Having (controversially) stayed up late for 12pm fireworks (and gone straight to bed after) Sydney’s most hopeful festival goers dusted themselves off, glittered up, and headed straight for The Domain. And needless to say, Field Day’s 18th instalment was an all-star affair.

With local rap outfit Planet Vegeta getting the ball rolling with a high energy set followed by a typically next level performance from Genesis Owusu and his goons early in the day, the promising start to the new decade was backed heavily by Field Day’s big card international acts. Playboi Carti swaggered effortlessly across the main stage while working through his repertoire of hits – of course bringing out Skepta for Lean 4 Real – before the London Grime MC took the stage himself. 

Stepping out in a fitted hat, studded belt, leather pants and his own Nike Shox, Skepta wasted no time warming up the crowd, coming in hot with ‘That’s Not Me’ before touching on tracks from his most recent album Ignorance Is Bliss, and closing with his “theme song”, ‘Greaze Mode’. Up next, Sydney was treated to the full IGOR experience as Tyler, the Creator – dressed in the iconic blue suit, blonde wig getup – gave fans five years worth of performances missed in a single festival set. From statue still to choreographed chaos, a jam on the grand piano and plenty of sing a longs, it was one of the standout moments of the day, and certainly a memory to hold on to for fans of the artist who have had to be (extremely) patient in seeing him live. 

Switching stages as the light faded, Shoreline Mafia brought the heat to their first ever Sydney show – carving through bone shattering production with incisive precision, before throwing an entire stack of event promo posters into the audience. I can’t say for sure but I’m about 98% certain someone took the equivalent of a small phonebook to the jaw as a handful of posters got off and rained down over a bemused but highly entertained crowd. YBN Cordae packed the stage for the next set, with the young OG laying on the best of his 2019 Grammy nominated debut album, ‘The Lost Boy’, and proving he’s got pipes to go along with the half-old-school-half-new-school, fully certified rap credentials. 

Closing the day with late night vibes, Gunna landed hit after hit sending clusters of fans into a hyped frenzy with each drop. Bonus points for asking a security guard in high vis if he worked there just as a segue into saying that it was too hot on stage and that someone was gonna have to take the ‘Top Off’. A perfect end to a great start to the decade, Field Day has left us looking forward to the year ahead, and already with one eye on the countdown for next year’s lineup announcement.