The first round of acts announced for the festival includes Underworld, who last performed in Miami as part of Ultra Music Festival's 2017 lineup. The British duo, comprised of Karl Hyde and Rick Smith, is famous for its work on the Trainspotting soundtrack and a hyperkinetic take on rave music that defined much of the 1990s.
The rest of the lineup is more predictable: French duo Polo & Pan will coheadline, and several acts from last year, such as Lee Burridge and Gavlak, are returning. There's plenty to do outside of music, however. Art With Me boasts a vast program of art and activities featuring large-scale installations, various wellness classes, including yoga and sound healing, and a children's section (the festival is for all ages). It's a festival focused on holistic, mindful experiences, a sort of Burning Man on the beach — hopefully without the torrential rain.
Miami music festival fans will immediately sense something amiss: Rakastella, the annual sunset-to-sunrise, one-day festival focusing on house and techno, usually takes place at Virginia Key on the same weekend. The festival's most recent edition in 2022 was beset by artist dropouts and City of Miami code enforcement cracking down on the perceived noise, which forced the festival to wrap at 5 a.m. instead of its customary 7 a.m. sunrise ending. Rakastella hasn't announced a lineup or dates for 2023 and last posted on its Instagram account on May 10. The 2022 lineup featured DJs such as Moodymann and Diplo and local producers like Coffintexts and Ashley Venom.
New Times reached out to representatives for both festivals. Rakastella did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
However, Matt Caines, Art With Me's director of art, tells New Times, "While we can not comment on Rakastella, as it is a separate event and company from Art With Me, we are a much different event with different circumstances. We are very excited and look forward to producing the best edition of Art With Me Miami ever, full of day and night programming across our six core pillars of art, dance, breathe, care, play, and eat."( Caines is also a managing partner for Art With Me and will perform at the festival under his own name for the second year in a row.)
Tickets for Art With Me 2023 are on sale and cost $199 for three-day general admission and $349 for the premium tier.
Below is the complete phase one lineup for Art With Me 2023 in alphabetical order:
- Anthony Middleton
- Apache
- Channel Tres (DJ set)
- Elephant Heart
- Francesca Lombardo
- Isaiah Martin
- Jan Blomqvist
- Lee Burridge
- LP Giobbi
- Matt Caines
- Murmusica Ensemble
- Polo & Pan (DJ set)
- Underworld
