Broccoli City Fest returns to the capital this weekend for a massive two-day music event.
WTOP's Jason Fraley previews Broccoli City Fest at Audi Field (Part 1)
Broccoli City Fest returns to the capital this weekend for a massive two-day music event.
Megan Thee Stallion performs at the Reading Music Festival in England on Aug. 26, 2022. Hip hop is taking center stage at this summer's Essence Festival of Culture, which is celebrating the genre's 50th anniversary with performances from Lauryn Hill, Megan Thee Stallion and Jermaine Dupri. The four-day festival is scheduled to run from June 30 to July 3, 2023 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt, File) (Scott Garfitt/InVision/AP)
Megan Thee Stallion performs at the Reading Music Festival in England on Aug. 26, 2022. Hip hop is taking center stage at this summer's Essence Festival of Culture, which is celebrating the genre's 50th anniversary with performances from Lauryn Hill, Megan Thee Stallion and Jermaine Dupri. The four-day festival is scheduled to run from June 30 to July 3, 2023 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Scott Garfitt, File) (Scott Garfitt/InVision/AP)
This year, the festival will be held for the first time at Audi Field in Southwest Washington, DC.
“We're really excited to be in this new venue,” festival co-founder Jermon Williams told WTOP. “We started at The Bullpen and have grown to St. Elizabeth, RFK (Stadium), FedEx (Field) and now for the last two years back to RFK again. So the move to Audi Field was really about elevating the fan experience. We wanted to reinvent and redefine what it means to experience the festival.”
He's grateful to have had Events DC run on the grounds of RFK Stadium in the Northeast for the past few years, but Audi Field offers many new opportunities for the festival in terms of both production and facilities.
“Audi Field has state-of-the-art facilities and really allows us to utilize the stadium and the surrounding area of the stadium,” Williams said, “so we can set up the festival with the Jumbotron, that big screen, so it's an experience comparable to an awards ceremony where you can see the talent interacting backstage. … Also, amenity-wise, we provide air-conditioned restrooms and seating for the audience. I don't think we've had seating options in 11 years.”
The opening will be a pre-party on Friday at the Echo Stage, hosted by nine-time Emmy nominee Issa Rae.
“We're really excited that she's going to be hosting it,” Williams said. “Anyone can join.”
The official two-day music festival kicks off on Saturday and will be headlined by three-time Grammy Award winner Megan Thee Stallion, with a stellar lineup including PartyNextDoor, Lil Yachty & the Concrete Family, Friday and Teezo Touchdown. Hosts include Desi Banks, Funny Marco, Bryson Tiller and Trapsoul Karaoke, with introductions by Raye.
As if that wasn't enough, Sunday will see a second day of music, headlined by four-time Grammy-nominated rapper Gunna and this year's Best New Artist Grammy winner Victoria Monette, with performances from a host of rising stars including Sexy Red, Key Glock and hosted by Soulection Radio's Joe Kay.
How does Broccoli City always have a knack for finding the “next big” artist?
“It starts with us being fans of music culture in general,” Williams said of co-founders Marcus Allen and Brandon McCutchen. “Being a fan, for me, there's a natural desire to discover new music. It's also important to have a great team, a young and amazing team, that share that passion, because now we get real-time advice and insight on new artists. Beyond the headlining artists, it's always about how do we enrich the lineup?”
As a result, over the past decade the festival's reputation has grown as has attendance.
“The precursor to Broccoli City Fest was an Earth Day block party we did in Los Angeles called Global Cooling, which featured Kendrick Lamar as the opening act and drew 500 to 600 people,” Williams said. “Going back to BC Fest, the first one in 2013 drew 5,000 people, and by 2016 it had grown to 13,000 and by 2018 it had grown to 30,000. … This year we're expecting 25,000 people per day for a total of 50,000 people. We're really excited about that.”
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WTOP's Jason Fraley previews Broccoli City Fest at Audi Field (Part 2)
Listen to our full conversation here.
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