It’s almost time for one of our favorite festivals of the year to take place and now we must share the artist’s we’re most excited to see at Soundset 2015. One of the things that you have to understand about Minnesota’s premier Hip Hop fest is that their lineups are always top-notch and it’s the reason why we at Pursuit Of Dopeness make our yearly pilgrimage to the state that gave us Prince and Bob Dylan.
This year’s roster brings together yet another mammoth collection of artists that are fighting to sit atop the Hip Hop throne. For those of you planning to hit up Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minnesota on May 24th, we’ve put together a list of the Top 10 Artists to See at Soundset 2015.
The list features rising rookies, established stars, and modern icons. See our list after the jump. Buy your tickets while they’re still available: http://soundset.shop.ticketstoday.com/
Big Sean
Big Sean has been putting in work for many years but early this year, he dropped arguably the best project of his career. The new album, Dark Sky Paradise, has many standouts but I’m sure “Blessings” and “IDFWU” will be sure to get the loudest reaction. Sean also has many memorable feature verses and some classic of his own in his own catalog, so the crowd is in for a great show.
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Dilated Peoples
Dilated Peoples needs no introduction for this. During last year’s Soundset pre show, Evidence totally killed the stage with Alchemist. This year Ev brings Babu and Rakaa along for a set on the main stage. With their release of Directors of Photography in late August of last year, expect Dilated Peoples to go through the majority of their latest project while touching on plenty of their prior bangers. One thing is for sure, Dilated Peoples leaves their all on the stage with every set.
Freddie Gibbs
We’ve been following Gibbs for many years now. Before he was signed to Jeezy and leading up to his really dope Piñata project with Madlib. If there are any non-Gibbs fans in the crowd, he surely win them over with his bars and his very impressive live show. Looking forward to seeing Gibbs perform “Shitsville,” “Thuggin” and maybe some older Gibbs joints? We’ll have to wait and see what he surprises the Soundset crowd with.
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J.Cole
J Cole has long been a POD favorite and he’s quickly becoming one of the heavy-hitters in the business. Last year’s 2014 Forest Hills Drive showcased Cole’s depth as a lyricist and musician, steering away from a more Pop-driven brand of Hip Hop. When we caught Cole’s show in SXSW a couple of months ago (see below), it was undeniable that this was the biggest and hottest show of the whole week, so we can safely attest to his ability to put on a great show no matter if the setting is an arena or a festival stage.
[arve url=”https://youtu.be/eRaFMlZ1YHA” /]
Logic
Logic has been a mainstay in the Hip Hop underground since 2o11, but with the release of Under Pressure last year, he stepped into the mainstream spotlight. Though the album landed in the Top 5 on Billboard in its opening week, he stayed true to his sound and really delivered an amazing album. Just like many artists on this list, he has a great live show. Don’t believe us, check out some footage we captured during his stop in Chicago below.
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Ludacris
Must we really elaborate on this one? Luda has been in the game since the 1990s and from that time up until now it’s been a career filled with hits that has secured himself a spot among the most beloved rappers performing today. And while Ludacris has been juggling his Rap career with acting, the quality hasn’t suffered one bit and he’s still delivering music worth bumping.
Smif-N-Wessun
It’s been 20 years since Smif-N-Wessun’s classic album, Dah Shinin dropped. Arguably, Dah Shinin became a blueprint for the hardcore New York hip hop scene. Expect Smif-N-Wessun to perform their whole debut album among other hits sprinkled into their set. If you’re in the crowd when these two come out, you better expect the same energy that they brought twenty years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jw5V2k_SMh0
Vic Mensa
Vic is perhaps the best artist on this entire list (no disrespect to anyone). We make this claim because this guy’s on fire right now thanks to his recent signing to Roc Nation and having a song featuring Kanye West. There’s no one on this lineup, or even any artist in general, that’s riding a bigger wave of hype lately. This guy’s style is the future of Hip Hop and Soundset is the perfect stage to showcase his talent.
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Vince Staples
I don’t think there may be a reason why Vince Staples shouldn’t be performing at Soundset this year. The kid’s been making noise, quality music, and his live set is definitely outstanding. We were able to catch him at The Metro last year when he came with Schoolboy Q and were really impressed by his performance. We expect nothing less from what we saw that night. With Summertime ’06 due out in about a month, the Def Jam signee will definitely be bringing it at Soundset.
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Yelawolf
Though his sound may have changed a bit, Yelawolf is still definitely one of POD’s favorites and has been for a while. His latest project has some really dope joints like “Till It’s Gone,” Whiksy In A Bottle” and “American You.” With joints like “Box Chevy (I-V),” “Billy Crystal,” Trunk Muzik” and “Good To Go” in his catalog, we are in for a very good time.
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