In a world where we are constantly surrounded by negativity, individuals were able to escape for a weekend of sheer beauty. Life is Beautiful Music & Art Festival (LIB) was held September 25-27th in Las Vegas!

LIB, now in its third year, set the bar high after its remarkable lineup last year which consisted of acts such as: Foo Fighters, Artic Monkeys, The Weeknd, Outkast, Lionel Richie, and more;however, they have managed to come out on top. 

This years artists included: New Politics, Weezer, Glass Animals, Imagine Dragons, Duran Duran, Soja, Big Data, Miics, Stevie Wonder, X Ambassadors, Saint Motel, Brandon Flowers, Death Cab for Cutie, Walk the Moon and more. 

The first day of the festival seemed very telling. On the learning stage guests  were able to check out what Bill Nye the Science Guy had to say! Following, he joined electronic house DJ, Discovery Project, on the Troubadour Stage (LIB's newest addition). Other acts from day one that stood out were of course the high energy group Twenty One Pilots, Hozier, and one of LA's top acts of summer-X Ambassadors. It's difficult not to love the festival after being serenaded by the undeniably talented Stevie Wonder, who closed the night!

Day two of the festival felt geared towards adults in their late 20s. Throughout the day it seemed as if artists not only performed top tracks but also took it back to favorite oldies. The evening shifted as soon as Glass Animals took the stage. The UK  group displayed their unique sound on stage. Glass Animals are unconventional, interesting, eclectic, yet effortlessly smooth and mesmerizing sound and stage presence that has seemed to be missing from todays' "popular" music. Singles such as, "Black Mambo" and "Gooey", had quickly put this group on the radar and trust me, they aren't going anywhere. 

Snoop Dogg, a classic, performed favorites and oldies towards the end of the night. Snoop played hits such as "Gin and Juice" "Ain't No Fun" and even his own spin on Akon's "F*** You" which got the crowd hyped. Las Vegas natives, Imagine Dragons, payed homage to their hometown, which brought the festival together. Their gratitude and love for the craft was difficult to miss as you could tell on that stage was exactly where they wanted to be. “I can’t tell you how good it feels to be home in Las Vegas,” Dragons front man Dan Reynolds said during their set. Top hits such as, "I Bet My Life", "On Top of The World", and even a cover of The Proclaimers', "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" served as a great high energy set.

The last and final day of the festival was a great one. Los Angeles natives and indie rocker band Saint Motel took the stage early on! The group of course played their #1 song of summer (Alt Nation/Sirius XM), "Just My Type" which consists of exuberant high energy beats. Just having seen them at smaller venues locally, to playing at The Wiltern, Coachella and now Life is Beautiful, their journey has been a sky rocket of progress this past year alone.  Walk the Moon played early in the evening. Favorites such as "Shut Up and Dance" had the crowd dancing and going crazy! 

Brandon Flowers, frontman of The Killers, rolled through a set of his solo material. Songs such as, "Still Want You" and "Crossfire" were played, however, not before long he was joined by his other bandmates which made his set a full blown 'Killer' set! Brandon Flowers knows how to entertain the crowd but the crowd managed to get even more amped once everyone gathered on the stage.  "Mr. Brightside" and "When You Were Young" were played before closing out this surprise appearance.

In the evening Weezer performed alongside fellow LIB performers Best Coast on the downtown stage. You can just about bet that any set Weezer performs is a 'safe' set. While they have been performing for years their sets are very good but also very predictable. The interesting thing  is songs such as "Say It Ain't So" and the poignant "Undone – The Sweater Song," have held up and have proven to become more and more popular over time. Although performing hits that are nearly two decades old, Weezer does still have a good stage presence and power as a group that is subtle but is clearly enough to garnish attention without being overbearing. 

Last but certainly not least was Kendrick Lamar! It was an incredible way to close out the festival with his 90-minute long set which was geared towards his older material. Many have expressed their doubt with Kendrick Lamar, his choice of songs, and may have expected 'more' from his sophomore album To Pimp A Butterfly. Although Kendrick did delve into deeper thought provoking songs such as "The Art of Peer Pressure" and the first half of "Sing About Me, I'm Dying Of Thirst" I strongly believe that this has only shown that not all acts need to be hard hitting club bangers, but can also show a deeper side where guests can actually become intrigued both melodically and lyrically.

Other notable facts from Life Is Beautiful:

·         Actor and Director, Justin Baldoni surprised a young girl on stage named Claire Wineland, who is diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis, by gifting 15 minutes of his speaking time to allow her to deliver an inspirational speech. It has been Claire's dream to be a public speaker.

·         Noted French chef, Hubert Keller offered a full culinary demonstration of his ultimate Fleur hamburger!

·         Vampire Diaries actress, Kat Graham performed her new album at The Downtown Container Park

·         Actress Rosario Dawson spoke on stage in front of a crowded room about life challenges and obstacles at the Learning Series. 

·         The interactive art installation welcomed murals painted by international street artists  D*face and also featured Banksy’s New York delivery truck, which made its Las Vegas debut at the festival

·         Food Network’s own pastry chef, Duff Goldman participated in the culinary demonstrations offering festivalgoers tip and tricks to his craft

Among the over 90,000 festival attendees were a few Hollywood favorites such as: Vanessa Hudgens, Emily Osment, Emmanuelle Chriqui. 

With the intention of spreading positivity and ultimately the significant message that YOU are beautiful, the three-day festival served as the perfect oasis to come together and reset. The perfect opportunity to reflect and if nothing other than this weekend, truly understand that we, together, all do have a  common denominator that undeniably brings people together-MUSIC. 

Till next year festival-goers- STAY BEAUTIFUL!