him out on stage. His music screams the rebirth of live music. 

Finneas is an American singer, songwriter, actor, and record producer. Finneas has released several singles as a solo artist, and his debut EP, Blood Harmony, was released in October 2019. The EP includes “Let’s Fall in Love for the Night”, his most successful song to date, peaking at number 17 on the US Billboard Alternative Songs chart. His music is the scape we all need on a hot summer day. It is soft enough to be played when you need to be alone with yourself, but also filled with passion for a festival setting. 10 out of 10 recommend checking him out at ACL on Friday. We’re hoping he sings, “Till Forever Falls Apart” with Ashe. 

JXDN is defying the rules with style and substance as he bends and breaks the boundaries as he moves between subcultures in a very genuine way to position himself as a new kind of rockstar. Generating 15 million streams within a month and becoming the first artist signed to Travis Barker’s DTA Records, the 19-year-old genre breaker presents a signature style on a series of 2020 releases. After witnessing an arena show by the late Juice WRLD, he dove headfirst into music and unleashed his independent debut single “Comatose.” The track has since racked up over 20 million streams across platforms and broken into over 38 Global Viral Charts to date. Upon hearing it, Barker immediately signed him to DTA Records. Now, jxdn takes flight on the single “Angels & Demons.” With everything in full gear as he preps for the release of his debut EP, Think About Me coming later this summer!

SATURDAY

Phoebe Bridgers is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer from Los Angeles, California. She made her solo debut with the studio album Stranger in the Alps (2017), followed by Punisher (2020) which earned Bridgers widespread critical acclaim and four Grammy Award nominations, including Best New Artist. Her latest release, ‘Punisher’ will probably be very heavily featured during her ACL set, but nonetheless we are more than excited to see her perform anything live. I mean, can you blame us? Her SNL performance was literally a moment in pop culture. I think if you’re going to check out an artist at ACL it needs to be Phoebe Bridgers. 

Alison Wonderland architects a world of her own design as its chief author, creator, and voice. Since emerging in 2009, the Sydney-born and Los Angeles-based singer, producer, songwriter, and DJ’s sound has quietly inched towards mainstream ubiquity as the sonic sorceress received the “Highest Female DJ Billing Ever at Coachella” label, captured #1 on the Billboard Top Dance/Electronic Albums Chart twice consecutively, headlined sold out arenas around the globe and clocked upwards of 500 million streams. Bad Things is the first taste of what will become Alison Wonderland’s third LP set to be released in 2021. Alison actually graced the stage back in 2017. Her energy, talent and stage presence in my opinion made her set ONE of the best of that day.

White Reaper is an American garage punk band based in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The band is composed of Tony Esposito (guitar/vocals), Ryan Hater, Hunter Thompson, Nick Wilkerson, and Sam Wilkerson. The band has released two EPs and three full-length albums, their first album in 2015 White Reaper Does It Again,and The World’s Best American Band in 2017. White Reaper released their third studio album You Deserve Love on October 18, 2019, their major label debut. ‘You Deserve Love’ was absolutely one of our favorite releases to come out in 2019. The shiny 

SUNDAY

Greta Van Fleet is one of the most exciting acts to be hitting the stage this year at ACL. With the release of their latest record, The Battle at Garden’s Gate and a couple Grammy wins the band is sure to be a stunner. The four-piece’s musicianship is absolutely stunning; guitarist Jake Kiszka played one searing solo with his guitar behind his back for a remarkably long time. And it sounded, like, really good. Rather than drawing inspiration from a previous era, the band is essentially just replicating it. But as much as I wanted that to drive me nuts, they just did it too well — with too much energy and spirit and joy — to not completely win me over.

Tate Mcrae, my favorite act to be hitting the stage this fall is on the rise with no sign of slowing down. The new pop sensation first hit the scene as an artist after posting an original song to her YouTube which ended up going viral landing her Millions of views. This led to her singing to RCA records, which lead to the release of her debut EP, All the Things I Never Said. McRae soon gained wider recognition after her song “You Broke Me First” became an international hit. In 2020, McRae was the youngest musician featured on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list.