Page 26 - 4-8-2019-Pollstar-rev

2019

FESTIVAL
SPECIAL

WORLDS REMIXED: Porter Robinson spins at SnowGlobe Music Festival in Lake Tahoe, Nev., Dec. 30, 2017.
Robinson will be hosting his very own festival, Second Sky, June 15-16 in Oakland, Calif. Photo by Tim Mosenfelder / Getty Images

Q’S WITH:
Porter Robinson

On Second Sky Fest & Artist Curation

By Francisco Rendon

osty Fest. Astroworld. Dreamville. Madeon, Cashmere Cat, Chrome Sparks, Kero Pollstar: Now that artist festivals are so
Southern Ground. Eaux Claires. Kero, Anamanaguchi, G Jones, Nina Las Vegas common, why would you want to do one?
Homecoming. Cal Jam. The list of and Wednesday Campanella. Porter Robinson: The main reason I wanted to
Partist-branded/curated festivals Second Sky blew the doors off its onsale, to do an artist-curated festival is I have this fantasy
has ballooned in the past several years such a degree that promoters told Robinson of there being a place where all of my favorite
and it might be easy for fans to get cynical they could fill the venue twice if he could get music can coexist. A lot of the music I listen to,
about why artists are signing on for the the artists to commit to a second day. Robin- that I think is really good, amusing, important
experience. son got back on the line and confirmed all but and needs to be heard is A) not the music people
Porter Robinson made it perfectly clear in one of the artists for round two. associate me with and B) isn’t always at the
his interview with Pollstar that his goal in set- Now completely sold out, the inaugural Sec- festivals that will have me. I really wanted to see
ting up Second Sky Music Festival in Oakland, ond Sky is set to run June 15-16 in Oakland’s if I could showcase and create a live space for
Calif., was to fulfill his fantasy of having “a Middle Harbor Shoreline Park and will mark music that I’m actually listening to.
place where all my favorite music can coexist.” the only 2019 performances of Robinson’s There’s a ton of people who were over the
So Robinson partnered with Goldenvoice and landmark 2014 album Worlds. Robinson was moon with the lineup. I’ve gotten comments:
called some of his favorite artists, the purview gracious enough to chat with Pollstar about “I can’t believe that all these artists are in the
of which extends well beyond electronic what he was getting out of curation and what same place.” And there’s an equal number of
music, to book a festival. The lineup includes attendees can expect. people who haven’t heard of anybody on the

26 | APRIL 8, 2019