Groundwaves, the hip-hop community platform MURS built back in 2018, is taking its biggest step yet. The organization announced its first annual GoodWaves Music Festival & Conference, landing in Chicago from August 28 through 30, presented alongside Good Chaos, a Chicago based studio focused on investing in artists and communities.
The three days split into two distinct experiences. The conference runs August 28 and 29 at Venue Six10, capped at 400 attendees who apply for free admission, and includes on stage conversations with Killer Mike, DJ Premier, Vic Mensa, Rapsody, Styles P, and Snow Tha Product, plus workshops led by Brother Ali. The festival itself takes over The Salt Shed Fairgrounds on August 30, free and open to all ages, with a lineup that includes Killer Mike, DJ Premier, Rapsody, Brother Ali, Navy Blue, and Snow Tha Product.
Groundwaves has spent the last several years building smaller scale editions of this idea in Fort Collins, Denver, Tulsa, and Northwest Arkansas, focused on mentorship and artist development as much as performance. Chicago represents the platform's largest expansion to date, and MURS has described it as the fullest version of a vision he first chased with his own independent festival, Paid Dues, years ago. For an event built on free admission and open registration, GoodWaves is betting that access, not exclusivity, is what actually grows a scene.
