February 26, 2025

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Afrojack, Baauer, Steve Aoki Reign Over EDM At Hangout Fest

GULF SHORES, Alabama — Now that the Hangout Festival is officially over, a look back at the weekend's sets proves that EDM ruled. The official electronic tent appropriately named the Boom Boom tent was packed with festival goers of all kinds coming together for one reason: to dance.

The festival kicked off Thursday evening with a pre-party starring the likes of Dillon Francis and Benny Benassi. Benny closed the party, but not before blaring his ageless classic "Satisfaction," and it seemed that tent was more than satisfied.

Afrojack stole Friday with marathon-like sets combining classics with new music. He came straight from Vegas on an hour of sleep and told Hangout Fest fans that they were the "best hangover he'd ever had." The audience was very grateful the master DJ/producer braved the heat, humidity and lack of sleep to rock the EDM tent for the afternoon. Then, Wolfgang Gartner took over Saturday.

On Sunday, electronic music fans were able to really indulge in the genre. Baauer, Porter Robinson and Steve Aoki had sets that attracted fans from all over the beach, from the rides and food stands... and from the other performances. Baauer danced his way through his show, blasting and mashing hip-hop favorites. Porter Robinson and Aoki lit up the tent with insane light shows and active graphics as a backdrop to their massive performances. Aoki stayed true to his famous stage behavior by caking his front row and showering them with champagne. His final touch was sending a few lucky fans off to surf the wild crowd on ...

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‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ Spoiler Special: Burning Questions Answered

By now you've probably seen at least once — the sequel has earned an impressive $165 million in worldwide box office since opening last week — or if you're like me, three times. Stop looking at me like that. I went to "Star Trek" conventions as a kid. This is in my blood. This is what I do.

Any "Trek" film lends itself to a good round of post-mortem of massive geekery by die-hards like myself, but this one might take the cake thanks to its many secrets held close by director J.J. Abrams and his team. Luckily we've got a direct line to "Star Trek Into Darkness" co-writer and producer Damon Lindelof. Last week, just as we did for "Prometheus," Lindelof and I traded a few emails to dive deep into the many secrets of the blockbuster.

Before we get to our correspondence, let me put this as bluntly as possible.

MASSIVE "STAR TREK" SPOILERS LIE BELOW. DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN "STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS"!

Still with us? OK, here goes.

From: Josh Horowitz
To: Damon Lindelof
Sent: Sat, May 11, 2013 2:58 pm

Damon,
Here we go again. Thanks for subjecting yourself to my nerdy inquiries once again. I'd apologize but you're the one who co-wrote/produced a Star Trek movie. You knew what you were getting into. I've been lucky enough to plunge "Into Darkness" twice already (to be clear I'm talking about your movie because I first plunged into darkness long long before we knew each other) and truly thought it was a blast from start to finish. Congratulations.

OK, ...

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Hangout Festival Takes The Party Offstage In Seven Best Moments

The fourth annual Hangout Music Festival is now officially in the books and throughout the weekend, there were a ton of great moments, both onstage and off. Throughout the weekend, we had guest correspondence from EDM star Dillon Francis, supermodel Chrissy Teigen, former Miss Alabama 2012 Katherine Webb and "Jersey Shore" alum Vinny Guadagnino covering all the sweaty action on the beach and downtown Gulf Shores. Here's the eight best offstage moments that captured the beachy vibes of Hangout Fest.

Vinny Photobombs Fans
Hangout Fest's beach setting is an ideal spot for fans to snap up candid digi-memories, and Vinny took advantage of the situation by dropping in on several group shots. The result? Some mild fan annoyance before putting two and two together.

Sway Finds A Rapper
Kendrick Lamar was running a bit late for his Hangout Fest set, so to entertain the crowd, Sway went looking for a few "real MCs." Surprisingly enough, he found one in 19-year-old Matt Webb, a physical therapy student from nearby Pensacola State. Watch the crowd erupt.

Chrissy And Katherine Hit The Mega-Drop
One of the main beach attractions in Gulf Shores is a rickety-looking thrill ride called the Mega-Drop. It's simple: you go to the top of a giant pole and the contraption drops you... fast. Chrissy and Katherine really attempted to keep their fear in check.

An Ol' Fashion Shrimp Eatin' Contest
Being at Gulf Shores, it's smart to indulge in one of the region's prized possessions — seafood. Chrissy and Katherine indulged big time. Watch as they inhale a whole bunch of shrimp ...

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Does Kelly Rowland Have The ‘X Factor’?

With two spots left vacant on the "X Factor" panel and season three about to go into production, the show just may have found the perfect two women to replace L.A. Reid and Britney Spears. According to several reports, Demi Lovato and Simon Cowell ju... ...

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Kendrick Lamar, Macklemore, Kings Of Leon Make Music The Star At Hangout Fest

GULF SHORES, ALABAMA — With the sand, surf, skies and, uh, shrimp to compete against, music could have been an afterthought at the 2013 Hangout Festival ... but thanks to the efforts of the 60-plus acts that graced the stages, that most certainly wasn't the case.

It started right out of the gates on Friday, with a high-energy (and highly dangerous) set from Twenty One Pilots — who tore through their lunchtime set like prime-time players with a death wish, scaling scaffolding, doing backflips off a piano, and launching themselves into the awaiting arms of the audience — and carried all the way through the last man to take the stage on Sunday, the legendary Stevie Wonder, who thrilled 40,000 strong with a performance heavy on his hits.

In between, Hangout's five stages coursed with energy of all sorts. Kendrick Lamar packed 'em in at the Boom Boom tent, running through his breakout good kid, m.A.A.d city album (and his Section.80 mixtape) and performing like he hired a private jet just to make it here — probably because he did. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Ellie Goulding stole the show over at the Hangout stage with effervescent sets that had the sunburned masses shouting for more. And Imagine Dragons made the most of their de facto gig as Trey Anastasio's openers on the Chevrolet stage, pulling a huge crowd and powering through an hour of expressive, expansive rock.

Hangout Music Fest 2013: Highlights

Watch Our Festival Recap
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Stevie Wonder Signs, Seals, Delivers Hangout Fest Closer

GULF SHORES, Alabama — Every great festival needs a great headliner to help close things out. And on Sunday night (May 19), the Hangout Festival snagged one of music's biggest icons for its finale: Stevie Wonder.

The R&B icon sent the tens of thousands home happy after a weekend of beachside fun that included sets from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kendrick Lamar, Twenty One Pilots, the Roots, Kings of Leon, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Bassnectar and Imagine Dragons.

Wonder played more than two hours of hits and carefully curated covers that touched on nearly ever facet of his career while also paying homage to the music that inspired him, from the Beatles to Parliament and Michael Jackson. The set opened with Wonder center stage jamming on a keytar cover of fellow Motown legend Marvin Gaye's "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)."

The already salt-tinged air got even more fragrant when he boogied into the reggae groove of "Master Blaster (Jammin')," keeping the island groove going during a sun-splashed take on Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel" and, a short time later, Bob Marley's "Is This ...

Read More →

Stevie Wonder Signs, Seals, Delivers Hangout Fest Closer

GULF SHORES, Alabama — Every great festival needs a great headliner to help close things out. And on Sunday night (May 19), the Hangout Festival snagged one of music's biggest icons for its finale: Stevie Wonder.

The R&B icon sent the tens of thousands home happy after a weekend of beachside fun that included sets from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kendrick Lamar, Twenty One Pilots, the Roots, Kings of Leon, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Bassnectar and Imagine Dragons.

Wonder played more than two hours of hits and carefully curated covers that touched on nearly ever facet of his career while also paying homage to the music that inspired him, from the Beatles to Parliament and Michael Jackson. The set opened with Wonder center stage jamming on a keytar cover of fellow Motown legend Marvin Gaye's "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)."

The already salt-tinged air got even more fragrant when he boogied into the reggae groove of "Master Blaster (Jammin')," keeping the island groove going during a sun-splashed take on Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel" and, a short time later, Bob Marley's "Is This ...

Read More →