Rapper goes from Macklemore’s ‘Corner Store’ to Everett fest

During a breakout year in 2017, Travis Thompson went from living paycheck to paycheck to playing sold-out shows on tour with Macklemore.

The Burien rapper’s featured hook on Macklemore’s “Corner Store” earned him an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and a record deal with Epic Records.

You can see Thompson this weekend in Everett, where the 22-year-old co-headlines the Fisherman’s Village Music Festival with Canadian indie-rock band Wolf Parade.

“It’ll be my first time headlining a festival,” said Thompson, who performs Friday night on the main stage. “It’s gonna be tiring because giving people the fun stuff for an hour is gonna be tough on my chubby body, but it’s gonna be great.”

Thompson and Wolf Parade, playing Saturday on the main stage near Scuttlebutt Taproom & Brewery, lead an eclectic lineup of more than 50 local, regional and national acts performing at the three-day festival May 16-18.

Performances will be held at Black Lab Gallery, Schack Art Center, Narrative Coffee and Scuttlebutt Taproom & Brewery. There also will be two outdoor stages on Cedar and 33rd streets.

This year’s event, organized by Everett Music Initiative, is expected to draw more than 5,000 people and features more local acts than ever before.

Listen to everything from punk rock by Georgia’s The Coathangers and the new-wave grooves of Oklahoma band BRONCHO to the moody electronic melodies of Everett’s I Will Keep Your Ghost and touches of blues and country from Snohomish folk-rock band Fretland.

The diverse music, as well as the focus on local acts, is meant to drive home EMI’s promise of delivering a festival for everyone.

“Our goal is to really stay away from genre stereotypes or conversations,” said Ryan Crowther, founder of the festival and EMI. “Every year is really a big mix of music.”

Thompson is considered to be one of the rising voices in hip-hop. His verbal dexterity, a blend of melodic and nasal rapping, combined with his producers’ bass-heavy beats, have garnered millions of streams on YouTube and Spotify with songs such as “Need You,” “Father Forgive Me” and “Horchata.”

His music caught the attention of Seattle rapper Macklemore, who set up a time to meet at his studio in 2017. That led to “Corner Store,” which has racked up more than 31 million streams on YouTube and was built around a hook Thompson wrote just before recording — a huge confidence boost for the young artist.

Thompson later joined Macklemore for a handful of shows on the U.S. leg of his Gemini World Tour. He continues to book headlining shows or perform in support of big-name rappers.

Thompson said his set at Fisherman’s will include most of his hits, as well as tunes from a yet-to-be-named album releasing later this year.

It’s not often he gets to play a festival so close to home.

“I’ve never played Everett before, but we have a strong fanbase north of Seattle, so I’m excited,” he said.

There will be a special focus on local acts at one of the festival’s newest attractions: the Night Market. The free street fair on 33rd and Cedar streets will include an outdoor stage, food trucks, a beer garden and more than 40 art vendors.

Seven local acts will play on the Night Market’s stage: The Moon is Flat, Narrow Tarot, Steel Beans, Clothing Optional, Killinsworth of Everett, Lynnwood School of Rock and Shoecraft of Snohomish.

Everett’s The Moon is Flat, playing at 9 p.m. Friday, was formed by vocalist and guitarist Kirk Rutherford and drummer Thys Ferwerda in 2015. They released their first album, “The Good Trip,” in 2017 on Soniphone Records, an Everett record label started by the band’s keyboardist, Kyle Ledford.

The band has played neo-psychedelic rock at four of the past six Fisherman Fests. Rutherford, 31, of Lake Stevens, said the Night Market is another way to give local acts a well-deserved spotlight.

“It’s going to be this great opportunity for bands who have been around the scene forever or new up-and-coming acts,” he said. “I’m sure every place has really killer bands, but there a lot of really talented bands in this area.”

Wolf Parade, performing as a trio after longtime guitarist Dante DaCaro left the band in February, were one of the most popular indie-rock bands of the mid-2000s. Their mix of glam, progressive rock and synth-rock led to acclaimed releases in 2008 (“At Mount Zoomer”) and 2010 (“Expo 86). In 2017, after a five-year hiatus, they released “Cry Cry Cry,” which features a new energetic sound.

Evan Thompson: 425-339-3427, ethompson@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @ByEvanThompson.

If you go

This year’s Fisherman’s Village Music Festival is May 16-18 in Everett. The May 16 shows will be at Black Lab Gallery, Narrative Coffee and Schack Art Center. On May 17 and 18, the festival continues on 33rd and Cedar streets and the Scuttlebutt Taproom & Brewery nearby.

The Night Market is from 4 to 10 p.m. May 17 and noon to 10 p.m. May 18 and will feature more than 40 art vendors, seven food trucks, a beer garden and 15 bands performing on an outdoor stage.

Tickets, $79 each for three full days of live music, can be purchased online at www.everettmusicinitiative.org and www.thefishermansvillage.com.

Fisherman’s Village Music Festival

THURSDAY

Black Lab Gallery, 1618 Hewitt Ave.

7:45 p.m. — King Mammoth

8:30 p.m. — Oliver Elf Army

9:15 p.m. — Sleepover Club

10 p.m. — Wimps

Narrative Coffee, 2927 Wetmore Ave.

6:45 p.m. — Sylvi

7:45 p.m. — Super Sparkle

8:45 p.m. — Valley Maker

Schack Art Center, 2921 Hoyt Ave.

6 p.m. — The Porters

7 p.m. — Molly Parden

8 p.m. — Laura Veirs

FRIDAY

Main Stage, Cedar Street

5:45 p.m. — Tellers

7 p.m. — I Will Keep Your Ghost

8:15 p.m. — Geographer

9:30 p.m. — Travis Thompson

Scuttlebutt Taproom & Brewery, 3314 Cedar St.

5 p.m. — goawaysun

6:15 p.m. — Ashley Eriksson’s Disco Project

7:30 p.m. — Moaning

8:45 p.m. — Chong the Nomad

10 p.m. — Omni

11 p.m. — Bells Atlas

12 a.m. — Parisalexa

Night Market, 33rd and Cedar streets

4 p.m. — Killinsworth

5 p.m. — Shoecraft

6 p.m. — OCEANWIRES

7 p.m. — Actionesse

8 p.m. — Weep Wave

9 p.m. — The Moon is Flat

SATURDAY

Main Stage

2 p.m. — Black Belt Eagle Scout

3:15 p.m. — Fretland

4:30 p.m. — Death Valley Girls

5:45 p.m. — Pickwick

7 p.m. — The Coathangers

8:15 p.m. — BRONCHO

9:30 p.m. — Wolf Parade

Scuttlebutt Taproom & Brewery

1:15 p.m. — Izaac Mellow

2:30 p.m. — Bad Optics

3:45 p.m. — Tissue

5 p.m. — Fuzz Mutt

6:15 p.m. — Tilson XOXO

7:30 p.m. — Spooky Mansion

8:45 p.m. — Sloucher

10 p.m. — Frankie & The Witch Fingers

11 p.m. — Lithics

12 a.m. — Dick Stusso

Night Market

1 p.m. — Lynnwood School of Rock

2 p.m. — Clothing Optional

3 p.m. — Have Patience

4 p.m. — Narrow Tarot

5 p.m. — Wildcat Click

6 p.m. — Steel Beans

7 p.m. — Warren Dunes

8 p.m. — Little Wins

9 p.m. — SPHYRAMID