Killer Mike, Steve Aoki and Vince Staples are set to headline the inaugural Elsewhere Festival and Conference this summer in Wichita, Kan. The genre-agnostic festival will also see performances from Lane 8, Snow Tha Product, BADBADNOTGOOD, Sudan Archives, TOKiMONSTA and more.
Created and produced by Midtopia, a Wichita-based artist and music-worker collective striving to build new models for the music industry, the new event will aim to build community and opportunity for musicians and music workers in the Midwest and be held June 21-22.
“Midtopia was created to serve a need in Wichita, but really applies, well, elsewhere,” says Midtopia CEO and director Jessie Hartke in a release. “There are so many talented artists and music workers alike, and such wonderful local scenes, but industry support is really lacking and systematically flawed.”
The event will take place across local Wichita venues with one free stage open to the public. In addition to music and panel discussions, there will also be various art experiences, an immersive light and sound stage, and will act as a platform for community-based artists of all kinds.
Killer Mike will lead the conference with a discussion on freedom of expression, while speakers from City Winery, Stand Together, No Depression, Berklee College of Music, Union Stage, Primary Wave and more will share their experiences and best practices for those in the music industry.
Midtopia is on a mission to keep admission prices low in order to allow musicians as well as practicing and potential career music workers the opportunity for one-on-one meetings with industry professionals. Other participating organizations include Empower North End, Learning Lab Wichita, The Phoenix and Create Campaign, with local entrepreneur and philanthropist Chase Koch’s support.
“Midtopia is an opportunity to reimagine the traditional industry structure and its ability to positively impact society, and create a new framework that puts artists and music workers first,” added Hartke. “We want to do the same thing with Elsewhere and create a new kind of music event that is truly built to support the community and artists, both local and from afar.”
Check out the full lineup below. Tickets are available here.
