After the party: three to follow from Made In America

As the dust settles on the experiment that was the Made In America Festival in Grand Park in Downtown Los Angeles, it’s time to take a look in the giant streaming obelisk that united Philadelphia and Los Angeles to figure out what we learned. Kendrick Lamar and Kanye West won nights one and two respectively and weed was as omnipresent as the American flag. However, if you couldn’t make it out on the long Labor Day weekend (or can’t remember what you saw) here are three artists who will soon be headlining festivals near you.

Rita Ora

Though she already has a supporting role in Iggy Azalea’s smash hit, “Black Widow,“ Rita Ora established her star potential in her solo live debut Sunday afternoon. Signed by Jay-Z’s label Roc-Nation in 2009, her first album “Ora” was not released until 2012 and only hit shelves in the United Kingdom. Her forthcoming United States debut will not be released until early 2015. However, if her first single off of the new album “I Will Never Let You Down” and her appearance on “Black Widow” are any indication, Ora will be proof of the old canard about patience and virtues. Don’t be surprised if next year’s song of the summer is one of hers.

ZZ Ward

Ariana Grande and Jessie J step back, there is a new big belting woman in music and she actually happens to have soul. ZZ Ward is the roots rock siren who kicked the first day into high gear after a lack luster performance by Hit Boy and his Hits ‘Since ’87 label and injected a whole lot of blues into a rock and rap heavy line up. The Pennsylvania native made her festival debuts at Coachella and Bonnaroo this year and opened for Eric Clapton earlier this year. Her songs have been Hollywood favorites as “Last Love Song” and “’Till The Casket Drops,” both off of her 2012 album “’Till The Casket Drops” were featured on promos for ABC Family’s “Pretty Little Liars.” It won’t be long until Ward goes from being a Hollywood secret to a Top 40 star.

Scavenger Hunt

With every alt rock band attempting to find an ethereal, airy sound (see “Ghost Stories”, Coldplay, “Turn Blue”, Black Keys et.al) it is exciting to find a band that can weave the seemingly disparate ethos of electro pop and alt-rock. Scavenger Hunt will soon be your girlfriend’s favorite band (this week) and their singles “Dreamers” and “Boys Like You and Girls Like Me” will be the soundtrack to every nouveaux-romantic’s fantasy weekend. However, composer Dan Mufson’s arrangements are grounded and have enough kick to them that boyfriends will not have to suffer through another song that sounds like a lot of nothing and lead signer Jill Lamoureux’s smoky yet smooth voice and effervescent stage presence has all the makings of a breakout artist in the years to come.