SETTING OUT TO BECOME THE GREATEST LIFESTYLE BRAND OF THE HIP-HOP WORLD, MIAMI-BASED CO-FOUNDERS MATT ZINGLER AND TARIQ CHERIF SPEAK ON ROLLING LOUD’S GLOBAL APPEAL AND THE UPCOMING MIAMI CONCERT.

Rolling Loud co-founders and co-CEOs Matt Zingler and Tariq Cherif. PHOTO: BY SMITH DUROGENE/COURTESY OF ROLLING LOUD, LLC

In 2015, childhood friends (and Miami boys) Matt Zingler (@mattzingler) and Tariq Cherif (@tariqcherif) presented what would soon become known as the greatest hip-hop festival of all time—Rolling Loud. Debuting it in their home city, Miami, the pair used their expertise in planning and promoting parties as well as their love and appreciation for music to create a lineup that featured musical acts like Schoolboy Q, Juicy J, Currensy and Action Bronson at Soho Studios in Wynwood.

Atmosphere at Rolling Loud Miami PHOTO: COURTESY OF ROLLING LOUD, LLC

Since then, the festival has continued to grow each year, transforming from beyond a music festival into a full lifestyle experience that extends outside the shows and performances. With festivals in Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Portugal, Netherlands and Toronto with more locations in the works, the appeal extends on an international level, bringing music and culture lovers together for an all-encompassing lifestyle event.

This year, the entrepreneurs and the Rolling Loud crew present an A-list lineup for the epic Miami concert at Hard Rock Stadium with headliners Kanye West, Future and Kendrick Lamar.

“We’re super excited for these headliners—we have Kendrick on the heels of a brand-new album that is critically acclaimed and commercially crushing; Future, who always gives an incredible performance; and Kanye West, who is a legend and a genius and all types of wizard,” Cherif comments. “And of course the lineup is a stack of up-and-coming talent as well as superstars. We’ve also got Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Lil Baby, Ski Mask the Slump God—all types of artists. It’s really the only place where you can see all the rappers at once, and we’re really proud to be able to do this in Miami.”

Looking at where the entrepreneurs started and what Rolling Loud has grown into today, it’s truly an anomaly.

Cherif and Zingler on-site at the festival PHOTO: BY MICKEY PIERRE LOUIS @ITCHYEYEPHOTOS/COURTESY OF ROLLING LOUD, LLC

“For our first show in Wynwood, the capacity was maybe like 5,000 people or so,” explains Zingler. “And the following year, we went to Mana Wynwood, where we activated open air, which was the parking lot. We had about 13,000 to 15,000 people per day. Then we moved to Bayfront Park, where we got to a capacity of 50,000 people. And now, we’re at Hard Rock, where we can have around 70,000 people per day for three days. There’s been exponential growth.

“But also with that, we’ve been able to tailor the experience to create unique activations on-site and really create our own world within Rolling Loud for fans to experience more than music. We have everything you can think of—skate parks, basketball courts, lounges, unique food items, carnival rides, cereal bars, barber shops, tattoo parlors—the list goes on.”

With the goal in mind to become the Disney of hip-hop, they continue to deliver on that front each year with new surprises and rollouts.

“We’re touching all aspects of the entertainment business, from Rolling Loud Records to producing music with artists and film. Our merchandising continues to expand, and we have large collaborations with Urban Outfitters and Levi’s. We’re also doing a lot of work with other brands and collaborations in the merchandising realm, like Billionaire Boys Club. And then on top of that, we have Rolling Loud Eats, which is a bunch of our concepts for collectibles and snacks, cereals, chips, sodas, etc. There’s so much we can do with Rolling Loud as a brand,” says Zingler.

Swae Lee performing onstage at Rolling Loud Miami. PHOTO: BY HENRYHWU/COURTESY OF ROLLING LOUD, LLC

“In one word, we want to be the Disney of hip-hop,” Cherif continues. “Disney is a film production, it’s a streaming platform, it’s a theme park—which is like their version of our festivals with a very real-life experience activated with merchandise, allowing you to fall in love with the youth. We’re also putting out NFTs—the opportunities are endless.”

While many businesses—particularly those in the live entertainment sphere—got hit hard during the pandemic, Rolling Loud miraculously thrived during the time off, using the opportunity to recalibrate the business and grow the team.

“We were always on the fast track and we didn’t have time to do a lot of other things that would amplify the brand because we were always on tour,” Zingler recalls. “So the downtime helped us. A lot of people got fired; we didn’t fire any of our employees. We actually hired during the pandemic. We didn’t reduce salaries; we increased them. We’re a very family-oriented company, and when times get tough, you know you’re with us and we have your back. That was a big accomplishment for us to be able to come out of and how we have been able to offset our overhead without our main source of revenue, which was previously our festivals.”

While running a business with your friend is oftentimes difficult, Zingler and Cherif seem to have mastered the challenge by each focusing on their own areas of expertise. And through this, they’ve each come to find their favorite elements of the job, and moments in Rolling Loud history thus far.

“My favorite part is the curation of the actual lineup. It’s exciting to see what we can create. I also love amplifying the on-site experience for the user—just the little things, from how you receive your tickets in the mail to what the credentials will look like because a lot of people save those. Of course, the creation of merchandise is something I’m really passionate about as well—there’s nothing better than people actually wearing the things you created because it gives you the validation that you did something right,” shares Zingler.

“For me, it’s the moment where you look around at the crowd once everything is going and really take in what we’ve put together,” says Cherif. “Putting smiles on people’s faces is one of the greatest feelings in the world, and the fact that we get to do that for a living is incredible. It can be super stressful for us, but those little moments when you look out and see all the energy come together makes it all worth it.” Rolling Loud Miami takes place July 22-24, rollingloud.com; 347 Don Shula Drive, Miami Gardens, @rollingloud