Austin, TX (Top40 Charts/ Brown Paper Tickets) Naia Kete of "The Voice" will be featured at Austin's Wildfire Reggae & Arts Festival, March 7-9 just a few days before the start of Austin's most famous music industry conference. Kete's mix of pop, reggae and soul is just one of the many different reggae music genres that can be experienced at the event, from hip-hop reggae, to rock reggae, folk reggae, roots, ska, dub and more. Other nationally-acclaimed artists featured will include Don Carlos, Gyptian, Marlon Asher and the Farmers, the Expanders, Mike Love, and Alex Marley. This year's festival, the largest reggae festival in Austin, will also showcase food, arts and crafts vendors from Texas and beyond, workshops and camping, in addition to the amazing music-in-nature experience.
The fourth annual Wildfire festival will be held at Music Ranch, an 80-acre oak tree forest and campground, 12 miles east of the crowded music venues of Austin that week. Tickets start at $25 for one-day admission, $50 for a 3-day festival pass with camping included, and $100 VIP tickets including an all-access wristband, 8 drink tickets, 3 meal tickets, camping and a special edition festival T-shirt, and can be purchased by phone through Brown Paper Tickets' 24/7 toll-free live customer service hotline in English, Spanish and French at 1-800-386-3006, or online at https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/303123.
"Wildfire has been dubbed "The 32 Flavors" of reggae festivals," said Gregory "Phive" Cooper, producer of the Wildfire Reggae and Arts Festival. "There is something for everyone who likes any form of reggae." The Wildfire Music and Arts Festival is home-grown, produced by Austin-producers Episode Phive & Proper Entertainment, and has grown with the support of the local music community at the rate of 50% higher attendance each year due to an exceptional lineup of local and international performers and due to a commitment to the fan experience and the quality of the music first. Sponsors include Red Stripe, TexasMusic Water, Rerooted Apparel and TexasMusic Water. The festival has been growing in popularity over the past 3 years, outgrowing a 500-seat theater that accommodated more than 3,000 fans on a rotating basis over the 3-day event. This year, with expanded grounds and the option of inexpensive camping included with a wristband, the festival producers expect more than 4,000 in attendance.
Part of the event's rising success is related to good timing; Wildfire is always held just prior to the South by Southwest Music Conference, and at the start of Spring Break at University of Texas Austin. "Those who want to start celebrating great music can do so with us, even without a festival badge," Cooper said. Those who may want to come up early for the world-famous convention in Austin can get a better reggae music fix without the big price tag."
"Wildfire is a music experience with a down-to-earth homegrown approach, and we want to retain that, even as we get larger and more popular, Cooper said. "We really appreciate that our ticketing partner, Brown Paper Tickets, was the only one that could offer Wildfire fans the one-on-one attention that we value, and bilingual support when anyone has questions or concerns."
Wildfire Reggae & Arts Festival is also proud to team up with Green Mountain Energy Company to neutralize the carbon footprint of our festival. These efforts will benefit the Greenwoods Farms Landfill Methane Outreach Program, which purifies methane captured in Tyler, TX, providing heat to homes and businesses in the region.
The 2013 Wildfire Line-Up and Schedule:
Thursday, March 7: Gates at 3pm (for campers to get set-up). Music runs from 6 p.m.- 2 a.m.
Root Dimension
Audic Empire
The Contrabandits
Carlton Pride & Mighty Zion
The Mau Mau Chaplains
Alex Marley Marlon Asher & The Farmers
Dj Playboy
Friday, March 8: Live music from 10 a.m. - 2 a.m.; Soundsystem Afterparty from 2:00am - ??
Bad Apples
High Bred Roots
Dub Gideon & Likkle Shanx
Sol Tribe
Shrub
Soulfiya & The Blc
Houseblend
Young Costello
Audic Empire
El Dub
Dread Daze
Lionhead
Haleamano
Natty Vibes
Naia Kete
Mike Love
Gyptian
Saturday, March 9: Live music from 10 a.m. - 2 a.m.,
Soundsystem Afterparty from 2 a.m. - ??
Pillar Of Zion
King Schascha & Irusalem
Judivian Roots
New Reb
Jet West
Arden Park Roots
Buenas Noches Roaches
Bujie & The Highrise
The Rafiki Project
Axis Unity
Naia Kete
T.U.G.G.
Beyond I Sight (Featuring Gonzo)
Ashes Of Babylon
The Expanders
Don Carlos
Emcee's-
Lance-O, Mister Kali, J*Ras