Rolling loud is the biggest festival in hip-hop. In the decade of its existence, it has had the biggest acts of the year, and the introduction of underground rappers. These same underground rappers were shot up into stardom and became mainstays due to their performances. This year, the Miami venue was unavailable, so they have decided to hold the iconic event at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando. While the venue might be a downgrade from the hard rock stadium, it will still hold the title as the biggest hip-hop festival in the country.
The Orlando rolling loud festival will be the only one held in America, as they will not hold a California Rolling Loud. This has led people to hype up the setlist days before it was announced, since people can infer that there would be bigger artists than usual. The lead up to the setlist was filled with hype for all the subgenres of hip-hop, because this could be the biggest introduction for smaller artists and a generational performance from main-stream rappers. The set list was revealed last week on January 14th, and the reception to it was polarizing.
When the setlist was first revealed online via a tweet and an Instagram post. There were 2 main reactions to the setlist. The main reaction was disappointment, as people thought the setlist did not include many A-List celebrities, and mainstays like Travis Scott, Lil Uzi Vert, and many others. However, there is a large group of people who believe that this is an amazing lineup. There are a lot of underground picks, some with less than 10k monthly listeners. This is a great thing for the underground scene, as Floridian rappers and other underground rappers from the south are getting the spotlight in the biggest festival in the country, next to Coachella.
Sophomore William Montgomery was in that group of people who did not like the lineup. He spoke up about it saying: “I felt like the line up was lacking for this year, I mean look at the set list for Miami last year. I mean, they had some huge artists last year, and the fact they moved it to Orlando too, makes the whole thing seem cheaper.” This sentiment is shared throughout a lot of younger rap fans, especially since most people see Rolling Loud more as a show where the biggest artists perform, not as a celebration of the underground scene.
Other people, like Sophomore Matthew Callahan appreciate the set list for this year. He explains: “the new set list is dope. A lot of the rappers that would never be touring in Florida are coming to rolling loud, and I think that’s amazing.” The appeal of this lineup is how many underground artists there are. These artists have started their careers with 100 monthly listeners on Soundcloud and Spotify. These artists are not talentless either, as Rolling Loud has a 3 month process to choose who will appear in Rolling Loud.
Overall, this festival is a huge step for underground artists and the Orlando area. Orlando has never seen this many people interested in the event, and people are coming all around the country to see the 3-day event. In the same vein, these underground artists will be performing in front of thousands of people, as well as the performances being live streamed to hundreds of thousands of people. There are about 4 months until Rolling Loud in Orlando, and it will be the most anticipated venue in the area.