Mega Ran Brings The Dream Master Mixtape Festival To Yuma

How did the idea of the 3 day festival come about and what do you feel it will bring to the City of Yuma?

I’ve always gotten a lot of love when I did shows in Yuma but they were always in weird spots. An abandoned hotel…. a skate park… a bowling alley.

Finally they get a really dope venue and we rocked it a few years back. It was the perfect spot. It’s still around and thriving so I want to do my part to give back. I heard a lot from fans about how they don’t get a lot of cool acts coming to their town. I just thought all of the pieces came together perfectly for a festival in Yuma. I’m super excited to do it.

How many artists are on the bill and what was the process of selecting artists to perform at this event?

 there are over 30 acts — probably half are friends of mine or people that I’m a fan of, or have crossed paths with over years of touring, maybe 33% folks that are touring acts that have played the venue before, and the rest are the best of the best of local talent.  It was very important to me to work with acts I had familiarity with, and that were interested in building something new and exciting in a new place with me from the ground up.

What are the pros and cons of putting together a festival?

The pros are you get to play shows with people you’ve been a fan of for years! The cons are that you can’t bring everybody along. Also I’ve had a hard time sorting out peoples schedules who wanted to come or people that felt like they deserved higher billing than others — and I have no time for that. Also it’s tough to get the word out on a small budget. We’re an independent festival, not Coachella. I’d rather have 10 of the right people who have the time of their lives here than 10,000 of the wrong people.

What have you learned about the business that you did not know coming in to this situation?

I’ve learned that no matter how hard you think it might be to book a festival, it’s 10 times harder. People are people, so you’re gonna deal with e issues you never thought you would. Felix told me that every year they booked the hip hop fest in AZ, he would wind up losing a friend or gaining an enemy, every year guaranteed. I haven’t gotten to there yet thank goodness but I do understand how it can happen.

I learned that without a strong team nothing can get done. I’m super thankful for Jeff and Ramiro for helping me out, believing in me and having my back when things got to be too much to handle.

Where do you see this thing in the next 10 years?

I see this as a moving festival that pops up in a different town every year, changes shapes and themes and just grows and grows. I’m super excited about where Dream Master Fest will continue to go.  How else can you top a five year run where you break a Guinness World Record, chart on Billboard, get music into a Kevin Smith film, and become a foster parent? 
I guess you start your own festival. That’s what Mega Ran is doing, and we’ve got the exclusive.

WHY A FESTIVAL?

I just love live music and I’ve never seen a full lineup where I’ve wanted to see everyone… it’s a rare thing. So I talked to some friends and we made it happen!

WHY YUMA?
I fell in love with the venue out there; I played Yuma with Writers Guild at a time when I was a little lost creatively and that town helped me get a lot of perspective back…  and I just knew I wanted to come back and bring something to that city as a thanks for what they did for me. 

WHO ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING? 
Everyone, but the Codefendants are a new band that’s been tearing it up, really stoked to have them.

WHEN IS IT? 
May 12-14, Yuma AZ at the Red Moon Ale House! 

Enter DREAM MASTER MIXTAPE, a 3 day music festival taking place May 12-14 in Yuma AZ at the Red Moon Ale House, which will boast international acts like AJJ, Futuristic, Playboy Manbaby, Open Mike Eagle, The Codefendants and more. 

Single day and full event passes are available now: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dream-master-mix-tape-tickets-570276280707

Dream Master Mixtape takes place May 12-14, 2023 and features

Mega Ran, Futuristic, AJJ, The Codefendants, Playboy Manbaby, Open Mike Eagle, Urban Heat, Whitney Peyton, Homeboy Sandman, Boris & the Joy, E-Turn, Roqy Tyraid, Se Vende, Dead 77, The Pawns , Mexican Cabron, Closet Goth, Substantial, The Stakes, Red Tank!, Chklz, Scorpian Vs Tarantula, Blood Fued Family Singers, SpyMC, Pawz One, Evolve, The Doyenne, Dnastymane, Legal Alien, Teek Hall, Ben City, J. Worm Rockwell, Dan E.T., ACRZ, Jaymastah, EyeQ, 12th Letter and more. details at redmoonalehouse.com.An exclusive t-shirt is available for those who wish to support the fest or get one ahead of time before they sell out: 

https://random.bandcamp.com/merch/dream-master-mixtape-2023-official-t-shirt