Who not to miss, not to stress at BUKU

Time management is an important aspect for a successful music festival experience. With so many things to do, see and eat, it’s important to at least have a rough idea of where you need to be and where. The issue of wanting to see two different artists who just so happen to be playing at the same time is inevitable. Time to pick and choose.

Here, we’ll look at a few artists to not miss and to not stress over while stomping around the festival grounds. “Don’t miss” is pretty obvious; those artists are ones you need to see. On the other side of the spectrum, “don’t stress” means if you have the time, definitely go. It’s a music festival; see as much music as you can. But if you’re picking and choosing when to eat and explore, or having conflicts over two or three other artists playing at the same time, don’t be afraid to skip over these sets that may be disappointing.

Don’t Miss

Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals

Anderson .Paak had one of the best albums to start 2016 with “Malibu,” his second studio album. .Paak’s raspy crooning along musical genres that span funk, hip-hop and neo soul creates an uplifting and energetic vibe that’ll be perfect for the indoor Ballroom stage. He is going to blow up in 2016, and don’t be surprised to hear him almost everywhere relatively soon. See him now while you can.

Mystikal B2B Juvenile B2B Fly Boi Keno

BUKU always ensures at least one old-school act. Mystikal and Juvenile have been responsible for single-handedly shaping the landscape of New Orleans hip-hop music. Mystikal can wrestle bears into submission and maneuver bars at swift speed like he did back in the 90s on Master P’s No Limit Records.

Joining him is another legend: Juvenile. Even without the rest of the Hot Boyz, expect a fiery show from Juve the Great as the duo provides a nostalgic trip through the golden years of Crescent City hip-hop. Make sure you know what to do when you hear “Cash Money Records taking over for the 99 and the 2000.” Fly Boi Keno will also provide a much needed bounce performance that Big Freedia has provided for the last two years.

Future

This is the obvious set to not miss. Arguably the most popular rapper in the world right now, Future has draped the world in codeine purple and kush smoke as his bass heavy, druggy and woozy trap sound has dominated airwaves and playlists since last year. His Billboard topping album “DS2” and massively popular collaboration tape with Drake “What A Time To Be Alive” is filled with energetic, mosh-inducing songs.

Don’t Stress

Kid Cudi

Okay, chill let me explain first. The name is known, Kid Cudi is firmly lodged into every alternative and experimental hip-hop fans head. Cudi has been rocking crowds of college kids since “Man on the Moon: The End of Day” dropped in 2010. But this isn’t the same Cudder anymore. Fans who haven’t heard his most recent work “Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven,” expecting to hear a bunch of old cuts like “Day ‘n’ Night” or “Pursuit of Happiness,” will be disappointed as he performs punk rock tracks. Cudi has clearly stated that that time of his music career is done and over with. Don’t expect him to take a trip back to those older albums for an hour and 15 minutes. That spaceship has blasted off already.

Post Malone

“White Iverson” came out of nowhere, and was a melodic, dab-inducing track that put Post Malone on the map. People are going to flock to the Power Plant to hear the smash hit. The problem lies in the fact that, so far, that’s his only smash hit. Also, BUKU crowds are never at full force early on in the day. With his set being one of the earliest, 4:30 p.m., don’t be surprised to see a so-so crowd that’s not as into the set apart from the one track. Make it if you can to get a final verdict on the relatively new rapper, but don’t stress it if you’re not up for the relatively early start or would rather get an early look at the art and other things the festival has to offer before the masses flood the grounds.

The Float Den

If you’ve been to Buku before then you know all about the Float Den. If not, then you’ll learn quickly that it’s the main stage for ravers and the electronic artists feeding them all the heavy bass and dramatic buildups to drops that they’ll need for the entire night. It’s easy to literally stay in there from start to finish. Don’t stress over losing that awesome spot in the middle or front and stay there all day. You can finesse your way back to a relatively good spot again. Go explore and see some other acts. Go get some air and see some art. There’s more to life than sweat, elbows and flashy strobe lights.