Tulsa

The Festival That Started With A Dream

by Ryan Anderson | Nov 10, 2023 3:28 pm

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Posted to: Music

Dreamland Festival
Guthrie Green
Nov. 4, 2023

“If you build it, they will come”: This could be Steph Simon’s mantra. The Dreamland Festival (originally the World Culture Music Festival) started on Main Street in downtown Tulsa at The Yeti and Soundpony — venues which, unbeknownst to the owners, were housing the beginnings of a Tulsa music movement. Where everyone else just saw a street lined with dive bars that occasionally let hip-hop acts perform, Simon saw a festival taking shape. Now, eight years in, the event he created has exploded into a multi-day, multi-venue experience, culminating with a night of performances at Guthrie Green. 

The name Dreamland comes from the historic Williams Dreamland Theatre, which was located on Tulsa’s Black Wall Street. Its legacy of showcasing the dreams of artists is what fuels the festival today, as it honors local hip-hop of the past, present, and future with sets by emerging and established emcees. On this night, the future meant TMC (Tulsa McLain) Records, a music program led by Simon that teaches high school students how to write, produce, and record their own songs — and on this night, share them live from downtown. Even though Guthrie Green is a huge stage, these young artists performed with a fearlessness that showed they haven’t yet been jaded by the ​‘no’s’ of life. 

Several artists were on hand to represent Oklahoma hip-hop’s past and present — and put to rest the argument that Tulsa and Oklahoma City don’t work together. Jabee, an Emmy award-winning Oklahoma City artist who has worked with numerous Tulsa musicians, showcased his expansive vocabulary, rapping as if he were flipping through a thesaurus. When the duo M.C. and Medisin took the stage, it felt like you were lying in a field looking up at the stars, lost in their words.

This year’s headliner pick, LaNell Grant, is yet another example of the Dreamland Festival’s knack for spotting the talent of artists that are right on the cusp of blowing up, as seen with last year’s headliner LaRussell, and before that Larry June. A Houston native, Grant got her break producing for rapper Tobe Nwigwe, and she was recently featured on BET’s Hip Hop Awards Cypher. Grant has a great album out, but it’s her performance that makes you a fan. The stage lit up like a stadium production as her words came alive: ​“They want me. They cannot have me, I’m doin’ backflips….. I’m rapping off of the vault, verbal gymnastics.”

Simon himself closed out the festival. The fact that it was his birthday made this performance even more special. His set was like an all-star game of Oklahoma’s best rappers, from 1st Verse to Hakeem Eli’juwon, Chris ​“The God MC” McCain, St. Domonick, and OTS J Huncho. Never has Simon looked more comfortable on stage than he did on this night, surrounded by his peers, friends, and family. His bravado was on full display, raising eyebrows when he unapologetically rapped the line ​”I just got word my favorite hater bout to do 20, when he get out I be still winnin.” And I have a feeling he’s right.

Steph Simon built it, and now people come from all across the world to see not just these performers but also the legacy of the historic Williams Dreamland Theatre. At Guthrie Green, it was the dreams of the artists of the past, present, and future that projected from the speakers. Each new year will showcase a new artist and a new dream as the Dreamland Festival continues to confirm its status as a staple in the Oklahoma music scene. 

Next for Steph Simon: Tulsa King album release, Dec. 10

Next at Guthrie Green: Art in the Park Holiday Festival, Dec. 2

Tags: Hip Hop , rap , Black Wall Street