Homegrown Malaysian music festival Good Vibes Festival returned to its homeground at The Ranch @ Gohtong Jaya in Genting Highlands on 20 and 21 July 2019 to a stunning crowd of over 20,000 festival-goers.
Music-lovers from across the world far and wide (including many from Singapore!) converged for the fifth edition of #GVF2019, to witness the stellar lineup of international and Malaysian acts, spread out over three stages.
Want to know how it was like to take a cable car down and walk the festival grounds of #GVF2019 this year? Here’s a quick glimpse into a typical festival-goer’s experience:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvlSfg9-vIc
For the first time ever, festival-goers got to experience the new and improved Electric Fields, the festival’s fully fledged third stage that featured a stunning mix of international and local DJs, electronic and hip-hop acts. The new Electric Fields stage also saw the debut collaboration of Good Vibes Festival and London’s own independent music platform and cultural curator, Boiler Room who presented a number of performances that were recorded and will be broadcasted on boilerroom.tv under Boiler Room x Good Vibes Festival.
Apart from good music, festival-goers were ecstatic to see spectacular art installations at the festival grounds, perfectly suited for iconic #GVF2019 pictures. Architectural designer Pamela Tan, who was recently featured by My Modern Met for her permanent installation at Kiara 163 @ Mont Kiara, did an impressive colourful structure near the main stage area. Complimenting the electronic beats at the Electric Fields, artist and designer Suzy Sulaiman created a stunning wave-like installation of kaleidoscopic, translucent tiles that were lit up with colour-changing spotlights.
To kick off day one, indie-pop band Lost Spaces took over the Red Stage and officially opened the festival with their heart wrenching tunes, followed by electronic duo Dizkopolis, bringing the energy of the crowd to the next level, back at the Blue Stage. Up-and-coming rap star Kidd Santhe got the crowd moshing to his quick paced rap including one of his most well-known songs, “Fumakilla”. 60s pop-inspired band, Kugiran Masdo looked dashing on stage with in their impeccable white suits and sharp black boots, smoothly bringing the festival into the evening.
Over at the Electric Fields stage, things turned up a notch as rapper Lil Asian Thiccie hyped up the crowd with her rapid-fire songs, leading the way for Bad Habits who got the crowd dancing to their favourite anthems. When R&B/hip hop DJ Aku Ash, followed by DJ duo BATE and NEXT ORDER, a new supergroup by Malaysian DJ veterans Goldfish + JHin, hit the stage, their infectious beats immediately got the crowd pumping.
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88rising’s Joji played an aptly energetic set to an incredible response from his fans in the crowd as the day slipped into the evening and as the sun began to set over the rolling greens, ethereal American ambient pop band Cigarettes After S** wowed the audience with their performance including crowd favourite hits “Nothing’s Gonna Hurt You Baby” and “Apocalypse”. As night fell, British alternative rock band, Nothing But Thieves rocked the crowd over at the Red Stage, before songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mura Masa switched up the tempo with his electronic remixes which had everyone dancing wildly. When Baltimore-born rapper 6lack stormed across the stage with his upbeat tunes, bringing his East Coast vibes to the cool highlands, he immediately had all the festival-goers bumping along.
Back at the Electric Fields stage, Korean-American hip-hop artist Yaeji flitted across the stage with her dreamy vocals that had everyone singing along, right before Jai Wolf took over with his indie-synth/pop blend, inspired by his heritage. Then, Cashmere Cat came on with his blissful, otherworldly sound interlaced with flowing harps, clicking percussion, and contorted vocal samples, rounding up the artist lineup at the Electric Fields.
The climax of the first day was when acclaimed hip-hop duo and Billboard’s 2017 Top Rap Collaboration winners Rae Sremmurd took to the Main Stage with their distinct trap music putting on a terrific show for the audience, especially when they performed their renowned song “Black Beatles” which had everyone singing along. Finally, Day One came to a close with the incredible mixes of San Holo, leaving festival-goers buzzing with excitement for the day ahead.
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The myriad of sights and sounds on Day Two of #GVF2019 started off with Malaysian heartthrob Allester Shaun serenading the crowd with his sweet, adolescent love tunes, followed by local favourite indie-folk triumvirate The Impatient Sisters. At the Blue Stage, experimental pop band Lust charmed the crowd with their voices, a feeling that heightened by the appearance of four-man pop band Midnight Fusic, who had the audience swooning. SonaOne rounded up the local artists on the Red Stage with a high-energy performance that had everyone jumping.
At the Electric Fields stage, Hoax Vision, a local music collective made up of 27 talented rappers, singers, DJs, producers, photographers, videographers, artists and designers, presented 6 mind-blowing artists Orang Malaya, Ichu, Dato’ Maw, Cønfucius, Shelhiel, and ZSYIA, setting the mood for an incredible blowout experience at the new stage.
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Hailing from the sunny coasts of Florida, Cuban-American Sabrina Claudio won the crowd over with her sultry voice, singing a myriad of songs including her favourite to perform “Confidently Lost”. Following that, South Korean pop idols Dean and Rad Museum performed to the delighted screams of adoring fans, highlighting the debut of South Korean acts at Good Vibes Festival. Meanwhile, Australian-Filipino singer-songwriter, Jess Connelly, dealt out a pumping performance that shook the rafters as the second day of the festival dipped slowly into the night.
The evening’s breezy vibes kept going as American rapper/singer-songwriter RUSS gave the audience “What They Want” with his revved-up hip-hop performance, while New Zealand chemical-engineer-turned-international-electronic-sensation BAYNK delivered a dance-worthy performance with his beats with the unique addition of his saxophone.
And the energy in the air only seemed to intensify when the dreamy Daniel Caesar took to the stage sporting his new cropped hair cut, his voice causing the audience to swoon and sing along enthusiastically. Over at the Electric Fields stage, loud, reverberating beats could be heard for miles as pioneer DJ duo LapSap celebrated their 12 years working the electronica scene while they spun with a variety of genres including disco, 80s pop, ending their set with a memorable mix of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”.
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But the culmination of the festival reached its peak when Malaysian sweetheart and international R&B/pop star Yuna made a red-tinted entrance to the stage in honor of her brand new album “Rouge”. Her melodic voice floated across the festival grounds as her loyal Malaysian fans swayed along to the songs of one of the nation’s most-loved artists.
Wrapping up the two-day festivities at the Electric Fields stage, Australian DJ Anna Lunoe jumped and danced as she performed some of the incredible mixes from her new album, against an awe-inspiring backdrop of psychedelic designs that moved with the beats.
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Throughout #GVF2019, festival-goers had so much to see and do with the myriad of interactive activations scattered around the grounds. At the U Mobile zone, festival-goers snapped playful pictures at the booth’s Unlimited Grooves area, and shot hoops at the extension in the Electric Fields for a chance to win some fun items. U Mobile’s #UnlimitedFlavours also presented Good Bites, the festival’s curated food village that served up nosh from vendors like Curbab, Thyme Out, and Mother Clucker at the Vinyl Cabana.
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The festival was all about fun times and even better vibes. Over at Netflix’s tent, noticeable from afar by the Mind Flayer from “Stranger Things” perched on the roof, passersby got to experience an infinity mirror room, retro-inspired photography areas and even an 80s arcade game area where participants stood a chance to win exclusive #StangerVibes merchandise. Nestle’s La Cremeria booth was a vision in pink, where festival goers could jump into a ball pit and snap pictures with a pink flamingo float, or stop to enjoy a refreshing treat of La Cremeria Classically Mint or La Cremeria Summer Berries Yogurt. Festival-goers also got to visit the eminently Instagrammable Nestle Sjora lounge, up their beauty game at the Rimmel booth, stop for quick manicure touch-ups at the H&M booth, and take some Instagram-worthy photos at Passionation’s neon-lit photobooth, housed inside a multi-coloured bus.
For more information on #GVF2019 or to stay updated with #GVF2020, visit www.goodvibesfestival.com.
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