Image Credit: Aaron Richter; Sean BerryWith no performers announced until now and just over two weeks to go before the 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards go live from Austin, Texas, on March 16 (the show will air live at 12am ET/tape delayed PT on MTV, MTV2 and mtvU), EW can exclusively reveal the roster of up-and-coming artists set to take the stage.
“Black and Yellow” rapper Wiz Khalifa, Brooklyn duo Sleigh Bells, L.A. hip-hop collective Odd Future and sprightly Irish rockers Two Door Cinema Club are slated to be the live entertainment as Matt & Kim, Lupe Fiasco and others hand out “Woodie” awards based on student votes from campuses across the country.
This the first year the mtvU Woodies will be aired live on MTV (as in MTV alpha) in addition to the dorm-only network mtvU and MTV2. Additionally, this is the first time the college-crowd centric music show is part of the eminent South by Southwest Music Festival.
Clearly ready to live up to SXSW’s reputation as the best place to see upcoming artists, the previously-mentioned artists should put on a helluva show.
Wiz Khalifa, a newcomer with a number-one single under his belt (you and 45 million of your closest friends may have heard it) has his many mixtapes to pull from, and Sleigh Bells joyfully create an ear-crushing din of sugar-pop vocals, no-nonsense beats, and thundering guitar riffs.
But when it comes to newcomers to watch, my money is on Odd Future (especially if they opt to exclusively go by “Odd Future” instead of their unwieldy full name “Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All”). Nineteen-year-old group leader Tyler the Creator recently Tweeted pics of himself hanging out with Justin Bieber, although their sometimes graphically violent lyrics will probably rule out any potential official Biebs approval. But purely in terms of music, Odd Future are astounding and they do something unheard of these days: they write their own music and don’t use samples.
Who are you most excited to see, readers? And which nominees have you cast your vote for—Wiz? Kanye? The Black Keys? Girl Talk? Yelawolf? Mumford and Sons? LCD Soundsystem? Tell us in the comments section below.
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