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Singer Tyler Joseph of Twenty One Pilots during day two of last year's Life Is Beautiful festival. photography by Filmmagic/Filmmagic Market Center and Caesars Palace. The event takes place from 1 pm to midnight all three days. Suffice to say, Life can be as overwhelming as it is beautiful, which is why that third day was added this year. "We can't emphasize enough how important it is to plan," Choudhry says. "It's not like a festival like Coachella or Lollapalooza, which are almost entirely about music, where food is just for sustenance, the drinks are so you can get drunk, and the art exhibits are where you find shade. We have a fundamentally different approach." We'll break them down: Life Is Music More than 70 acts will perform on the festival's four stages, including the main one, the Downtown Stage, which can accommodate about 25,000 people standing. That's where you'll find most of the star headliners. The smaller stages—the Ambassador Stage, Huntridge Stage, and Western Stage (at the hotel-casino of the same name)—will be busy with acts throughout the event and are not tied to a particular genre (there is no "EDM stage," for example). "We're spreading talent across the footprint a lot better than we did last year," Choudhry says. "Last year the main stage was rock-heavy; the Ambassador was more hip-hop. We're trying to balance this in a way that gives people choices, and yeah, some tough decisions." Kanye West toured the Downtown area last year, and Lionel Richie has been a favorite of Choudhry's since he was a kid. Panic! At the Disco, a Vegas favorite, is returning to the city for the first time in about five years. The organizers promise that the Philharmonic performance will be mind- blowing, similar to last year's set by Imagine Dragons featuring performers from Cirque's Mystère. "Tyco, Trampled by Turtles, and The Head and the Heart are some of the new acts we're excited about," says Craig Nyman, the festival's head of music. "We have Kacey Musgraves, our first country artist, this year. There is something for everybody." Life Is Food Unlike last year's central (and, some said, hard-to- find) culinary village, the food this year will be located throughout Life Is Beautiful, particularly at the four music stages. The cuisine of some of Las Vegas's top restau- rants will be available. "We're going with highbrow to comfort food," says Choudhry. "Everything from Nobu, Blue Ribbon, Brooklyn Bowl, Nacho Daddy—each stage area has a heavily curated experience." The two primary dining locations will be the "We're spreading talent better than last year, trying to balance this in a Way that gives people choices, and yeah, soMe tough decisions." —rehan choudhry 52  vegasmagazine.com CULTURE Hottest Ticket

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