THE COUNT: ROLLING LOUD KEEPS ITS EYES ON THE PRIZE

From daydreaming about music as elementary school students in Hollywood, Florida, to launching the biggest hip-hop festival in the world, Rolling Loud founders Tariq Cherif and Matt Zingler have done more than just about anybody to cement the genre as a pillar of the live-events business and expand it outside U.S. borders.

Indeed, since the first single-day Rolling Loud in Miami in 2015, Cherif (once an aspiring rapper himself) and Zingler (he of umpteen tattoos) have staged multi-day editions of the festival in the Bay Area, Southern California, New York and Toronto, which have helped propel Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, Ice Spice, Playboi Carti and the late Juice WRLD to superstar status.

With their collective fingers pressed firmly on the pulse of hip-hop, Cherif and Zingler’s events routinely make news for their surprise appearances and superstar collaborations, from Meek Mill’s triumphant post-prison set in Miami in 2018 to Scott’s initial post-Astroworld tragedy performance in 2022 to a rare Justin Bieber cameo during Don Toliver’s set in Los Angeles last year.

Further proof of their commitment to pushing the envelope will come when Rolling Loud returns to Hollywood Park outside SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., this week (3/14-17), with a jam-packed lineup led by the first proper live performance from Kanye West and his and Vultures collaborator Ty Dolla $ign (as ¥$), Nicki Minaj, Post Malone and Future x Metro Boomin.

Tariq Cherif and Matt Zingler; with Swae Lee; Cherif with Juice WRLD

Moving far beyond just hip-hop, the bill also includes several regional Mexican (Fuerza Regida) and R&B acts (Bryson Tiller, PARTYNEXTDOOR), and it will offer three-on-three pickup basketball games, skate demos, a graffiti wall, electric boat races and a Ferris wheel to entertain the throngs between sets. Please make sure to hydrate.

After partnering with Live Nation in 2021, Rolling Loud crossed the Atlantic for the first time the following year when it brought J. Cole, A$AP Rocky and Future to Portugal. In 2023, Rolling Loud took the party to Holland, Germany and Thailand, making sure to acknowledge hip-hop’s boundless reach by including local rappers on bills loaded with primarily American stars.

As Cherif told radio station Power 106 in November, “it’s amazing going around the world and seeing these different crowds of people love the music just as much if not, in some scenarios, more [than in the U.S.]. It was crazy being in Thailand and seeing a primarily Asian crowd. They’re fully bought in. They know every word. They’re buying the merch. It’s a blessing, thanks to the fans, for us to be able to travel the world.”

Rolling Loud is also super-serving fans at a Wednesday (3/13) pop-up at NTWRK LA on Fairfax Avenue, which will feature a decade-spanning photo gallery, exclusive merchandise collaborations and giveaways. Early access is being provided to purchasers of the LoudPunx NFT, which allows for a lifetime VIP pass to all future Rolling Loud festivals.

As part of its continued expansion, Rolling Loud will descend for the first time 7/5-7 on Vienna’s open-air Racino, with a lineup to be announced. Prepare to wirf deine hände in die luft!

Playboi Carti; Future and Metro Boomin; Nicki Minaj