Outkast, Garth Brooks, TomorrowWorld: what to expect at music events

Across the street at Centennial Olympic Park, break out the confetti to shower Big Boi and Andre 3000 as Outkast celebrates its long-awaited homecoming with a trio of sold-out concerts that will attract about 20,000 people per show.

And, if you’re up for a little road trip — say about 20 minutes south of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport — you can head to Bouckaert Farm in Chattahoochee Hills for the three-day TomorrowWorld electronic dance music festival. About 120,000 people attended last year’s inaugural event and organizers point to their 5 million-plus Facebook followers as proof of the growing interest in the gathering that boasts primo names from the EDM world including David Guetta, Diplo, Skrillex, Zedd and Tiesto.

As with last weekend’s double-header of Brooks and Music Midtown, traffic will clog the downtown area — particularly on Friday and Saturday with the Brooks and Outkast shows occurring simultaneously — so the usual suggestion applies: Take MARTA.

If driving is a necessity, advance parking is available through the Philips Arena website, and the usual pay lots in the vicinity of Philips Arena and Centennial Olympic Park will be open (just a reminder that there are about 1,300 fewer spaces due to the construction on the new Atlanta Falcons stadium).

Here is what’s on deck for the weekend:

Outkast

When Big Boi and Andre 3000 made their Georgia return earlier this year at the CounterPoint Music Festival, many fans grumbled that it wasn't a true homecoming for the Atlanta rap pioneers.

The duo evidently felt the same way.

Though the idea of a hometown show was floated about a year ago when rumblings of an Outkast return first emerged, it was scuttled once the guys announced a lengthy list of festival dates.

But several months ago, Rival Entertainment, which is promoting the three Outkast concerts, received a call.

“It wasn’t until after the CounterPoint show when there was this discovery that they really didn’t play to the fans they grew up with. They knew they wanted it to be special and not traditional,” said Rival’s Josh Antenucci.

Given Rival’s history with events at Centennial Olympic Park — they stage the annual Party in the Park music fest — the pairing seemed destined.

Two weeks after that conversation, tickets for the Saturday show (Sept. 27) went on sale and sold out instantly. Two more shows were added and tickets to those, too, disappeared.

The concerts will not only feature the brains behind “B.O.B.,” “Ms. Jackson” and the still shake-it-worthy “Hey Ya,” but many of the group’s hand-picked support acts.

Childish Gambino, Kid Cudi and Raury will perform on Saturday and there will be other artists on Friday and Sunday. But for now, the who-will-it-be? remains a secret.

“We don’t plan to announce the support acts until the day of the show,” Antenucci said. “The rest will be an experience for the fans.”

Things to know:

TomorrowWorld

Electronic dance music has ruled the festival landscape the past few years, and with the arrival of this Belgium import last fall, the Atlanta area ascended the prestige ladder in the eyes of EDM fans.

This year's lineup boasts names both familiar to mainstream music fans and deemed cool by those immersed in the EDM landscape: David Guetta, Diplo, Skrillex, Zedd, Tiesto, Steve Aoki, Bassnectar, Kaskade, Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike, Martin Garrix, Nicky Romero, A-Trak, Tommy Trash, Pegboard Nerds, Dillon Francis, Party Favor and Sub Focus.

One big change in the lineup is the absence of Avicii, who announced earlier this month that he was canceling all upcoming appearances to focus on his health.

“We’re very sad about it and we hope he gets better very soon,” said Shawn Kent, project director for TomorrowWorld. “He’s an extremely well-traveled performer and his (hard work) shows how much dedication that he has for his art.”

While the loss of the guy behind hits such as “Wake Me Up” and “Hey Brother” is palpable, fans will have about 160 DJs per day to listen to, spread among seven stages on the 350-acre farm.

And about those stages, Kent promises alluring “visual experiences” and said a few of them will be brand-new from last year.

As for the main stage, that Godzilla of a production is 400 feet wide and stationed in front of a "volcano," which is equipped with several waterfalls and will erupt with pyrotechnics.

The massive structure — which Kent calls “epic” — served as last year’s stage for Tomorrowland in Belgium, and has been shipped overseas to Georgia in 80 containers.

Things to know:

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood

It’s been 18 years since the country behemoth played Atlanta, but when Brooks makes a return entrance, he does it big time.

After selling out an 11-show run in Chicago, Mr. "Friends in Low Places" headed South and broke a record at Philips Arena by booking seven concerts — and even playing two shows in one night a couple of times.

“This (run) is so unique,” said Trey Feazell, executive vice president and general manager at Philips Arena. “The most shows we had in a row before from one artist had been three. Widespread Panic and Kenny Chesney did it. Prince did five, but not all at the same time. This is definitely the first time we’ve had seven (shows).”

At his return last weekend, Brooks made good on his promise to stick with the old stuff (except for one detour with the new single, "People Loving People," from his new album due Nov. 11). For more than 2 1/2 hours at the late show last Friday night — which stretched well into Saturday morning — Brooks and his crackerjack band regaled the giddy, sold-out crowd with barnburners including "Papa Loved Mama" and "Calling Baton Rouge," as well as his tender acoustic moments such as "Unanswered Prayers" and "The River."

While Brooks never plays the same show twice, this return is all about pleasing the fans. As Brooks stated during a press conference last week at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Scottish Rite, "(Songs such as) 'Friends in Low Places,' 'The Thunder Rolls,' 'The Dance'… You go to a Garth Brooks show and don't hear those songs, you aren't at a Garth Brooks show."

Things to know: