Hip-Hop Lives Here
Hip-Hop Lives Here
Desert Hearts cofounders Mikey Lion, Marbs and Lee Reynolds are hitting the road together this spring and summer under the Desert Hearts name, alongside the release of a new EP from the trio, which arrived April 29.
This moment marks the first time the founders of the long running Southern California Desert Hearts festival and collective are both touring and releasing music together under the Desert Hearts name. Their two track EP California is out now through Desert Hearts Records.
The announcement arrives following news in November that the Desert Hearts festival will not take place in 2026. “We went into DHF 2025 with the intention of taking a break in 2026, but we ended up throwing the best Desert Hearts ever,” the team shared at the time. “In the afterglow, we went on sale for 2026. When we finally came back down, we realized what throwing a full scale DHF next year meant, and we didn’t like how that looked for our artist paths and personal lives. We sincerely apologize for getting ahead of ourselves.”
Now, Mikey Lion explains that the pause is intentional. “We made a conscious decision to take 2026 off from producing our annual Desert Hearts Festival so we could refocus on what brought us together in the first place being artists. Desert Hearts has always been rooted in the music, but over the years the event side naturally took a lot of our energy. 2026 felt like the right moment to shift that balance back. At the same time, we have always felt strongest as a crew. Releasing music under the Desert Hearts name is our way of fully embracing that identity while presenting a unified sound and vision.”
“California is the foundation of everything we have built,” adds Reynolds. “It is where the first Desert Hearts parties happened, where the community thrived, and where we really found our identity. The DH vibe is uniquely Californian and we wanted to reconnect with our roots as we step forward as a trio.”
“Desert Hearts has always been about love, connection and freedom of expression through music, art and community, and we have never compromised on that,” Marbs continues. “We have had opportunities to take more traditional routes as we have grown, but that has never been the point. We are not chasing trends or trying to fit into a system, we are creating spaces where people can feel something real and connect on a deeper level. That intention has stayed the same for over a decade, and it is the reason our community is still so strong. We protect that above everything.”
Desert Hearts first emerged in the early 2010s from the West Coast transformational festival scene, eventually growing into a bi annual house and techno gathering that draws thousands of fans along with a curated lineup of artists. Over time, the founders have also taken the Desert Hearts experience on tour across the United States and internationally.
Desert Hearts 2026 Tour Dates:
May 2: Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Xanadu
May 9: San Diego, Calif. @ Quartyard
May 21: Bakersfield, Calif. @ Lightning In A Bottle
May 25: Seattle, Wash. @ Monkey Loft
May 30: Flagstaff, Ariz. @ Meow Wolf, Santa FeJune 12 – June Jam
July 27: Quebec, CA @ Groove & Bass Festival
Aug. 9: San Jose, Calif. @ Urbano Blanco
Aug. 14: Hellisandur, Iceland @ Secrect Solstice Festival
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The studio behind Michael has confirmed that a sequel is now in the works, with production potentially beginning as soon as this year.
The film, based on the life of Michael Jackson, traces his story from childhood through to the height of his fame in the late 1980s. It has performed strongly at the box office, pulling in $217million (£160million) globally on opening and setting a new benchmark for music biopics, overtaking Bohemian Rhapsody. Talks of a follow up began soon after its release, and now confirmation has arrived that development is underway.
Speaking on The Town With Matt Belloni podcast, Adam Fogelson, studio chief at Lionsgate, said there is a strong chance filming could begin either later this year or next. He noted there is more than enough material to continue the story. “There is a massive amount of music… and life experiences separate and apart from allegations… that would fill more than a second movie on its own,” Fogelson explained. When discussing potential moments to explore, he referenced Jackson’s iconic 1993 Super Bowl halftime show.
At the same time, the production schedule is still uncertain, as director Antoine Fuqua is currently tied to a Netflix project alongside Denzel Washington. “We haven’t yet gotten to the moment where we have to solve for anything,” Fogelson said.
The executive also addressed whether the sequel might tackle the sexual abuse allegations made against Jackson, claims that both the artist and his estate have long denied. The first film had initially intended to include that aspect, but a clause within a legal agreement led to $15million in reshoots, shifting the ending to an earlier point in his life and focusing more on his relationship with his father, Joe, portrayed by Colman Domingo.
“It’s a really complicated question, and I’m not sure I think that I am the best person or now is the best time,” Fogelson said when asked if the sequel would address that chapter.
In a three star review of the film, critic Nick Levine wrote: “Michael feels like a job well done: it’s a slick, accessible advert for Jackson’s incredible imperial phase. But if the singer’s estate wanna be startin’ somethin’ bigger like a film franchise, they’ll have their work cut out.”
The film’s success has even sparked lively reactions in cinemas, with some audiences dancing in the aisles, a trend that has not gone down well with every viewer.
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