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Fling 2014: Quick Facts on This Year’s Musical Acts

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Kelli Liu
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar U Penn Contributor
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Penn chapter.
A couple of days ago, when the Fling headliner was revealed, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram blew up. Even the strategic announcements of the opening acts throughout the week got the campus talking, texting, and tweeting. And amongst this hustle and bustle of excited shrieks and “OMG” statuses, it’s easy to forget that maybe there’s someone that’s not so excited, someone wondering, who is Magic Man, Ra Ra Riot, and (dare I say it) David Guetta? 
 
I was talking with a couple of people about this year’s Fling when one of them asked shyly, “Who is David Guetta? Is he like Skrillex or something?” Shocked, my friends stared at him dumbfounded. “Do you know Avicii?” they asked. He shook his head no. I wondered later that night why we were so surprised that he was unaware of dear old David. There are countless musicians out there, how can we logically expect him to know who David Guetta was? So for those of you who weren’t kicking and screaming when your computer screen lit up with the headliner notification, here’s are some quick facts to educate you on just what you need to know to get psyched for this year’s Spring Fling. 
 
Rock/Pop/Electronic
  1. They are composed of 4 guys and a girl. 
  2. Together, they are also part of 3 different bands (side-projects).
  3. They have a live stream on their website for #MAGICMAN, so Instagram away!
  4. They just recently bid farewell to their bassist (so make the above comment now 3 guys and a girl).
  5. They are very intimate and open with their Instagram feed (you’re practically hanging out with them).
  6. They have weekly Twitter chats #MAGICMANMONDAYS.
  7. ^They apparently like alliteration.
  8. They have only released an EP (available to download for free on their website).
  9. They were once the special guest for a Panic! At the Disco show.
  10. They hail from Boston, MA.

Take a listen: “Paris,” from their You Are Here EP. 

Indie Rock/Baroque Pop
  1. They formed in January 2006 at Syracuse University. 
  2. Their first tour was in North America supporting Tokyo Police Club.
  3. They quickly gained momentum and finished headlining their first tour (of the US) in 2007.
  4. Their song “Boy” is featured in a Honda Civic commercial.
  5. Their songs have been featured on popular television shows like Royal Pains and Shameless.
  6. They have a thing for Kate Bush covers.
  7. The composition of their band has changed a lot since the death of their main drummer in 2007.
  8. They are signed to Barsuk Records alongside other indie bands like Kind of Like Spitting and The Revolutionary Hydra.
  9. Wes Miles (frontman) collaborated with Vampire Weekend’s Rostam Batmanglij and Ezra Koenig in 2009 to release a side-project called Discovery.
  10. They currently have 3 studio albums and 2 EPs out.

Take a listen: “Can You Tell” from their Rhumb Line album.

David Guetta

DJ/ House Music

  1. He started as a DJ in nightclubs in the 1980s-1990s.  
  2. He real eased his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002.
  3. He also co-founded the production company that launched his first album (he truly deserves all of his success).
  4. He didn’t achieve mainstream success until 2009 with his album One Love (the album with “Sexy Bitch”).
  5. Now, he has sold more than 6 million albums and 15 million singles. 
  6. He has collaborated with lots of big names in the business like Usher, Rihanna, T-Pain, Pitbull, Kid Cudi, Flo Rida, and Lady Gaga (and that’s just naming a few).
  7. He’s a one woman man. He married Cathy Guetta in 1990 and has unfortunately, this month, just filed for a mutual divorce.
  8. He currently is the proud owner of two Grammys, both for Best Remixed Non-classical Recordings.
  9. He has two kids, 10 and 6 years old  (got to love a family man).
  10. He is still on the straight and the narrow. He’s 46, and he’s still killing it.

Take a listen: “Play Hard ft. Akon, Ne-Yo” from his Nothing But the Beat album.

Wanna know more about Fling’s French DJ headliner? Read more about Guetta on the Daily Pennsylvanian.

Was all of that, TL;DR (too long; didn’t read)? Here’s all you really need to know:
This year is going to be great.
 
Images courtesy of: SoundCloud; Pigeons and Planes; Myspace; Billboard.
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