A year of big acts and festivals
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If a festival happened in America this year, chances are it was in Atlanta.
Among the many musical highlights of 2013 – Cee Lo Green and Goodie Mob reunited for their first album in 14 years, Gregg Allman's biopic got a green light and found a star (All-American Rejects' Tyson Ritter), Janelle Monae stunned with a groundbreaking album and sizzling concert in her adopted hometown – came a slew of multi-day outdoor events.
Sure, big-time tours from Taylor Swift, Pink (twice at Philips Arena), Rihanna, Justin Timberlake, Kanye West, One Direction and Andrea Bocelli rolled through town. But Atlanta added to its festival lineup with the indie rock-oriented Shaky Knees Music Fest, a special NCAA-sponsored weekend of shows and a Belgium import that kickstarted the adrenaline in 100,000 electronic dance music fans.
Here are some highlights from those and other noteworthy music moments throughout the year:
TomorrowWorld: A remote farm in Chattahoochee Hills provided the backdrop for the inaugural U.S. edition of the dance music fest known in Belgium at TomorrowLand. (Disney made them tweak the name for American purposes.) With a lineup boasting some of the top DJ names in the world – Calvin Harris, David Guetta, Alesso, Afrojack, Steve Aoki – and hundreds of others spread among eight stages, it didn't surprise anyone that more than 100,000 people stationed themselves at Bouckaert Farm to pump their arms overhead for three days. TomorrowWorld will return in September.
Music Midtown: They say good things (and, well, deaths) come in threes, but it was another successful outing for year No. 3 of Music Midtown since its return after a lengthy hiatus in the mid-2000s. A third stage was added to the options at Piedmont Park in September, giving buzzy acts such as Kendrick Lamar and Capital Cities a spot to perform. On the main stages, arena-headliners Journey and Red Hot Chili Peppers and notable names Imagine Dragons and Atlanta's 2 Chainz helped command a crowd of more than 100,000 during the two-day event. Maybe they'll shoot for three next year?
Big Dance Concert Series: A sport that didn't involve helmets drew close to 100,000 people downtown during the NCAA Men's Final Four championship series at the Georgia Dome in April. But sports fans weren't the only ones rejoicing that 2013's games were held in Atlanta. The three-day Big Dance Concert Series held in conjunction with the finals commandeered Centennial Olympic Park with headliners including Zac Brown Band, Dave Matthews and Muse. When acts such as Sting, Ludacris and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis are considered ancillary, you know you've got a tremendous lineup.
Paul Simon at Emory University: After canceling his original February dates due to illness, the musical poet made good on his commitment in September by participating in the Richard Ellmann Lectures in Modern Literature series. Along with two public lectures and a conversation with former U.S. poet laureate Billy Collins, Simon performed a show at the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts. But even the intimacy of that room couldn't compare to his session with Collins at Glenn Auditorium, when Simon strapped on his acoustic guitar to perform a haunting version of "Sounds of Silence" and the soulful "Slip Slidin' Away."
Jason Aldean at Sanford Stadium: Big deal No. 1: Aldean's performance marked the first time a concert was staged at the storied UGA football stadium. Big deal No. 2: More than 60,000 people packed the venue, making the Macon native's previous Big Deal of 2012 – two sold-out shows at Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood – feel like the accomplishment of a novice. "That day in Athens will always be one of my proudest accomplishments," Aldean said of the show, where he was joined by Leesburg son Luke Bryan and surprise guest, Atlanta rapper Ludacris. Missed it live? It's now on DVD.
About the Author
Melissa Ruggieri has covered music and entertainment for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 2010 and created the Atlanta Music Scene blog. She's kept vampire hours for more than two decades and remembers when MTV was awesome.
