The Best Hip Hop Festivals in 2022

From the smooth, chilled vocals of Snoop Dogg to the raging, adrenaline-pumping tracks of DMX to the catchy hooks of Future, hip hop is an incredibly diverse genre. Since its beginnings in the Bronx, New York in the 70s, hip hop has grown, mutated and spawned many sub-genres, including drill, trap, mumble rap, and gangsta rap. As well as creating sub-genres, it’s also led to fusion genres such as alternative hip hop, rap metal, nu metal and many more.

As well as music, hip hop has influenced fashion, art, dance, language, and so much more. Hip hop is only growing more and more relevant.

There’s no denying it’s an insanely influential genre. And it’s amazing to see all the talent the genre produces. But it’s even better to see these artists live in the flesh, tearing up the stage and hyping crowds up to a level you can’t even imagine.

From London to Manchester, Barcelona to Switzerland, here are some of the best hip hop festivals you can’t miss in 2022.

Lovebox

When: TBA

Where: Gunnersbury Park, London

Lineup: TBA

Founded by DJ duo Andy Cato and Tom Findlay AKA Groove Armada, London’s premier hip hop, RnB, and electronic music festival, Lovebox, is an absolute must-attend summer event for hip hop fans.

Taking place in Gunnersbury Park, the three-day event has previously welcomed some of the biggest names in the game, including N.E.R.D, Dizzee Rascal, Snoop Dogg, Nas, M.I.A., A$AP Rocky, Run The Jewels, Mac Miller, and so many more.

While no artists have been confirmed yet, we know the lineup will be absolutely insane if past lineups are anything to go by. If you’re a hip hop fan, we recommend securing tickets ASAP as it’ll no doubt sell out.

Find tickets for Lovebox 2022 – here

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Parklife

When: 11th – 12th June

Where: Heaton Park, Manchester

Lineup: TBA

The UK’s largest metropolitan music festival, Manchester’s Parklife is a widely adored festival that welcomes globally renowned rap and hip hop stars to perform in front of a crowd of passionate music fans.

Those who have graced the festival’s seven stages include Loyle Carner, Cardi B, Slowthai, Megan Thee Stallion, Wu-Tang Clan, Stormzy, Boy Better Know, Anderson .PAAK & The Free Nationals, Ice Cube, Pusha T, Lethal Bizzle and many, many more.

To highlight how adored the festival truly is, tickets for the 2021 edition sold out in 78 minutes during the presale. That’s over 120,000 tickets in just over an hour. If you fancy Parklife, we recommend you sign up for the presale now.

Find tickets for Parklife 2022 – here

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Wireless Festival

When: TBA

Where: Finsbury Park, London

Lineup: TBA

Another mammoth music event with its finger firmly on the pulse of the hip hop, RnB, and grime and music scenes, Wireless is one of the highlights of the year down in London.

Rocking the English capital for three days, the huge music gathering is known for plastering household names on its lineup posters. Wireless never fails to deliver a mind-blowing performance complimented by crowds that are so hype you’d think someone paid them to go crazy. Although it’s easy to see where their energy comes from with artists such as Jay Z, Kanye, Cardi B, AJ Tracey, Lil Uzi Vert, Saweetie, Chance The Rapper, A$AP Rocky, and more.

While there’s no lineup yet, tickets will sell out rapidly. It’s a good idea to keep an eye on this festival, sign up for presale, and set a few reminders on your phone for a chance of securing your tickets for one of the best UK hip hop festivals.

Find tickets for Wireless 2022 – here

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Fresh Island Festival

When: 26th – 28th June

Where: Zcre Beach, Novalja, Croatia

Lineup: TBA

Nearest airport: Zadar Airport (ZAD)

Dig out your passport and flip flops because Fresh Island Festival in sunny Croatia is about to blow your mind.

Taking place on the dreamy Zrce Beach, Fresh Island Festival boasts amazing weather, a picturesque location, better prices compared to UK festivals and unreal lineups. The fest hasn’t announced any artists yet but past editions have featured Wiz Khalifa, J Hus, Ty Dolla $ign, AJ Tracey, Giggs, Rae Sremmurd, Young Thug, Kehlani, and Snoop Dogg, so we trust this year’s will be outstanding as always.

A bit of trivia for you: Snoop Dogg and Madcon loved the festival so much they decided to film the music video for “Is You With Me” during their stay.

And if you know three days of hip hop, afrobeats, and RnB won’t quite quench your thirst, you can warm up at the pre-party, cool down at the after-party, and fill the rest of your time with pool and boat parties. You want to live your life like a movie? Here’s your chance.

Find tickets for Fresh Island Festival 2022 – here

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Boomtown Fair

When: 10th – 14th August

Where: Matterley Estate, Hampshire

Lineup: TBA

The festival that simply never misses, Boomtown Fair boasts an epic bill of performers every single year. The festival is a renowned and respected champion of hip hop acts and those who sit within its sub-genres.

The eclectic event, which also supports a diverse range of sometimes overlooked musical styles and cultures, has landed some hugely important names throughout its history. The likes of Ms Lauryn Hill, The Streets, Ms Dynamite, Kojey Radical, M.I.A. and Cypress Hill have all smashed sets on the stage for 80,000 die-hard music fans.

More than just a music event, many people attend Boomtown for the experience. Described as a “living theatre”, there’s lots to discover in this alternate universe and many zany characters and adventures to get stuck into.

This year the festival is doing things a bit differently. Rather than generate hype by announcing the most sought out and widely adored artists that will be performing, the organisers have decided to keep most of them a secret until we’re closer to the event. A bold move, the organisers believe this allows them to create better, more diverse lineups than ever before.

It’s safe to say we’re on the edge of our seat just dying to find out what legends the festival will book this year. But we’ll have to wait.

Find tickets for Boomtown Fair 2022 – here

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Reading and Leeds Festival

When: 26th – 28th August

Where: Leeds – Bramham Park, Wetherby / Reading – Richfield Avenue Festival Site, Reading

Lineup: Arctic Monkeys, Dave, Megan Thee Stallion, Rage Against The Machine, Halsey, Bring Me The Horizon

R&L is a historic twin event that, in more recent times, has diversified its programme to include a wider scope of genres, including some of the many offshoots of hip hop such as drill, grime and trap.

While only two of the headliners can be considered hip hop, when you look further down the bill, you see artists such as Little Simz, Denzel Curry, Run The Jewels, Polo G, and Jack Harlow. And with more acts soon to be announced, we’ll likely see more unreal hip hop artists grace the stage.

Past lineups have included some huge names such as Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Dizzee Rascal, Cypress Hill, Public Enemy, Post Malone, Stormzy, Doja Cat, Dababy, and AJ Tracey. Not bad for a festival that creates diverse lineups.

Find tickets for Reading Festival 2022 here / Leeds Festival 2022 here

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Primavera Festival

When: 2nd – 12th June

Where: Parc Del Forum, Barcelona

Lineup: Tyler, the Creator, Jorja Smith, Massive Attack, Tame Impala, The Strokes, Gorillaz, Megan Thee Stallion, Beck, Dua Lipa, Pavement, The National, Lorde, Interpol, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Phoenix, Jamie xx, Disclosure

Nearest airport: Barcelona El Prat (BCN)

Another festival with a massively diverse lineup, Primavera Sound Barcelona is one of this year’s biggest festivals. The festival is a massive ten days long and will see some of the biggest artists in the world smash it across 16 stages. It’s going to be colossal.

This year, lucky ticket holders can look forward to Tyler, the Creator, Megan Thee Stallion, Little Simz, Earl Sweatshirt, Slowthai, Ashnikko, M.I.A., Playboi Carti, Khea, Run The Jewels, Burna Boy, Yung Lean, and more. If you’re a hip hop fan who’s open-minded about other genres, Primavera Barcelona will blow you away.

Not only is the festival in an amazing location (who wouldn’t want to go to sunny Barcelona for a festival?) with an insane lineup, but Primavera was the first European festival to create a lineup with a 50:50 gender split. Primavera quite literally has it all.

Find tickets for Primavera Festival Barcelona 2022 – here

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Rolling Loud Portugal

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When: 6th – 8th July

Where: Portimao, Portugal

Lineup: TBA

The festival that calls itself the “worlds largest hip hop festival” will finally arrive in Europe for the first time in 2022. The festival was supposed to touch down on a Portuguese beach last year, but COVID put an end to it before it began.

The festival hasn’t announced who will be raging on stage this year, but last year’s edition was supposed to feature some incredible artists, including A$AP Rocky, Future, Wiz Khalifa, Jack Harlow, Chief Keef, Rico Nasty, Lil Uzi Vert, Gunna, Young M.A, and many more.

With established versions of the festival already in Miami, New York, Los Angeles, we’re certain these hip hop festival veterans will put on a show that’ll knock all others out the park and leave us dying for the next.

Find tickets for Rolling Loud Portugal 2022 – here

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Openair Frauenfeld

When: 6th – 9th July

Where: Frauenfeld, Switzerland

Lineup: TBA

Europe’s biggest, wildest hip hop festival will be back in July 2022 welcomes around 150,000 hip hop loving fans every year. The festival has been running since 1985 and is simply unmissable if you have a passport and love hip hop.

Past lineups have been insanely impressive, including icons such as Outkast, A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, 50 Cent, Run DMC, Kendrick Lamar, Major Lazer, Nicki Minaj, Cypress Hill, Eminem, J. Cole, Mac Miller, Jay-Z, Ice Cube, N.E.R.D… we could go on, but we’ve all got things to do.

If you’re thinking about attending Openair Frauenfeld, expect a brilliant lineup, crazy crowds, and pure fun. As the past two editions had to be cancelled thanks to the virus, we suspect the organisers will pull the best edition the festival has ever seen out of the bag for 2022.

There are plenty of hip hop festivals out there waiting for you to find them in 2022. Whether you prefer trap, drill, old school hip hop, alternative hip hop or a bit of everything, you’re certain to find a festival that’ll blow your mind this year.

In the mood to start planning your summer festival adventure in 2022? Be sure to check out Skiddle’s full festival guide here.

Header Image: Wireless Festival (Facebook)

Check out our What’s On Guide to discover even more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.