March Madness Music Festival Brings LGBTQ Artists to Space City
Headliners Megan Thee Stallion and Lil Nas X take the stage at Discovery Green.
March Madness is coming to a close, but the party is just getting started at downtown’s Discovery Green. The month-long college basketball competition is the highest-grossing sporting event in the United States, with the men’s division raking in around $1.14 billion in revenue for the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 2022. This season’s revenue should break that record as the tournament concludes with the Men’s Final Four competition at NRG Stadium.
Although No. 1 seed University of Houston fell to Miami on March 26, Space City is still poised to welcome those hometown heroes along with a slate of LGBTQ artists appearing in the March Madness Music Festival March 31 through April 2. Ticket prices to the games have plummeted in the wake of both the Cougars’ loss and the elimination of No. 2 seed University of Texas at Austin from the bracket.
Megan Thee Stallion—the Texas State University graduate, Bayou City native, and three-time Grammy Award winner— will headline the AT&T Block Party at Discovery Green March 31. With three Grammy awards, nine BET Awards, and back-to-back wins for Top Female Rap Artist at the Billboard Music Awards, she made history last November as the first Black woman to appear on the cover of Forbes for its “30 Under 30” issue. The bisexual artist and recognized humanitarian is joined by openly gay musician Omar Apollo (known for his “bedroom soul” sound) and rapper J.I.D.
Lil Nas X, the gay musician behind multiple Billboard Hot 100 hits, will headline Move by Coca-Cola April 1 at Discovery Green. Known for his electric performances, eye-catching fashions, and controversial music videos, Lil Nas X’s queer anthem “Call Me By Your Name (MONTERO)” took over the radio waves in March 2021. He is joined by Maggie Rogers, frequently praised as a queer icon by fans and best known for her song “Alaska.”
Capitol One JamFest on April 2 will feature headliner Tim McGraw, joined by Keith Urban, Little Big Town, and Mickey Guyton.
The Men’s Final Four will bring the Florida Atlantic University, San Diego State University, the University of Miami, and the University of Connecticut men’s teams to Houston April 1. The Women’s Final Four is being hosted concurrently in Dallas, with Virginia Tech University, Louisiana State University, the University of South Carolina, and the University of Iowa making the final cut.
WHAT: March Madness Music Festival
WHERE: Discovery Green
WHEN: March 31-April 2
INFO: ncaa.com/marchmadness/musicfest
