The beauty of this year’s Firefly Festival lineup is the rich tapestry of diverse musical offerings—“a something for everyone” feel. Go check out your favorites, but be open to some musical serendipity, and keep an ear out for some of the artists you may have never heard of. Some unearthed musical nuggets are waiting to be found and enjoyed!
Foo Fighters
Firefly fans no doubt will get a sneak peak of the Foo Fighters’ planned Fall 2014 album that front-man Dave Grohl has proclaimed as “stadium anthems that startle.” As the main headliner of this year’s event, the Foos will be playing to close to 80,000 fans—so it should be the perfect setting to debut some of the new album’s rockers.
The Foos’ new album was recorded in different parts of the country and will feature various artists—including Joe Walsh, Gary Clark Jr. and Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen. Grohl added that he didn’t write any of the songs’ lyrics until the last day of recording “in order to be inspired by the experiences, interviews and personalities that became part of the process.”
OutKast
What better way to celebrate their 20th anniversary than with 80,000 of their closest Firefly friends? OutKast is Antwan “Big Boi” Patton and André “3000” Benjamin, the rap duo who have reunited to bring their iconic and influential sounds to Dover.
Outkast has sold more than 25 million albums, but more importantly the Atlanta natives brought their hip-hop flavored sound to a wider audience with the 2003 smash album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. It earned six Grammys, including Album of the Year, making OutKast the first rap group ever to win the award in that prestigious category.
Jack Johnson
The acoustic balladeer who first graced our ears with his 2001 debut Brushfire Fairytales, seems like the perfect fit for a summer, outdoor concert under the stars. The Hawaii native and former pro surfer has produced over a decade’s worth of breezy pop songs backed by his melodic voice and a laid-back beach bum demeanor.
That combination has proven popular with the music world, as Johnson’s first five major-label albums all earned platinum status.
Imagine Dragons
The Las Vegas-based indie rockers Imagine Dragons bring their catchy, synth-tinged dance-pop meets alt-rock sound to Delaware. Starting with the group’s first, major-label release, 2012’s Continued Silence EP, the band built upon that initial success with the 2012 release of Night Visions. That record resulted in two big hits—“It’s Time” and “Radioactive.”
Billboard proclaimed Imagine Dragons the “Breakthrough Band of the Year in 2013,” and as many fans will experience at Firefly this year, the group will no doubt translate that success in its live offerings.
Beck
You’d have to be a “Loser” to not appreciate what Beck Hansen has done for a whole generation (or two) of rappers, samplers and electronica. He created a whole new world of music with his folk-rap beats and sampling techniques, and experimentations with new sounds. Hard to believe this musical pioneer is now a role model for a new movement of young upstarts with a lot more sophisticated gear than “two turntables and a microphone.”
The Lumineers
The Colorado-based folkies make their triumphant return to Firefly after their 2013 appearance. The band’s live performances showcase their rootsy, rustic, hand-clapping, foot-stomping grooves that made their self-titled 2012 debut album an instant hit. No matter what type of music you like, it’s almost impossible not to find something in their catalog that will have your head and feet moving.
Pretty Lights
Pretty Lights is Derek Vincent Smith—an electronic music artist whose use of digital sampling creates a host of hip-hop beats with a heavy dose of synth sounds and funky runs.
His “music meets the Macbook” approach was highlighted in 2013’s two-disc release
A Color Map of the Sun, which was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Dance/Electronic Album category.
Arctic Monkeys
The English indie rockers bring over a decade’s worth of hits and industry awards to this year’s Firefly lineup. With some of the music world’s most devoted fans, evidenced by their popularity through the early fan-fueled days of MySpace, pre-social media—Arctic Monkeys have continued to deliver great live shows to live up to that fan base support.
Weezer
In the two decades since their formation, the L.A. rock quartet has churned out some memorable, alternative power pop hits, including singles like “Undone—The Sweater Song,” “Buddy Holly,” “Say It Ain’t So,” “Island in the Sun,” “Beverley Hills,” and many more.
This is probably the Firefly band that, even if you think you don’t know their music, three chords into a song you will find yourself saying, “Hey, I know this song!”
Firefly 2014 Lineup (alphabetical)
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A Great Big World
A-Trak
Aer
Airborne Toxic Event
American Authors
Amos Lee
Andrew Belle
Arctic Monkeys
Bad Things
Band Of Horses
Basic Vacation
Beck
Bleachers
Boy & Bear
Breach The Summit
Bronze Radio Return
Cage The Elephant
Cakes Da Killa
Cash Cash
Chance The Rapper
CharlieRED
Cherub
Childish Gambino
Christian Porter
City And Colour
Courrier – canceled
Courtney Barnett
Cruiser
Dan Croll
Denitia and Sene
Downtown Club
F.Stokes
Foo Fighters
G-Eazy
Gemini Club
Geographer
Ghost Beach
Girl Talk
Goldroom
Gregory Alan Isakov
Griswolds
Grouplove
Haerts
High Highs
Holychild
Hunter Hunted
Imagine Dragons
Iron & Wine
Jack Johnson
Jake Bugg
John & Jacob
Johnnyswim
Kaiser Chiefs
Kodaline
Kongos
Little Comets
Little Daylight
Lucius
Magic Man
Martin Garrix
Mean Lady
Mike Taylor
Misterwives
Ms Mr
New Politics
New Sweden
Nonono
Nothing
Outkast
Phantogram
Phosphorescent
Pigpen Theatre Co
Portugal. The Man
Pretty Lights
Rac
Royal Teeth
Saints Of Valory
San Fermin
Shakey Graves
Sir Sly
Sky Ferreira – canceled
Sleeper Agent
Sleigh Bells
Smallpools
Son Lux
Step Rockets
Stop Light Observations
Tegan And Sara
The Ceremonies
The Colourist
The Jezabels
The Lumineers
The Mowgli’s
The Tontons
The Weeks
The White Panda
The Wild Feathers
Third Eye Blind
Tune Yards
Twenty One Pilots
Unlikely Candidates
Vance Joy
Vic Mensa
Walk Off The Earth
Washed Out
Weekender
Weezer
White Denim
Wild Child
Wild Cub
X Ambassadors
Young The Giant
Ziggy Marley