Words and Photos by Summer Fathke

HARD Summer has officially made its way back to Los Angeles after an entire decade, and we’re sad to admit it’s over. After a weekend of exhilarating performances and dancing our hearts out, I can’t stop daydreaming about the top acts of the weekend.

Rochelle Jordan

Playing the first day of the festival at 4pm in the LA heat is hard to do and even harder to excel at, but that’s exactly what Rochelle Jordan did.

Walking into BMO Stadium and hearing Rochelle, there was no way you couldn’t gravitate towards her. Her voice was sensational and her stage presence was alluring. Her set felt like a fun concert you’d go to with your girls to just dance the night away, and I did!

Oliver Tree

One of the first acts I saw on day two was Oliver Tree, and what a way to start the day! Expectations were high for Tree, yet he still managed to exceed them. For an EDM heavy festival, he found a way to still draw in the crowd by starting his performance with a comedy skit that led to his first song of the hour. I knew he was popular for his theatrics, but I honestly didn’t expect myself to be laughing as hard as I did.

He quickly showed that in addition to his humor, he’s an amazing performer. He sang songs like “Miss You” and “Life Goes On” with high energy and continued to pump up the audience with his vocals and keytar solo’s. Oliver Tree is a master in crowd work and music production and it shows.

4B B2B JSTJR

I first discovered JSTJR on TikTok and immediately knew I needed to see one of his shows, so I was super excited to see that he was going back to back with 4B at HARD Summer.

They often post about how they’re friends that love to DJ together and I absolutely felt that energy throughout the entire set. Their camaraderie truly affected how high-spirited the set felt, it’s like watching people have fun and then being invited in on it. From the second the set started the crowd couldn’t stop smiling and dancing. Their set was cohesive and lively, it wasn’t ever too predictable but they still played all the songs that people were excited to hear. I can’t recall a single moment where I saw people sitting or standing still, the crowd and I couldn’t help but love the set.

Skrillex B2B Four Tet

Back to back sets are always fun because you never truly know what exactly you’re going to get. It’s two DJ’s meshing together to play a set that will please both of their audiences as well as sound cohesive. Skrillex and Four Tet have gone back to back before so it’s no surprise their set was phenomenal, however the vibe of the set has definitely evolved since the last time they played together. The best way I can describe the set is organized chaos, which is exactly why people love both DJ’s. They ranged from playing dubstep, DnB, and even some house type beats that kept the crowd on their toes.

When you can tell that an artist is having fun while performing it really adds an extra layer of admiration, and you could tell they were having a blast. They are DJ’s that have pioneered a new generation of EDM and they were the perfect set to close out the weekend and replay in your head on the drive home.

I had an absolute blast at HARD Summer and cannot wait for more music from each of these incredible artists. Be sure to keep up to date with HARD Summer online and on Instagram!

Festival Recap: HARD Summer

Gallery: Karol G

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