Disco Donnie Presents
Festival producer Disco Donnie Presents has teamed up with Puerto Rico-based promoter Visionary Ally for the return of the Motherland Festival in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Presale begins Thursday (Aug. 31) for the one-day festival, taking place Nov. 18.
After a successful debut in 2022, with more than 20,000 fans and performances by Tego Calderón, Nicky Jam, Chencho Corleoner, and Zion & Lennox, Motherland Festival is poised to return even bigger with a multi-stage experience that showcases the biggest names in Reggaeton and House music.
Leading the lineup at Motherland Festival is the Reggaeton sensation, Myke Towers. New York Times has recognized him as an artist who is “seizing his moment” after his great success with ‘La La’ which debuted at the #1 of Spotify’s Global Top 50. He also has massive collaborations with Becky G, Bad Bunny, and others. Another hot artist on the mainstage roster is Young Miko who has created a global buzz thanks to her incredible talent and success with hits like Wiggy, Lisa, and Riri and her latest collaboration with Marshmello, Tempo.
Meanwhile, house music aficionados will be treated to a special headlining performance by the internationally acclaimed duo, The Martinez Brothers. Famous for their extended DJ marathon sets at Club Space in Miami and in Ibiza and Latin influenced sound, they have performed around the world regularly selling out some of the largest venues and hosting stages at the biggest international music festivals, making this performance all the more special.
Also included in today’s announcement are some of the most thriving and prominent artists on the scene: Rising star Bad Gyal has been making waves in the Reggaeton world, recently highlighted in Billboard as part of the “Rising Women in Reggaetón” movement at the 2023 Latin AMAs. Her collaborations and chart-topping tracks are a testament to her rising prominence in the genre.
Other acts include rappers Vico C and Dei V, plus DJ Luian and DJ Blass.
“After being in the festival scene here in Puerto Rico for 24 years, I believe that Motherland is going to be THE destination festival in the Caribbean,” Victor Mercado with Visionary Ally tells Billboard. “It’s a proud moment for me to lead this incredible project with Donnie, who’s a longtime friend. We’re doing this one for the culture and I’m thrilled that we get to shine a spotlight on some incredible Reggaeton as well as House artists along the way.”
Building on a successful 15-year partnership, Visionary Ally and Disco Donnie Presents have a proven history of producing extraordinary music and cultural experience, including multiple editions of the iconic EDC Puerto Rico. The pair have even promised to bring this festival into stateside markets, spreading the authenticity of the Puerto Rican culture and rhythms to cities all over the country.
“Our success with destination festivals in Cancun (Ember Shores, Paradise Blue) has really shown us something special,” says James “Disco Donnie” Estopinal, who encourages fans visiting San Juan for Motherland to immerse themselves in the diverse range of landscapes in the city.
“People are eager to jet off to new places, places they’ve never experienced before to share experiences with like minded people they’ve never met. It’s like this instant connection they all have, even in a brand-new setting. And that’s exactly what we’re doing with Motherland. It’s not just about going somewhere new; it’s about creating these bonds and moments together in a whole new destination, right in my home city of San Juan.”
Legendary concert promoter James “Disco Donnie” Estopinal is planning a new festival for central Texas, timed to coincide with a rare total solar eclipse that will be visible across North America next year.
Dubbed the Texas Eclipse, the celebration will take place April 8, 2024 in Burnet at Reveille Peak Ranch, located just 60 minutes outside of Austin.
“About a year from now, millions of people from around the world will be able to witness a once-in-a-lifetime bucket-list event,” Estopinal tells Billboard. “The Texas Eclipse is distinct from the events we normally create and will involve collaboration with various groups and organizations to produce a unique and collective event experience.”
So far, few details on the event have been released. A press release announcing the event explains “Texas Eclipse will be a nexus of cultures, passions and interests; bringing together a curated experience for all to encourage discovery, exploration, and participation. In addition to featuring multi-genre world class music talent, it will also feature the best of Central Texas culture, including interactive art installations and local food and craft vendors. Beginning the weekend before, attendees can camp on the stunning festival grounds to enjoy a host of family-friendly fun, including exciting music performances, mind blowing space exhibits and interactive technology activations ahead of the eclipse.”
Estopinal is partnering with event producer Mitch Morales from Texas event production company Probably Nothing — creator of Austin’s long-running Euphoria festival — for Texas Eclipse.
“Growing up in Central Texas, it’s been a dream of mine to help create an event that celebrates a once-in-a-life experience and brings people from around the world to enjoy the best of music art and culture,” Morales says. “The venue is unique and spectacular and I don’t think there’s a better venue to observe the 2024 eclipse. I’ve admired the team at DDP for a long time and am thrilled to be working with them to bring this dream to reality.”
The April 8 eclipse is expected to last 4 minutes and 20 seconds and will be seen across Texas and a large swath of North America as it heads east, with the first location in continental North America to experience totality being Mexico’s Pacific coast at around 11:07 a.m. PDT., according to an information page created by NASA. The eclipse is expected to be visible in Texas at approximately 12:23 p.m. CDT.
The 50,000 person event will be spread over the 1,200 acre Reveille Peak ranch, which provides 200 acres of camping grounds, 60 miles of trails and is decorated by beautiful lakes, winding creeks, wooded forests and rolling hills.
More at seetexaseclipse.com
Courtesy Photo
Dallas’ renowned So What?! Music Festival is returning for its 15th edition with newly-announced headliners The Used, Pierce The Veil, Sleeping With Sirens and Thursday, who will perform their acclaimed War All The Time album. The event — now managed under a partnership between Third String Entertainment and Disco Donnie Presents — will be held June 24-25 at Dallas’ Fair Park.
Other highlights at this year’s festival include Breathe Carolina, which will perform a rare throwback live set, as well as reunion sets from Maylene & The Sons of Disaster; Woe, Is Me; The Color Morale; Millionaire$; Head Automatica; and Dallas’ own Forever The Sickest Kids.
The latest iteration will also feature some of today’s most in-demand hip-hop artists (both mainstream and underground), including Oliver Francis; the highly anticipated reunion of emo-rap collective GothBoiClique; screamo/hip-hop project Jasiah; and Freddie Dredd.
With a reputation for being the first to introduce the festival world to future stars like G-Eazy, this year’s So What?! is also spotlighting a number of rising artists and internet sensations, including Phonk rapper Sxmpra, hyperpop artist WHOKILLEDXIX, punk-inspired rapper Nascar Aloe and San Francisco hip-hop artist Haarper.
This year’s So What?! festival is the first to be managed under Disco Punk, a partnership struck in January between Third String Entertainment promoters Mike Ziemer and Orlando Mendoza and James “Donnie” Estopinal‘s leading independent electronic promoter outfit Disco Donnie Presents.
Since its founding in 1994, Disco Donnie Presents has primarily focused on the electronic music scene, producing over 18,000 shows and selling over 18 million tickets in over 100 different cities since its inception, as well as over 300 club shows and events in Texas alone. Speaking with Billboard, Ziemer says the Third String team highly values the wealth of experience brought by Estopinal, who has long served as a mentor to promoters.
“I see a lot of myself in Donnie,” says Zeimer. “We think the same way, but he has been through all the possible good and bad scenarios and knows how to navigate the festival landscape in a way where we can actually scale up and grow our festivals properly. We are both learning a lot from each other in this partnership so far and it feels very natural. He actually gives a s— about what he’s doing, who he’s working with, and how things are done.”
Estopinal says he has “kept an eye on” Third String Entertainment “for a long time,” adding, “It’s amazing what they’ve accomplished so far. We’ve always talked about working together and saw this year as the perfect opportunity. I see a lot of myself in Mike and Orlando…I also think they can teach us a lot.”
Ziemer says this year’s festival will feel more focused than the 2022 edition. In 2023, So What?! will feature fewer than 100 acts — roughly three times fewer than last year — and span three stages versus last year’s seven. “We kind of went nuts last year because COVID had us taking a few years off from the festival and we sort of felt compelled to make up for lost time by trying to go as big as possible,” he says. “In the end, we hurt our event because of short sets, too many scheduling conflicts, too many stages, etc. This year we are back to our core of what makes the festival special to our fans. We always did three stages…and people loved the easy ability to rotate between the three and catch as many acts as possible.”
When it first launched in 2008, So What?! featured a blend of pop-punk, rock and metal artists. It has since grown to encompass more genres and become Texas’ fastest-growing festival of its kind, with past headliners including Simple Plan, Trippie Redd, 100 Gecs, Rae Sremmurd and Underoath.
For more information on this year’s So What?! festival, including ticket prices, payment plan options and more, visit SoWhatMusicFestival.com.
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