To outsiders, Nashville is a place bubbling over with misconceptual identity. Images of the Country Music Hall of Fame and outlandish bachelorette extravaganzas are often the first that come to mind. And though they’re undoubtedly rooted in the city’s culture, its lesser-known depths are even more important and far more diverse. Enter Deep Tropics: Nashville’s medium-scale music, style, and art festival that draws nothing but big names of stylistic lanes rarely associated with its identity. Hosted in Nashville’s Bicentennial Park by a large figure with a big hat, a bigger beard, and a long, flowing poncho, Deep Tropics is a different kind of music festival for a different side of Nashville.

 

In relatively extreme dichotomy to the festival industry’s norm, Deep Tropics is blissfully affordable – especially when considering that the headlining artists are relatably envy-evoking to the world’s big-stage jubilees. Electronic artists spanning the genre’s breadth coalesce with hip-hop stars and local names to form a colorful patchwork true to Nashville’s insider culture and eye-opening to everyone else about the city’s true wave. 

 

A short drive from the airport and a short walk from downtown define Deep Tropics its intimate setting and make Nashville – already a big city with an extremely fast-paced growth rate – feel much smaller than it is. It’s part of the charm of the entire weekend and hand-in-hand with the festival’s price, make it one of the least planning-intensive weekends to attend. 

 

The festival grounds mirror the laid-back energy of its audience’s arrivals. Four stages – three incredibly intimate outdoor showrooms better described as perfectly placed pop-up platforms and one large yet not overbearing amphitheater – work in sonic and cultural balance of one another. Tucked into a grove of young tress in one corner exists the Waveclub Sound System where ambient blue and purple tones set the mood for artists like Sparkle City Disco to create their own take on Electric Forest’s most intimate moments. The geometric Tranquil Temple invites festival-goers to practices in meditation, silent discos, and lectures on hemp sustainability all while sitting on a lawn amidst the hectic surroundings of an electronically-driven party. Surfclub Sound System brings a vibe all its own. Hosted by Case Arnold and his Still Familia team, the scene is one highlighting Nashville’s rich local hip-hop culture. Fit with a red-bull truck turned DJ stage, a fold-out platform for performing lyricists, and a pop-up skatepark, Surfclub Sound System does an incredible job of putting on intimate rap shows and putting into focus Nashville’s underground music culture. Most notably, the Perfect Plant Amphitheater takes advantage of the park’s built-in stage grounds for the weekend’s biggest names and brightest lights. Acrobatic aerialists, pop-art painters, and food trucks round out the rest of the Deep Tropics environment. 

 

Performances start early in the afternoon, and with only two days to work with, the Deep Tropics lineup is stacked with star power from the get-go. On Saturday, we arrive during Amtrac’s set. Still hot and humid in the Summertime South, Amtrac’s ambient house works wonders on a crowd seeking an introduction to the festival without an overly-intensive vibe. Everyone is bouncing and swaying, while exploring their surroundings for the first time. Doing the same, we find ourselves drawn to the Surfclub Sound System where local hip-hop artists take turns lighting up the mic and the pop-up skate park for a setting like no other music festival out there. More of a weekend afternoon spent behind a skate-shop than an expected hip-hop festival stage, the effortlessness with which the team spits and flips is undeniably drawing.