The second annual Mempho Music Festival took over Shelby Farms Park in Memphis, Tennessee over the weekend–quickly going from a “never-before-heard” to a “not-to-be-missed” festival in a matter of 48-hours. For its second year, the two-stage festival expanded to have on-site camping, a silent disco, and an interactive fire dome featuring sets from DJ Logic and Thievery Corporation’s Rob Garza until the wee hours of the night.
With music going from 11:00 am until 2:00 am, the eclectic lineup varied from Memphis local legends like The Bar-Kays, Lucero, and Juicy J & Project Pat to internationally recognized superstars Beck, Post Malone, and Nas. The 14-hour day lineups were rounded out by genre-spanning artists like Phoenix, Janelle Monáe (popularly considered the musical highlight of the weekend), Mac DeMarco (who welcomed Brandon “Taz” Niederauer for a rendition of the Grateful Dead‘s “Fire On The Mountain”), George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, Milky Chance, Rich The Kid (who brought Famous Dex with him), Larkin Poe, Eric Gales, and many more.
Memphis-based producer Boo Mitchell assembled a legendary tribute to Royal Studios, which featured William Bell, Bobby Rush, Al Kapone, Frayser Boy, Hi Rhythm, and more performing songs by Otis Redding, Al Green, Booker T & The MGs, and more from Memphis’ storied catalog.
Chuck Leavell, keyboardist and musical director of The Rolling Stones, brought together Bernard Fowler, Lisa Fischer, Karl Denson, Darryl Jones, and Tim Ries for a rare “Stones Throw” set, performing the music of The Rolling Stones.
On Friday night, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe delivered their “Eat A Bunch of Peaches” set to the late-night crowd, slamming through originals and tunes by the Allman Brothers Band.
On Saturday night, Robert Randolph’s Mempho All-Stars continued the late-night tradition with MonoNeon, Nate Smith, Ivan Neville, Karl Denson, Isaiah Sharkey, Julia Magness, Katrina Anderson, Brandon “Taz” Niederauer, and more.
Meanwhile, for fans that paid the extra money for a Super VIP experience, there were private performances from Brent Cowles and Brandon “Taz” Niederauer & Friends (feat. Doug Wimbish and Raghav Mehrotra) on Saturday, and McKenna Bray, Dan Luke & The Raid, and Papa Mali, Wally Ingram, Eric McFadden, and Bobby Vega on Sunday.
While continuous music kept fans happy all weekend long, it was the natural splendor and perfect weather of Shelby Farms Park that performed as the biggest rock star at Mempho Music Festival. Without a doubt, the park, which is five times the size of Central Park and plays host to over 20 bodies of water, attracted new fans from all over the country (some even from Switzerland!) for a beautiful October weekend. While the music festival will only happen once a year, fans are encouraged to return to Shelby Farms Park all year round for the variety of activities, like canoeing, horseback riding, and zip-lining, that it has to offer.
Check out the full gallery from Mempho Music Festival, including the *actual* live debut of Post Malone’s new haircut, below, courtesy of photographers Keith Griner, Eric Allen, Aaron Bradley, Patrick Hughes, Carlie Adair, and Austin Friedline from the official Mempho Music Festival media team.
The post Mempho Music Festival’s Second Year Impresses With Post Malone, Nas, Beck, Phoenix, Janelle Monáe, & More appeared first on L4LM.
