SMF’s 10-year anniversary will take place over Memorial Day weekend, from May 27 to the 29 at the Raymond James Stadium.
Courtesy of Sunset Music Festival
By Samantha Skye
With festival season underway, Sunset Music Festival (SMF) released phase two of its official 2022 lineup with a ton of seasoned and rising stars in the DJ game.
This year, SMF’s 10-year anniversary will take place over Memorial Day weekend, from May 27 to the 29 at the Raymond James Stadium. Disco Donnie Presents and Sunset Events, the production companies behind SMF, added a third day for EDM fans to rejoice.
Early this week, SMF released its set times for all three days. Featured artists include Blanke, CID, Dillon Francis, Jason Ross, LP Giobbi, Oliver Heldens, Malaa, Moore Kismet and over four dozen other DJs, including local acts like CELO and PROTAXIA taking over the “cool down” tent.
Raquel (Rocky) Peña, a student at Eckerd College, has a few non-negotiable sets –– ATLiens, Gryffin, ILLENIUM, PEEKABOO, Liquid Stranger and Zeds Dead. Rocky’s really into bass house, a sub-genre of house music with faster tempos and distorted sounds.
University of South Florida student and rave veteran of nine years, Brooklynne Landry is a big fan of dubstep and house music. Dubstep is perfect for blowing off steam and “headbanging” in general, according to Landry. To chill out and experience good vibes, she really likes house music.
“The best part of raving is always the people. You’re all there for the same reason,” Landry said. Everyone’s so “PLUR” (term for living through peace, love, unity and respect), happy, accepting and open, she exclaimed, and added that ravers are always giving hugs and trading kandi (hand-made jewelry, typically bracelets).
“Since it’s the decade celebration, we’re trying to take little pieces of every year and try to incorporate it someway somehow into the festival,” said John Santoro, founder of Sunset Events. “The production levels and the activations on the festival grounds are upgraded. We’re trying to paint a new palate with new brushes.”
Although lasers aren’t allowed due to the proximity to Tampa International Airport, LED screens and pyrotechnics will be extensive.
Legendary EDM music producer Skrillex announced on May 12 that he is unable to make it to Sunset Music Festival. When asked about this headliner dropping out, Santoro said they’re actively working on it. Since this interview, SMF has announced several additional artists to fill in the gaps, including Adventure Club and WENZDAY.
In 2021, the two-day festival drew in a crowd of over 64,000 fans. More than 20,000 of those attendees were from out of town, including ravers from “all 50 states and six countries,” according to the Tampa Bay Times.
This month, the three-day festival is expected to sell out and greatly contribute to Tampa’s tourist economy.
Set times are up on @SMFTampa. General admission and VIP passes are on sale now – click here for more information!
