HARD Summer Music Festival welcomes Disclosure, FISHER + Chris Lake, REZZMAU5, Major Lazer & more to brand-new home in 2024

March 5, 2024 by Leave a Comment

HARD Summer Music Festival - updated 2024 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
Hollywood Park – Inglewood, CA
August 3rd-4th, 2024 //

Spring is almost upon us, and we all know that means festival season is right around the corner.

With some of California’s biggest music festivals revealing their 2024 plans and Goldenvoice sharing its latest round of Coachella sideshows a couple of weeks ago, it’s now HARD Summer’s turn to jump into the action.

A year ago the annual SoCal festival returned to Los Angeles’ city limits and went back to two days after extending to three in 2022, but now HARD founder and CEO Gary Richards’ signature event is heading even further west from its 2023 site that featured the LA Memorial Coliseum, Exposition Park and BMO Stadium — which was quite a difference from some of HARD Summer’s older eastern haunts such as the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Fairplex in Pomona and Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte.

HARD Summer’s next stop? Well, that would be Inglewood. The two-day fest’s new home will be at what organizers are calling “Hollywood Park adjacent to SoFi Stadium,” though if we can be real, the grounds are primarily made up of the parking lots surrounding the state-of-the-art, indoor-outdoor stadium as you can see here. Hey, at least the weather should be cooler!

This year’s lineup will also look a little different than last year’s in a couple of ways. After highlighting B2B sets at the top of the poster for its first appearance in LA since 2013 and incorporating more hip-hop into the equation during past iterations, HARD Summer has gone back to its electronic roots even more with Disclosure, FISHER + Chris Lake (Under Construction), REZZMAU5 made up of REZZ and deadmau5, and Major Lazer leading the pack. Of course, other top-notch acts that we would be remiss to recognize in this space include Jamie xx, Subtronics, Zeds Dead, Tchami x Malaa, Mochakk, SOFI TUKKER (DJ set), Kenny Beats, Channel Tres, Eli Brown, Wax Motif, Dillon Francis and Boys Noiz. If you want to see the rest of the bill — like special guests Nelly Furtado and Chase & Status or the TBA artists blurred out for Saturday — who are scheduled to perform in August however, make sure to peep the poster above for the full details and check back here for updates.

GA and VIP passes are on sale this Friday, March 8th at 10 a.m. PT here for fans ages 18 and over, and you can set up a payment plan for single-day or weekend tickets after only a $9.95 deposit. So … who’s ready to go HARD in the “City of Champions” this summer?

UPDATE (March 27th): Ready to find who else is joining the party this summer? Both TBA acts have been revealed for Saturday, and they just happen to hail from the across the pond with UK tech-house act Cloonee taking his spot on the top line and British grime artist Skepta performing a Más Tiempo set in honor of his house-focused label that he launched in 2023 with Jammer. Scroll up to see the updated poster above as well as the latest on HARD’s social media while tickets are still available with a deposit of $29.95 here.

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HARD Summer Music Festival changes locations, moves back to two days in 2023 with Kaskade B2B John Summit, Skrillex B2B Four Tet

March 7, 2023 by 1 Comment

HARD Summer Music Festival - 2023 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
LA Memorial Coliseum, Exposition Park & BMO Stadium – Los Angeles
August 5th-6th, 2023 //

If you thought Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival delivered a big splash by releasing its 2023 lineup to celebrate the 15-year mark this August, HARD Summer is making its own noise just hours later.

After extending to three days in 2022, the annual Southern California music festival is moving back to two with a brand-new location and a stacked roster that once again favors electronic and hip-hop fans.

While a variety of SoCal venues — Whittier Narrows Recreation Area, the Fairplex in Pomona and Auto Club Speedway in Fontana — have played host to HARD Summer over the years, the fest’s latest home for the past two had been the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino. But HARD founder and CEO Gary Richards has always had his sights set on returning to LA since leaving the city’s limits following its 2013 edition at the previous iteration of LA State Historic Park.

Now, the event will migrate 63 miles west to the LA Memorial Coliseum, Exposition Park and BMO Stadium with Kaskade B2B John Summit and Skrillex B2B Four Tet tapped as headliners, plus two special guests in 21 Savage and Kid Cudi.

This year’s undercard, meanwhile, isn’t too shabby either, littered with more B2B sets and other huge names that include Diplo B2B Blond:ish, Black Coffee, Kayzo B2B Sullivan King, Oliver Tree, Gorgon City, Yellow Claw B2B Flosstradamus, Dillon Francis, Deorro, The Martinez Brothers, Jungle (DJ set), Bicep (Live), 4B B2B JSTJR, TBA B2B Sonny Fodera, Diesel, Ludacris, Peekaboo, Fat Joe and more. Check out the poster above for the rest of acts who have been booked.

GA and VIP passes are on sale this Friday, March 10th at 10 a.m. PT here for fans ages 18 and over, with payment plans also available for single-day or weekend tickets after a $9.95 deposit.

HARD Summer Music Festival - updated 2023 lineup

UPDATE (May 1st): With more than four months to go until showtime, HARD Summer has uncovered a handful of 2023 lineup additions that sees MK B2B Sonny Fodera, Yung Bae, PAWSA, Rochelle Jordan and nøll joining the party this August in downtown LA. Scope out the poster above for the latest updates to the roster and sign up for the SMS hotline here to receive first access to tickets, lineups and more via text message.

HARD Summer Music Festival 2023 - Saturday set times

HARD Summer Music Festival 2023 - Sunday set times

UPDATE (August 2nd): Set times are here, and while there’s a whole lot to choose from, there’s also some tough decisions to make after 9 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Give the schedules above a good look before leaving for Exposition Park this weekend, and most importantly, have a great time!

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HARD Summer Music Festival extends to three days in 2022 with Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Uzi Vert & Porter Robinson atop the bill

May 3, 2022 by 1 Comment

Hard Summer Music Festival - 2022 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
NOS Events Center – San Bernardino, CA
July 29th-31st, 2022 //

If you thought Gary Richards was bold after dropping a 2021 lineup for HARD Summer while we were still in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, the HARD founder and CEO isn’t letting up now.

This time, he’s adding a third day for the annual Southern California music festival that returns late July to the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino after moving all around the greater Los Angeles area over the last few years — whether it was Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte, the Fairplex in Pomona or Auto Club Speedway in Fontana.

HARD Summer has long leaned in the electronic direction given Richard’s pedigree as a DJ, but it has incorporated more and more hip-hop acts since 2015 and the 14th edition follows in the same vein with Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Uzi Vert and Porter Robinson sitting atop the bill.

Meanwhile, plenty of other big names throughout the undercard are also worth calling out, such as Joji, Alison Wonderland, Chris Lake, Zeds Dead B2B Subtronics, GRiZ, Madeon, Gunna, NGHTMRE, Marc Rebillet, Tchami, Denzel Curry, Jai Wolf, 100 Gecs and more. Peep the poster above for the rest of this year’s roster.

GA, GA+ and VIP passes are on sale this Friday, May 6th at 10 a.m. PT here for fans ages 18 and over, with payment plans also available for one-day or three-day tickets after a $9.95 deposit.

Anyone ready to go HARD this summer?

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Smokin Grooves Fest returns in 2022 as Erykah Badu, Nas, The Roots, Miguel, Jhené Aiko & more stack the bill in downtown LA

November 30, 2021 by 3 Comments

Smokin Groves Fest - 2022 lineup

Smokin Grooves Fest //
LA State Historic Park – Los Angeles
March 19th, 2022 //

Smookin Grooves is back!

The one-day, neo-soul festival, which found a home at the Queen Mary in Long Beach following a 16-year absence, has unleashed its 2022 lineup and it’s absolutely stacked from top to bottom thanks to promoters Bobby Dee Presents and the legendary Snoop Dogg.

In fact, Smookin Grooves has easily matched what it offered fans in 2018 (read our review here) and 2019 (read our review here) after putting on excellent showings both years sheerly by landing Erykah Badu, Nas, The Roots, Miguel and Jhené Aiko to lead the charge.

But adding The Internet, Flying Lotus, Kamasi Washington, Thundercat, Smino, Toro y Moi, SiR, Little Dragon, Hiatus Kaiyote, Musiq Soulchild, India.Arie, Macy Gray, Angie Stone, Leela James, Talib Kweli, Roy Ayers, Dead Prez, Slum Village, Dwele, Joe Kay and more to the roster makes this another must-see production. Check out the poster above for the rest of the scheduled acts.

Known for being the first large-scale music fest in the 90’s to counter rock-centric ones like Lollapalooza by pushing hip-hop, R&B and soul to the forefront of popular music with the help of The Fugees, A Tribe Called Quest, Cypress Hill and more, Smookin Grooves has already established quite a legacy for itself and Badu has certainly played an important role having performed at many of its editions, including the past two. Meanwhile, The Roots, Miguel and Aiko are all familiar names as well after their appearances at the festival in 2018.

It’s also worth mentioning that Smokin Grooves is getting a change of scenery this March as it relocates north to LA State Historic Park, where we caught Duke Dumont, Miike Snow, Lido and more in 2017 for KCRW’s inaugural Skyline festival (read our review here). Tucked against the Chinatown neighborhood of downtown LA, the 32-acre park underwent major renovations several years ago and has long been considered to be an excellent location for live music since its days hosting FYF Fest and HARD’s LA-based events.

So, are you ready to get in on the action? Smokin Grooves will have a presale this Friday, December 3rd at 10 a.m. PT that you can sign up for here, with any remaining tickets available for purchase at 2 p.m. PT during the general sale. GA passes start at $184.99 and go up to $214.99, while GA+ begin at $249.99 before increasing to $269.99. And of course, if you’re 21 years or older and willing to splurge, there’s always VIP for $399.99 before jumping to $424.99 per person.

Smokin Grooves 2022 - set times

UPDATE (March 15th): Ahead of this weekend’s festivities, Smokin Grooves has dropped its set times for 2022 with some tough conflicts to work through, including Badu and Washington battling for eyeballs at the end of the day as well as Nas vs. Toro y Moi, Miguel vs. Flying Lotus, The Roots vs. Little Dragon and Jhené Aiko vs. Talib Kweli earlier in the night. Peep the full list above to see who’s playing on which stage and when.

Look back at our past coverage of Smookin Grooves Fest here.

Smokin Grooves Fest 2019

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HARD Summer Music Festival returns in 2021 with Future, DJ Snake B2B Malaa enlisted as headliners

March 30, 2021 by 1 Comment

HARD Summer Music Festival - 2021 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
NOS Events Center – San Bernardino, CA
July 31st-August 1st, 2021 //

Four months.

With so many of us forced to spend the past year at home because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it might be hard to believe that live music is slowly returning in the U.S. Yet, that’s exactly how much longer it will be before California hosts its first large-scale music festival again when HARD Summer returns this July and August.

The annual two-day event, which has long leaned in the electronic direction but has incorporated more and more hip-hop acts since 2015, has moved around the greater Los Angeles area over the last several years, occupying Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte and the Fairplex in Pomona before eventually migrating to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana for the last four editions, but HARD founder and CEO Gary Richards has found a new home less than 20 miles away.

Employing the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino for its 13th installment, HARD Summer 2021 will not only see Atlanta rapper Future headline for the first time but also a rare B2B set by DJ Snake and Malaa. Plus, the fest’s undercard offers enough of its own star power with Rezz, Dillon Francis, Kaytranada, RL Grime B2B Baauer, 2 Chainz, Don Toliver, Skream, Jauz, Kayzo, Ekali, Iann Dior, Lil Durk, Hulk Gang (Valentino Khan + 4B), Maya Jane Coles, Slushii, G Jones B2B Eprom, JOYRYDE, A-Trak, SAYMYNAME, Wax Motif, Solardo and more all scheduled to perform. Check out the poster above for the rest of the lineup.

GA and VIP passes are on sale this Friday, April 2nd at 10 a.m. PT here for fans ages 18 and over, with payment plans also available for one-day or two-day tickets after a $9.95 or $19.99 deposit.

So, who’s ready to go HARD this summer?

UPDATE (May 5th): Well, it sure sounds like plenty of people are ready to get down this summer as two-day and Saturday single-day passes are now sold out! Tickets to Sunday’s festivities are still available here so make sure to grab them before it’s too late.

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B2B sets highlight HARD Summer’s 2018 lineup

April 24, 2018 by Leave a Comment

HARD Summer - 2018 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
Auto Club Speedway – Fontana, CA
August 4th-5th, 2018 //

After two years at Auto Club Speedway, HARD Summer is finally settling into its Fontana digs.

The two-day, electronic-focused music festival struggled for several years to find a permanent home in Southern California, leaving Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte for the Fairplex in Pomona at one point not that long ago (three years to be exact), though HARD founder and CEO Gary Richards appears to have found that the one NASCAR race track in the greater Los Angeles area works pretty well for his annual affair, which last August celebrated its 10th anniversary.

But after booking mostly EDM artists in its early years, HARD Summer has made a conscious effort since 2015 to feature some of hip-hop’s biggest names, and that same formula seems to have once again been used in assembling its 2018 roster. Leading the way will be Marshmello, Travis Scott, Yellow Mustard (Yellow Claw + DJ Mustard), Virtual Self (Porter Robinson’s new moniker), Louis the Child, MØ, Flosstradamus and Virgil Abloh, but it’s particularly the back-to-back sets — Zeds Dead B2B JAUZ, Diplo B2B Dillon Francis, Borgore B2B Getter and A-Trak B2B Baauer — that stand out from the fest’s past editions.

Meanwhile, others who will be performing at HARD Summer this year include TroyBoi, San Holo, Rick Ross, Trippie Redd, blackbear, Snakehips, Slushii, Kill the Snails (Kill the Noise + SNAILS), $UICIDEBOY$, Ekali, Petit Biscuit, Lil Skies, Hippie Sabotage, Valentino Khan, Big Wild, wifisfuneral and many more. Check out the poster above for the rest of the lineup.

Unlike the past two years, camping will not be offered in 2018, but HARD Summer organizers are promising a brand-new layout that will see all of the stages now positioned on the infield grass and expanded entry lanes for easier access into the grounds. Tickets to the 18-and-over event can be purchased here starting at $129 this Friday, April 29th at 9 a.m. PT.

If you’re looking to go HARD this summer, this is a party you won’t want to miss.

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For its 10th edition, HARD Summer continues to mix EDM with hip-hop on its 2017 lineup

April 25, 2017 by 1 Comment

HARD Summer Music Festival - 2017 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
Auto Club Speedway – Fontana, CA
August 5th-6th, 2017 //

Last July, HARD Summer settled into its new home of Auto Club Speedway with Ice Cube and Major Lazer bringing the heat while serving as headliners.

The two-day, electronic-focused music festival had occupied LA State Historic Park for a few years before moving to Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte and the Fairplex in Pomona, but HARD founder and CEO Gary Richards’ annual event has seemingly found a more permanent location in Fontana and at a NASCAR race track no less, much like Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) has done in partnering with Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

As we started to see in 2015, HARD has once again moved away from booking strictly EDM artists and is now regularly incorporating more mainstream hip-hop acts into its roster. The 2017 lineup follows down that path, with Snoop Dogg, Rae Sremmurd and Migos sitting atop the bill next to electronic heavyweights like DJ Snake, Justice (DJ set), Dog Blood, Zeds Dead and Bassnectar. But the big selling point for most music fans should be the fact that Snoop will perform his 1993 landmark debut album Doggystyle in full on the festival’s second day.

Meanwhile, other notables names lined up for HARD include Tchami, Jai Wolf, Cashmere Cat, Snakehips, Skepta, Claude VonStroke, Ty Dolla $ign, What So Not, Malaa, Baauer, A-Trak, Kill the Noise, Mobb Deep, JME, YehMe2, Mike Will Made It, Doctor P, Destructo, Anna Lunoe, 12th Planet, Kayzo, Tinashe, E-40, MadeinTYO, Brodinski, Brillz, Charli XCX, Party Favor and many more. Check out the poster above for the rest of the lineup.

Back for its second year at HARD, camping will be permitted and allow festivalgoers to easily go in and out of the festival grounds, which span more than 500 acres. Two-day passes to the 18-and-over event can be purchased here for $129 starting this Friday, April 28th at 9 a.m. PT and single-day tickets will be available for $89.

Who wants to go HARD this summer?

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HARD Summer reveals new location, lineup for 2016

April 26, 2016 by 1 Comment

HARD Summer 2016 lineup

HARD Summer Music Festival //
Auto Club Speedway – Fontana, CA
July 30th-31st, 2016 //

After moving out of Los Angeles and changing locations the past two years, HARD Summer Music Festival has found a new home for 2016.

The two-day, electronic-focused music festival, which occupied LA State Historic Park for four years starting in 2010, spent 2014 at Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte and 2015 at the Fairplex in Pomona. Now, HARD founder and CEO Gary Richards’ annual event is headed farther east this year with NASCAR race track Auto Club Speedway playing host a la Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Much like last year’s lineup, which saw the fest move away from strictly EDM acts with The Weeknd serving as a headliner, this year’s bill welcomes several major hip-hop acts like Ice Cube, Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals, Travis Scott, Ty Dolla $ign and Desiigner amid electronic heavyweights like Major Lazer, Flosstradamus, Dillon Francis, Zeds Dead, Porter Robinson, Claude VonStroke, Madeon, Baauer and Boys Noize. Other noteworthy acts set to perform include Vancouver live electronica duo Bob Moses and British synthpop/R&B outfit AlunaGeorge, both of whom we caught at Coachella less than two weeks ago. We also can’t help but laugh at seeing Fat Joe sandwiched in between Green Velvet and Brodinski on the festival’s hot pink poster.

UPDATE: Colorado electronic producer Pretty Lights has been added to Saturday’s lineup, marking just the second HARD appearance for Derek Vincent Smith. Earlier this month, the Fort Collins native released new music for the first time in nearly three years, sharing “Only Yesterday” in conjunction with a new music video that features footage from last summer’s two-night run in Telluride, Colo., where Smith will return this August for two more shows. HARD organizers announced the news on Thursday night, just two days after releasing its initial artist lineup.

For the first time in HARD Summer’s history, camping will be permitted to allow for easy ins and outs of the festival grounds, which span more than 500 acres this year. Two-day passes to the 18-and-over event can be purchased here for $129 starting this Friday, April 29th at 9 a.m. PT, and additionally, single-day tickets will be available for $79.

Anybody looking to go HARD this summer?

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