Heineken TransAtlantic Festival Will Keep Miami Moving to the Beat

Like so many other aspects of our lives, music has become globalized. What happens when kids growing up in places like Miami, Los Angeles, or Latin America come up hearing everything from cumbia to Cold Play or salsa to Stevie Wonder… They produce hypnotic hybrids, that’s what. If you don’t believe us, go listen for yourself at the 7th Annual Heineken TransAtlantic Festival in Miami from April 2nd to the 25th. Sited in multiple venues around town such as The News Lounge and North Beach Bandshell, the festival is all about breaking down musical barriers and connecting various communities from the US, Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Africa. Featuring well-known artists from genres as diverse as Afrobeat and Latin Alternative, the festival also prides itself on showcasing up-and-coming talent who may never have before performed outside their home countries.

The result is nearly a month-long celebration of red-hot rhythms that challenge anyone to keep their backside from swaying to the beat. Plus, you get to hear a world’s-worth of music without ever leaving the States. Created by Miami global music impresarios Rhythm Foundation, the festival will feature a tasty mix of musical sub-genres including funk Cubano, cumbia glitch, Afrobeat mayhem, and the horn-heavy, hard-hitting sound of the city itself. This year’s line-up includes edgy Colombian roots rockers Aterciopelados, Yerba Buena songwriter and diva CuCu Diamantes, Fela Kuti’s other musical heir Seun Kuti, Swedish cosmic waif Lykke Li, the hot Afro-Brazilian trio Moinho, Mexican jazz ingénue Ximena Sariñana, and the wildly creative Buenos Aires electronica collective Zizek.