A Firefly fan’s suggestions for next year’s hip-hop lineup

For a concert and music lover like myself, Firefly Music Festival was an amazing experience.

If there is anything the four-day festival showed, it was that music genres are mixing now more than ever. The alternative rock group Twenty One Pilots put on an electric performance and showed their versatility by highlighting their reggae and hip-hop influences. Some of the best hip-hop performances from that weekend included Lil Dicky, Busta Rhymes and Chance the Rapper, who serenaded the crowd with favorites like “Same Drugs.”

My first trip to the annual festival left me with a taste for more. Looking ahead to next year’s event, I can’t help but think about who I would want to see on one of the many Firefly stages. Red Frog Events, Firefly’s organizers, are banking on people’s opinions: This year they announced the festival would be fan-curated. They recently posted a survey asking fans who they want to see in 2018, including Eminem, Kanye West, Tyga and artists from across genres. Fans can write in suggestions, too.

My first thought was that most festivals consist of artists old, new and up-and-comers. At this year’s festival, Busta Rhymes took fans through 25 years of classics, while Lil Dicky and Chance the Rapper capitalized off of their new found fame.

The fact that a festival like Firefly is being held annually in Delaware is still baffling, but I fully intend on making it a tradition in the years to come.

Here are a few hip-hop acts I would love to see in The Woodlands:

Migos

The Migos have been on a meteoric rise ever since their 2013 hit “Versace” caught Drake’s attention. The Canadian rapper loved the song so much he jumped on the remix and catapulted the Migos into stardom. Between the creation of pop culture dances like the dab and their four-time platinum hit “Bad and Boujee,” it’s easy to see why actor/writer/rapper Donald Glover deemed them The Beatles of our generation.

50 Cent

Out of the many hip-hop moguls such as JAY-Z and Diddy, 50 Cent was the one artist I could see performing at Firefly. Even though he continues to find success in many ventures other than hip-hop, he continues to create music and stays relevant through his businesses and social media. 50 Cent’s music catalog should make him a prime candidate, with hits dating back to the early 2000s. 50 cent has established himself as one of the world’s best-selling rappers, which would make for an amazing concert in The Woodlands.

GoldLink

This Washington, D.C., native is considered one of the hottest up-and-coming artists in the country. The rapper, whose real name is D’Anthony Carlos, gained a following by releasing songs on Bandcamp and Soundcloud after graduating high school in 2010. In 2015 he was featured on XXL’s prestigious Freshman Class cover and this past year he released his debut album “At What Cost” after signing a new record deal with RCA. The album has been acclaimed by fans and critics for its unique storytelling and production. Which would make him a great candidate for one of the smaller stages, like The Treehouse, at next year’s Firefly.

Gucci Mane

Before the groups like Migos began tearing up the charts, there was Gucci Mane. Considered an underground mixtape legend, Gucci helped pioneer the hip-hop subgenre trap music, alongside fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Young Jeezy in the early 2000s. He is credited with discovering some of the today’s biggest stars and still was releasing mixtapes while in prison. Despite his legal woes, Gucci’s come out a different person after his most recent release from prison where he sobered up and got in shape for what seems to be a comeback. Hopefully, we will get to see the “So Icy” rapper in the First State at next year’s festival. BURRRRRR!

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