Blending funk, hip-hop, soul, bass, and electronic music into a sound that refuses to stay in one lane, Vincent Antone has carved out a space where live instrumentation and electronic production meet.
That approach made him a natural fit for Same Same But Different Festival 2026, where music, art, community, and the shores of Lake Perris come together for a festival experience that encourages exploration. Returning to SSBD after previously performing at the festival in 2022, Vincent Antone had the honor of breaking in the main stage on Friday night.
Rather than relying entirely on familiar favorites, he used the opportunity to take some risks, test unreleased music, and let the energy of the festival guide the experience.
We caught up with Vincent Antone following his SSBD performance to talk about taking risks on stage, letting songs find their own direction, incorporating live instrumentation into electronic music, lessons in longevity, and what he has coming next.
Taking Risks at Same Same But Different
Moon Lvnding: You just played Same Same But Different — what was that experience like from your side of the stage, and was there a moment from your set that really stood out to you?
Vincent Antone: It was incredible! Had the honor of being the first to break in the main stage on Friday night and the energy did not disappoint. I have a couple records coming out soon and I was testing out some new music to gauge the vibes on the songs and it all went really well. I think there’s an element of risk to that, rather than just sticking with what you know works, but that’s what makes it exciting and worth seeing in my opinion. So I would say the moments with the new songs were my favorite.
Moon Lvnding: SSBD has a pretty unique atmosphere compared to a traditional festival. Did the setting or energy of the crowd change the way you approached your set at all?
Vincent Antone: Yes, SSBD seems like it attracts a more open crowd, which is great because they seem willing to explore new things and musical ideas. They make you feel comfortable and at home. They seem like they are along for the ride of a good time, and open to the experience as a whole rather than looking for one specific thing. That environment is great for an artist because you feel like you can explore ideas musically along with them without all this added pressure of “oh I need to deliver this kind of set, or that kind of thing.” I guess SoCal really is just laid back like that haha. Plus the grounds are absolutely gorgeous!
Letting the Music Lead
That willingness to explore extends beyond Vincent Antone’s live performances. His music pulls from a wide range of influences without forcing each track into a predetermined genre or direction.
Moon Lvnding: Your music pulls from funk, hip-hop, bass, soul, and electronic music. When you’re making something new, how do you decide which direction a track wants to go?
Vincent Antone: I try not to think too much about what kind of track it’s going to be or where it’s going to land. Obviously as it unfolds, the direction starts to be more clear, but I’ve found if you put expectations on a track early on in the process, you start to almost cut your legs out from under you. If it doesn’t turn into what you’re expecting it to, you’ve almost disappointed yourself, rather than letting the art go where it wants to. So I try my best to let the art lead me where it wants to go rather than putting preconceived ideas on to it before it has a chance to really develop.
Bringing Live Instrumentation Into Electronic Music
One of the defining elements of a Vincent Antone performance is the presence of live instrumentation. Rather than treating it as an addition for spectacle alone, Vincent Antone approaches instruments as another tool that has to serve the music.
Moon Lvnding: Live instrumentation is a big part of what separates your performances from a traditional DJ set. How has your live show evolved over the last few years?
Vincent Antone: It’s a constant evolution of just trying to find the right moments for it. Instrumentation in EDM requires a lot of context and at times, restraint. It’s like “how do I tastefully incorporate this thing without having it dominate the sonic space where it doesn’t fit?” Some songs are written with it in mind, and others aren’t. I’ve done everything from solo DJ sets to full live band experiences and they all come with their own unique challenges but above all the only thing that matters is serving the song, because it can be easy to use it as a gimmick where it impresses people on the surface, but in reality its not useful if its not executed properly. The guitar is always with me these days, but I just pick my moments. And every now and again I’ll bust out the full band experience, which is a lot of fun!
Reading the Festival in Real Time
That same balance between preparation and spontaneity carries into Vincent Antone’s festival sets. Instead of locking himself into a rigid plan weeks in advance, he has increasingly allowed the environment itself to influence what makes the final cut.
Moon Lvnding: When you’re playing a festival like SSBD, how much of the set is planned beforehand versus reading the crowd and changing things on the fly?
Vincent Antone: I’ve been doing this thing lately where I don’t even put my set plan together until the day of the festival. If I can, I sometimes arrive a day early to a festival and just try to soak in the vibes of the place and get an understanding of it. In this case, I had played it before in 2022 so I was familiar, but I also got out there early enough Friday to catch this year’s vibe a bit and then go put the show together back in my RV. Figure out what songs are gonna make the cut etc. It’s a nice approach when you can manage it. So typically I’ll have a general plan going in, and then I’ll leave myself a few different ways to shift gears if my plan isn’t landing like it should.
Longevity Comes From Showing Up
Vincent Antone has shared stages and lineups with artists including Pretty Lights, Gramatik, and Opiuo. Beyond musical inspiration, watching artists build lasting careers has reinforced a lesson that can be easy to overlook: longevity comes from continuing to show up.
Moon Lvnding: You’ve played alongside artists like Pretty Lights, Gramatik, and Opiuo. What have you picked up from being around artists and live shows in that world?
Vincent Antone: Mostly that longevity is a product of showing up and doing the work and sticking true to what speaks to you. Everyone you listed is well into their 40s and has been around for a long while now. You only get to that point by giving your life to it and showing up consistently. Even just breaking out, it requires years of dedication to the craft – and simply just not stopping. The difference between those that break through, and those that don’t has way more to do with not giving up than you would think. Probably because it just takes a long time to find your voice and how to speak it.
Where to Start With Vincent Antone
With a catalog that continues to move between different corners of funk, bass, hip-hop, soul, and electronic music, there isn’t necessarily one track that tells the entire Vincent Antone story. For listeners discovering him for the first time at SSBD, however, there is one project he recommends as the starting point.
Moon Lvnding: For someone discovering Vincent Antone for the first time at SSBD, what song or project would you want them to listen to afterward to really understand what you’re about?
Vincent Antone: The first album “Unlimited” is probably a good starting point! Shows all the shades of the colors I’m into, although my sound is continuing to evolve. But yeah other than that, a lot of the singles that have blown up for me stay in my top 10 on Spotify so, it’s easy to comb through there and get an idea of the sounds I’m about haha.
A New Vincent Antone Album Is Coming
SSBD may be wrapped, but Vincent Antone isn’t slowing down. Alongside a seemingly constant touring schedule, he is preparing to enter his next chapter with a new full-length project and another release already waiting behind it.
Moon Lvnding: Now that SSBD is wrapped, what’s next for Vincent Antone? What are you most excited about that fans should have on their radar?
Vincent Antone: I’ve got a new album coming out very soon! Details of that are dropping any day now, and then I have another mixtape/EP type thing following the album that is a bit outside of my regularly scheduled programming that I’m also excited to share! Other than that, you can always catch me on tour, as I’m on the road alllll year every year haha! Cheers!
From testing unreleased tracks on the SSBD main stage to continuing to experiment with the boundaries between electronic production and live instrumentation, Vincent Antone’s approach comes back to a simple idea: give the music room to lead.
With a new album on the horizon, another project already lined up behind it, and plenty more time on the road ahead, the next evolution of Vincent Antone’s sound may be arriving sooner than later.
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