Murjani Rawls

For someone who has taken frequent trips to the Coachella mecca of Indio, California, it was great to see that the makers of the festival were pushing east. Apparently, they also brought the weather with them as the heat neared the triple digits all three days on Randall’s Island. Many wondered if New York had room for another festival of this magnitude given that the island mainstay, Governors Ball just concluded a few weeks back. Panorama Festival added it’s own flavor in a festival market tha

First off, I’d like to thank the rain boots and three pairs of black jeans that got me through Riot Fest Chicago. They truly are trophies. I had never experienced a Riot Fest up to this point, but was aware (especially this year) that it had one of the most diverse lineups I had seen up to this point. Who could also discount Chicago? Was it an excuse to divulge in deep dish, Chicago style pizza? Partly. If you needed rock, Douglas Park was the place to view it. There was mud. Showers at the beg

I had skipped last year’s Made In America after attending the previous two years. Chalk it up to taking a break, even old age (I’m not old at all), but  I couldn’t resist sitting out another year.  Here, we have another Made In America festival in the books. After selling out twice, the two day festival which is held within the Ben Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia saw out the unofficial end to summer the right way. This year’s musical lineup was rap heavy, but eclectic enough to keep people of a

Festival Snobs writer/photographer Murjani Rawls recently caught up with Jake Zimmerman, founder of Today’s Mixtape Festival which takes place in Long Island, NY. By the time Zimmerman was 17, he was booking bands like Title Fight and Transit to play in places like his backyard and basements. Now in it’s third year, Today’s Mixtape Festival is growing to be one of the up and coming festivals on the east coast. FS: Taking a look at bands you’ve worked with, you have a penchant for finding that n

I feel like I’ve been doing this same dance like clockwork, albeit a bit older. I have not fallen into the that “what is this music” conundrum – I’m comfortably in the middle where I can appreciate the old and new. Usually falling about two days before my birthday, Vans Warped Tour made it’s eventual stop at the Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, NJ. For once, it didn’t rain and it was not the typical desert-like heat that is trademark for this time of year. I’m sure everyone has heard of the c

While some of my fellow Festival Snobs were soaking up the heat and living like vampires on the farm of Bonnaroo, I checked out Northside Festival in Brooklyn, NY. Northside is not your typical festival in the sense that you would think. It was basically three parts film, music and technology were some of the brightest minds in entertainment came for almost a full week. You have to figure that Brooklyn was the best place for this type of festival. The weather for the most part cooperated with us