Atlanta-based music festival One Music Fest took place last weekend in the historical Centennial Olympic Park downtown. Surrounded by some of the city’s most notable landmarks including the what used to be the largest aquarium in the world, The Georgia Aquarium and the CNN headquarters, the “#1 progressive urban music fest” was a weekend to remember.
The festival took place on September 7th and September 8th and included a star-studded line up of new school and old school artists. Teyana Taylor, Rick Ross, Gucci Mane, Busta Rhymes, Pharrell, and Ari Lennox are just a few of the big names who took the stage over the weekend.
Often referred to as the Hip Hop Capital, Atlanta is known for its rich music scene that dates back to the early 1990s. Popular southern hip-hop groups like OutKast and Goodie Mob were quickly making a name for themselves while putting their city on the map. Since then, the city has birthed the careers of T.I., Ludacris, Toni Braxton, Xscape, Ciara and more. So, it’s safe to say the festival was in the perfect location.
Even with an insufferable temperature of 96 degrees on Saturday, the hot summer day didn’t stop dedicated festival-goers from showing up and showing out for their favorite artists. With three different stages for fans to choose from, the lineup for the day wasn’t nearly as star-packed as Sunday’s lineup which included performances by Snoh Aalegra, DMX, and Wu-Tang Clan, and surprise appearances from Lil Nas X, Usher, and Monica; however, it still brought the heat in more ways than one.
Tory Lanez
Photo by DV Photo Video.
The Toronto rapper and singer put on a nostalgic show in the festival stage performing a mix of his original hits for the younger festival-goers such as “LUV” and “Say It” while squeezing in some 90’s R&B bops like “Poison” by Bell Biv Devoe and “Candy Rain” by Soul for Real for the old heads in the crowd. Regardless of the wide gap of musical eras incorporated in to his set, there wasn’t a soul in the audience that wasn’t singing along.
At one point, Tory even jumps in to the crowd to dance with a few lucky fans! It was a party, indeed.
Rae Sremmurd
Though the young duo has stepped back from making music together to focus on their own solo careers, they flawlessly fell back in to the swing of things once it was time to hit the main stage.
The two vocalists known as Swae Lee and Slim Jxmmi have undeniable chemistry musically, and bounced off of each other effortlessly while performing their popular hits “Black Beatles,” which started the viral social media challenge accompanied by the #MannequinChallenge hashtag in 2016, “No Flex Zone”, “Swang” and the ultimate strip club anthem “Powerglide”.
Fans sang word for word to the duo’s solo tracks too, including Swae’s latest single “Won’t Be Late” featuring Drake. As their set came to an end it was evident that, solo careers or not, Rae Sremmurd will never not be great together.
Three 6 Mafia
Photo by DV Photo Video.
The legendary Memphis-bred rap trio reunited after nearly 20 years to perform at One Music Fest for their loyal fans, so the night definitely called for celebration. The energy throughout the park grounds seemed to shift tremendously once members Juicy J and DJ Paul entered the main stage. The crowd was hype and chanting along with the group as they performed their famous anthems “Slob on My Knob”, “Who Run It” and “Tear Da Club Up.”
