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Warped Tour hip-hop: MC Chris, Junk Science
Last year, I criticized Warped Tour for its tendency to add a token hip-hop act or two to a slew of crappy punk bands. But this year appears to be different. While Warped Tour’s tone remains obscenely corporate, with the … Continue reading
P.O.S., K-os and MC Chris rock Warped Tour
For the past twelve years, the Vans Warped Tour has spread across America, bringing a mixture of mainstream punk bands eager to sell out and corporate sponsors eager to reach our nation’s impressionable youth. And each installment includes a few token rappers eager to expand their reach beyond the backpack nerds who normally attend their concerts. It’s like back in the 60s, when rock festival promoters would salve their liberal consciences by adding a few black artists to the bill.
As sucky as Warped Tour has become can — a tour that once prided itself on carrying one major sponsor (Vans shoes) is now backed by AT&T, for chrissakes — it can have a major effect on artists’ careers. Atmosphere, the Alkaholiks and many others can thank Warped Tour for ballooning their fan base. And we all know what Warped did for Gym Class Heroes.
This year, the 13th edition of Warped Tour will include Canadian musician K-os and Rhymesayers prospect P.O.S. (shown in photo) along with Adult Swim alum MC Chris on select East Coast dates among the hordes of emo nincompoops. (Okay, not all of the rock bands suck: Coheed & Cambria, Fishbone and Bad Religion will be there, too.) Tour dates are below.