Organizers of the A3C Hip Hop Festival have announced the first round of artists to perform at this year’s event. This March 20-22nd, Del Tha Funkyhomosapien, The Cool Kids, Guilty Simpson, Wale, Blu & Ta’Raach are C.R.A.C., Tanya Morgan, Hangar 18, John Robinson, Binkis Recs, Nobody Famous and DJ Lord of Public Enemy will make up one third of the total lineup.

With thirty three performance slots available, organizers plan to section the announcements into thirds; eleven at a time.

“It’s an unbelievably diverse and exciting lineup from our standpoint,” festival founder Brian Knott stated in response to the lineup announcement. “We’ve confirmed some of the hottest new artists around right now like The Cool Kids and Wale with staples in the Hip Hop world like, Del who has a huge following.”

Moving into the fourth annual A3C, the caliber of artists for 2008 reflects the festivals growth from years past. Artists like The Cool Kids who just came off tour opening for international phenomenon, M.I.A. along with Wale who was discovered by Mark Ronson, the producer behind Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse’s albums, will add an incredibly relevant aspect to the festival.

Knott, along with organizing partners, have been working to further establish the festival as an event which showcases some of the most noteworthy up-and-comers paired with the most relevant established artists in the Hip Hop world. The results vary. For the fans, it is a Hip Hop heaven verging on sensory overload. For the industry and press, the A3C serves as a looking glass into the who’s who as well as a nod to those artists that may be marked as next to blow.

Acts like Blu & Ta’Raach, both LA based artists, have recently joined together to form the group C.R.A.C. Both respected for their individual work previously, there has been buzz building behind the collaboration of these two young artists breathing life into the genre many claim is dead. And much in the same vein, Detroit based MC, Guilty Simpson of Stones Throw Records, has taken an older model of rap adding his own revitalizing twist, ultimately coming across fresh and upgraded.

Having grown into the Southeast’s largest Hip Hop festival and actively claiming the South as their own backyard, Knott and his crew have created a significant event on a national level. The meaning behind the alphabetical and numerical acronym has come to be known as ‘all three coasts’ and with artists coming in from all over the map, the A3C is breaking down the boundaries between walls of geography by showcasing the ultimate melting pot of Hip Hop music today.