Four of the West Coast’s best party crews will be facing off in an epic showdown of Latin trap, global bass, reggaetón, hip-hop and other genres across four custom stages when Red Bull’s “Culture Clash” arrives to Los Angeles this June 24th.
The event, inspired by Jamaican sound system culture, attempts to showcase the talent, skill and creativity of teams representing the sonic diversity of the ever-growing Latinx musical and cultural diaspora. Gasolina, for instance, is considered to be the largest reggaetón party in the United States — and will be joined on staged by the iconic DJ Blass, Oplus, DJ Playero and the legendary duo Luny Tunes.
“Our goal for ‘Culture Clash’ is to create a once-in-a-lifetime-experience. We’re bringing out the pioneers of the genre for the first time together in Los Angeles. It’s been a dream of ours to put something like this together,” the Gasolina Crew explained in a statement.
Competing against Gasolina will be Subsuelo, known for experimenting with futuristic dance parties and old-school tropical music, newcomers Recreo who will perform along with hitmakers Sky Rompiendo and Álvaro Díaz, and The Do-Over, who claim their genre is simply “good music.”
The Do-Over Crew shared, “We expect the end result to be a giant pie of sonic booty shaking and jaw-dropping ‘wtf did they just do?,’ the crew promises — and we couldn’t be more excited.”
The battle will be divided into four rounds: the first, titled “Temperature’s Rising” will find each crew’s DJ warming up the party and introducing the team. “The Selector” will be judged on song choice and smack talk, while “Sleeping With The Enemy” will force them to adapt to one of their competitor’s style. The finale will come with “The Decider,” where crews are expected to go all out playing their best hits.
At the end of the day, the audience will be responsible for choosing the winner of the evening after seeing all four crews as a decibel reader will carefully measure their reactions. Nevertheless, while competition is a motivation, the event is all about the culture: “[It] is bigger than just the Latino community, it’s important for the larger diversity of Los Angeles as a city,” explains The Do-Over. “L.A. is a diverse fusion of many cultures and each of these cultures respect and feed off one another. Putting this into an arena and allowing for a battle of ideas says a lot about the freedom and openness of this city.” Alongside the event, Shop Latinx will create a unique shopping experience inside the venue, highlighting passionate and talented fashion creatives from the community.
The latest itineration of “Culture Clash” took place in New York on May 19. It saw four of the city’s underground nightlife communities compete for the ultimate title in a sold-out room, with Apocalipsis ultimately taking the crown after shouting-out boricuas and raising a flag that stated “ABOLISH ICE.” The event was filled with tension, drive and plain good music — and it seems like its Los Angeles counterpart will follow the same path.
Apocalipsis, winner, performs at Red Bull Culture Clash in New York City, NY, USA on May 19, 2022 — Image courtesy of Red Bull, @jpnycofficial
Red Bull’s “Culture Clash” takes place on June 24th at The Shrine Expo Hall in downtown Los Angeles. Tickets are now available.
