Kendrick Lamar collab partner Mustard is a Tao Group success story
Tao Group Hospitality is proud of catching electronic music headliners on the rise. Mustard is a prominent, and current example. So current, that the producer/DJ born Dijon Isaiah McFarlane is on stage Allegiant Stadium tonight, special guest of headliner Kendrick Lamar and joining SZA on the powerhouse bill.
A little more than eight years ago, Mustard (previously known as DJ Mustard) premiered at Marquee Dayclub at The Cosmopolitan. He has headlined the venue’s nightclub and dayclub ever since, most recently last July 4 weekend.
Within a year, the performer catapulted to a Super Bowl LIX appearance with current tourmates Lamar and Sza.
“We were the first to really double down on a residency with him,” Tao Hospitality Group co-CEO Jason Strauss says. “Then this year, he performed at the Super Bowl. There are things that we’re prospecting right.”
Mustard vaulted to international fame largely after contributing to the production of Lamar’s “diss” track, “Not Like Us,” central to the Lamar-Drake feud. Mustard leapt into Lamar’s buzz-generating performance of the song during the Super Bowl halftime show.
The DJ artist, who turns 35 next week, is among several headliners Tao Group has identified and signed early in their careers.
The nightlife company signed Diplo and Zedd for their first Las Vegas nightclub shows, at Marquee at The Cosmopolitan, in 2011. DJ Fisher has been a Tao Group resident headliner, starting in 2021 at Tao Beach and Omnia Nightclub. The company showcased Calvin Harris at its Lavo Nightclub in 2011, four years before Harris premiered at Electric Daisy Carnival.
“We were booking him for a fee that couldn’t even be imagined in this day and age,” Strauss says.
Tao Group hosts Mustard’s after-party tonight at Hakkasan Nightclub at MGM Grand. He is not booked to play a Vegas nightclub during the tour, which heads overseas after its North American dates and closes in Australia in December.
The company says they want Mustard back in their clubs, post-tour. As a rep says in a statement, “Tao Group has a longstanding relationship with Mustard and his management team, and are thrilled he had this opportunity for a major tour and look forward to working with him in the future.”
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.
GRAND NATIONAL TOUR DATES
Remaining shows through the summer on Kendrick Lamar's "Grand National Tour," with special guests Mustard and Sza:
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Jun 04 - St. Louis, MO - The Dome at America's Center
Jun 06 - Chicago, IL - Soldier Field
Jun 10 - Detroit, MI - Ford Field
Jun 12 - Toronto, ON - Rogers Centre
Jun 13 - Toronto, ON - Rogers Centre
Jun 16 - Hershey, PA - Hersheypark Stadium
Jun 18 - Washington, DC - Northwest Stadium
Jul 02 – Cologne, Germany – RheinEnergieSTADION
Jul 04 – Frankfurt, Germany – Deutsche Bank Park
Jul 05 – Frankfurt, Germany – Deutsche Bank Park
Jul 08 – Glasgow, UK – Hampden Park
Jul 10 – Birmingham, UK – Villa Park
Jul 13 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Johan Cruijff ArenA
Jul 15 – Paris, France – Paris La Défense Arena
Jul 16 – Paris, France – Paris La Défense Arena
Jul 19 – Cardiff, UK – Principality Stadium
Jul 22 – London, UK – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Jul 23 – London, UK – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Jul 27 – Lisbon, Portugal – Estadio do Restelo
Jul 30 – Barcelona, Spain – Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys
Aug 02 – Rome, Italy – Stadio Olimpico
Aug 06 – Warsaw, Poland – PGE Narodowy
Aug 09 – Stockholm, Sweden – 3Arena
