Desert Hearts Festival Brings The Funk With House, Techno And Love

Home, techno and love: The foundations that imprint and model Desert Hearts is based on. Except for spinning techno and home, the neighborhood exudes love, whether or not it’s for individuals from totally different walks of life, related ethos, these nonetheless discovering themselves and extra.

I’m an attendee of earlier Desert Coronary heart occasions, however this 12 months was my first time attending their competition. Whereas there, I discovered one thing I had by no means discovered earlier than. I’ve gone to my fair proportion of music festivals in my day, however I’ve by no means been surrounded by a neighborhood so rooted in love, understanding, kindness, freeness, positivity, acceptingness and extra. There was one thing totally different within the air that’s incomparable to different occasions.

Right here, two of the Desert Hearts founders, Mikey Lion and Marbs—Lee Reynolds and Porky are the opposite two founders—share with Forbes how they describe the model in three phrases, how the competition has modified over their years, their favourite factor of being a part of the Desert Hearts household and extra.

Lisa Kocay: Are you able to describe Desert Hearts in three phrases?

Mikey Lion: “Household, love, freedom of expression.”

Marbs: “Acutely aware, neighborhood, intention.”

Kocay: Are you able to elaborate extra on what intention means?

Marbs: “I believe individuals come right here to discover their minds and discover what life could be outdoors of the conventional grind. I believe individuals go away with this concept that these experiences and the connections that they’ve with individuals do not should stay simply in [this] expertise, [but] could be taken dwelling, handed on and rippled out in our day-to-day lives.”

Kocay: How has Desert Hearts modified over time?

Mikey Lion: “Nicely, it began as a 200 individual little gathering within the [Mojave], and it simply organically grew right into a competition. We by no means supposed for it to be a competition or had intentions of making one thing this huge after we first began it. It form of developed its personal persona, following and neighborhood round it, that we felt accountable to maintain it going as a result of it was simply…essentially the most lovely factor that we have ever been part of. So over time it went from being a renegade social gathering to being held on non-public land in Apple Valley, an Indian reservation at La Jolla, again to Apple Valley [and] then to Los Coyotes Indian reservation. And now in its tenth 12 months, [we’re] right here at Lake Perris.

“We simply knew after the pandemic and this three 12 months break that we have been on that we would have liked to maneuver in a brand new course and discover someplace that we may develop that our household would actually admire. And after we discovered this venue—the whole lot simply clicked.”

Marbs: “It looks like the universe has mirrored it again to us. I believe it is attracted a variety of fantastic people. The demographic is so particular and so widespread, so far as individuals from all walks of life. And it form of turns right into a magnet yearly—we get blown away at what number of extra artistic and aware individuals come right here to expertise what everybody’s experiencing. And it simply appears to be its personal organism. The neighborhood has turn into so sturdy and highly effective. It is the spine to this complete factor, and seeing a neighborhood develop 12 months after 12 months and simply making individuals take pleasure in their life, then seeing them outdoors of the competition, operating into them on the town and listening to how a lot it has impacted their wellbeing and the way in which they have a look at the world—that is the true ticket for me.

“We’re all music heads and we’re deejays, and that is the place it began. However the tales of individuals popping out to their households about their sexuality, quitting laborious medicine and kicking their addictions, discovering their spouse and all these tales that occurred round Desert Hearts, that is actually what we expect we’re doing and what we hope we’re doing: spreading positivity and impacting the world in a constructive method, even whether it is on a [small] scale. We predict all of it begins with the person. So if every particular person is getting higher in changing into a greater model of themselves by means of constructive experiences, that is a small chip away at making the world a greater place. I believe that is what it is developed into.”

Kocay: Up to now this 12 months for the competition, what have been a few of your favourite reminiscences?

Marbs: “I am closely concerned within the logistics. I at all times have been. So for the lead as much as the competition within the first week, whereas we’re organising, I am very pulled in numerous instructions. So there’s at all times a second the place I get to step out of that and transition into settling into the expertise. And on Thursday night time, after we had the seashore stage occurring, my actually good pal Evan Casey, whom I do Desert Hearts Black [with], had his set. And earlier this 12 months through the pandemic, we made an EP the place our good pal Katie [Kilbride] sang on vocals. She got here up on stage throughout [Casey’s] set, and we deliberate to do stay vocals along with her. So we had this second of me serving to her on the voice transformer, operating the reverb and all these things for her vocals.

“And he or she was singing whereas [Casey] was enjoying and it was that second for me. It was like, ‘Oh man, we got here out of the pandemic. That is one thing we created throughout it. And now we have waited three years to be again at Desert Hearts.’ I am attending to have this expertise with them performing music that we created with a pal who’s singing stay for the primary time on stage. It was an excellent particular second for all of us, I believe. After which on Friday when the Coronary heart Stage turned on, I acquired within the sales space, and that is such an enormous venue. We did not know if it was [going to] really feel full or what—it is simply so huge. After I acquired within the sales space and I noticed the view from the sales space, I had tears in my eyes. It was the second that I had been lacking and dreaming of this complete time that we have been away. It was actually particular and an affirmation of all of the laborious work that we’ve got accomplished.”

Kocay: Over the previous years, what have been a few of your favourite reminiscences?

Mikey Lion: “The very first dawn set that we had at Desert Hearts was when it was even just a bit 200 individual renegade within the Mojave. That was one in all my very favourite moments as a result of it was like that second of triumph. I believe each time that we make it by means of the night time at Desert Hearts and into the following day, there may be that second of glory the place everybody’s on the identical wavelength. The household’s simply feeling fully linked to at least one one other. And we’re watching the dawn collectively whereas we’re listening to music, all dancing to the identical beat. It’s extremely tribalistic and it feels fully proper with being a human being.”

Kocay: What’s in your important packing record for Desert Hearts?

Mikey Lion: “Positively wild and loopy costumes. I believe trend and freedom of expression is a big a part of our competition. Whether or not it is artwork, whether or not it is trend or simply some other kind of method that expresses your self, it is one thing that we have at all times inspired right here. So bringing your greatest competition gear is unquestionably a should.”

Marbs: “A number of pairs of sneakers. Your toes will damage, [so] swap these issues out. Ensuring you have got some issues that make you’re feeling at dwelling. I keep in an RV, however we’ll convey a few of our crystals. We’ll enhance it out and ensure that once you return dwelling after partying and having enjoyable that you’ve got a secure house that makes you’re feeling form of centered and picked up.

“It’s essential to make sure that once you’re resting that you’ve got the issues to make your physique heal when you’re resting. Garments for all climate—we have had the most well liked of days, snow [and] hail.”

Kocay: What’s the perfect factor about being a part of the Desert Hearts household?

Marbs: “Desert Hearts has impacted my life. I do it with my greatest associates. I’ve discovered a option to have a residing and have goal in my life with the those who I really like. What else can I ask for? That is what I believe we’re all in search of, is to discover a option to be sustainable and comfortable the place work does not really feel like work. This isn’t work in any respect. On the finish of the day, that is my life and my soul. So to have the ability to be surrounded by the those who I really like and creating one thing like this, I am simply so grateful that my path led me to [this.]”

Mikey Lion: “Desert Hearts has given me my whole life. My brother is a companion. My spouse, [whom] I have been with for 10 years. Our whole pal group is rooted in Desert Hearts. Just about everybody I do know is in a roundabout way concerned in Desert Hearts at this level. It is one thing that has given a lot goal to my life and a lot goal to so many individuals right here. I believe people are tribalistic by nature and for lots of people, the tribe that they discover is like their sports activities staff or one thing that they really feel part of.

“I believe that that is my favourite half is that we’re all coming along with this frequent purpose of making love and spreading that constructive power and that purpose of changing into the perfect variations of ourselves. It is actually unimaginable to me.”