Here is a picture of Girl Talk in a lifeboat.

The Sweetlife Festival—as we noticed when it announced its headliner, The Strokes—got pretty big this year. But how big? Judge for yourself. Here's the rest of the lineup, which I have from a source close to the festival, and which should be officially announced later today:

• Girl Talk
• Lupe Fiasco
• Crystal Castles
• Cold War Kids
• Ra Ra Riot
• Theophilus London
• Walk the Moon
• U.S. Royalty
• Modern Man

Pretty big step up for organizers sweetgreen, huh? Last year's festival took place in the Dupont neighborhood. This year's is at Merriweather Post Pavillion on May 1 from 1 to 11 p.m., and tickets are $55. If you feel bad missing out on your usual May Day activities—reading Mao's Little Red Book, doing union-y things—there are all sorts of "hip and eco-conscious" aspects to the fest, all of which is detailed in the press release pasted below. It also tells you about the pre-sale scheduled for tomorrow.

As for the bands? I initially saw this as a competitor to the annual Virgin Mobile Freefest, also at the I.M.P.-booked Merriweather. But overall, Sweetlife's bookings might be a bit more middle-of-the-road. Nothing too out there, nothing too hip. Theophilus London is probably the wild card here.

THE STROKES, GIRL TALK, LUPE FIASCO, AND CRYSTAL CASTLES TO PLAY SWEETGREEN’S SWEETLIFE FESTIVAL MAY 1st AT MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILION

The Creators of Sustainable Eatery sweetgreen Unveil Lineup for Annual Sweetlife Festival, With Cold War Kids,
Ra Ra Riot, Theophilus London, Walk the Moon, US Royalty and Modern Man in a Full Day of Eco-Conscious Events and Programming

Washington – March 14th, 2011– sweetgreen (www.sweetgreen.com), known for its network of sustainable eateries throughout the northeast, today announced the lineup for its annual Sweetlife Festival, featuring The Strokes as headliner, plus Girl Talk, Lupe Fiasco, Crystal Castles, Cold War Kids, Ra Ra Riot, Theophilus London and Walk the Moon. Local favorites US Royalty and Modern Man will also perform. The festival is scheduled for Sunday, May 1st at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD from 1pm to 11pm. Visit www.Sweetlifefestival.com now to sign up for the presale scheduled for Wednesday, March 16th. Tickets for the all-ages festival go on sale to the general public for $55 on Friday, March 18th.

In addition to presenting a day of renowned musical talent, sweetgreen will also work with multiple partners to curate experiences throughout the festival grounds that extend sweetgreen’s hip and eco-conscious ethos from the table to all facets of the Sweetlife. Sweetlife Festival will feature a host of exciting programs for the entire family, including:

• Food. Natural, organic and local concessions will be provided by sweetgreen, Applegate Farms, Honest Tea, Stonyfield Farm and Keany Produce.
• Social. The Sweetlife Festival will push the boundaries of what is possible when you combine interactive digital + social platforms with a large crowd of fans, by joining with partners – such as Hipstamatic and Fast Society- to create innovative activations at the festival.
• Energy. Through a human-energy activation provided by OPOWER, the Sweetlife Festival will calculate its carbon footprint and offset it to create a carbon neutral event.

Unlike traditional music festivals, at the Sweetlife Festival fans will also have the opportunity to purchase not only traditional concessions and sweetgreen products, but they will also be able to visit an on-site farmers market, featuring produce and snacks from the region’s local growers.

Sweetlife Festival is an annual celebration of music, wholesome food, and thoughtful living, hosted by sweetgreen and located directly between Washington DC and Baltimore where fans of music and sustainability can experience the forefront of both cultural movements in one interactive environment. As an extension of the brand’s commitment to sourcing seasonal, local food for each of its locations in Washington and Philadelphia and promoting healthy, sustainable living, sweetgreen is partnering with the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation, which was established to fight obesity and promote better dietary health through food education and cooking skills. A portion of the festival’s proceeds will be donated to the celebrity chefʼs foundation.

Known throughout the Beltway for its eco-friendly eateries that feature locally sourced ingredients, wholesome and flavorful food and sustainable business practices, sweetgreen is changing the way America thinks about quick eats. The Sweetlife is a lifestyle extension of the brand that allows it to identify with the people who embody its core principles, educating customers while rewarding them living the “Sweetlife”. The Sweetlife Festival brings all of the ingredients to a healthy lifestyle together in one event.

“This festival is bringing us one step closer to realizing our vision for the ‘sweetlife’,” said Jonathan Neman, co-founder of sweetgreen with Nathaniel Ru and Nicolas Jammet. “We’re excited to bring an event like this to Washington DC, and to bring together two of the most important aspects of the sweetlife: sustainable food and live music. This year’s Sweetlife Festival is a huge leap from last year—from the days DJing block parties in the parking lot of our Dupont Circle sweetgreen location to now being at one of the most legendary venues in the country, not to mention with one of our favorite bands of all time.”

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About Sweetgreen
Based in Washington DC and founded by Georgetown graduates Nicolas Jammet, Jonathan Neman and Nathaniel Ru in 2007, sweetgreen makes eating healthy food both simple and tasty. Offering a menu of fresh, sustainable eats in an eco-friendly dining environment, the forward-thinking trio of entrepreneurs at sweetgreen is redefining the concept of fresh-casual cuisine. sweetgreen serves up its signature and classic salads and frozen yogurt with seasonal ingredients sourced from local farms. Committed to sustainability in all areas, sweetgreen provides an enlightened workplace for its employees as well. For more information, visit www.sweetgreen.com.

Editor's note: We would've had this up yesterday, but due to an apocalyptic spike in traffic, uploading this many photos was impossible. Apologies!

Gregg Gillis, aka Girl Talk, brought his laptop, his mashed-up songs, and his crowd props to the sold out 9:30 Club Tuesday. More of a massive performance-art piece than a concert, this traveling dance party rained confetti, streamers, and balloons down on the masses, while Gillis, acting as head cheerleader, controlled his electronic samples from the stage.

(The rest of the photos from the set can be seen here.)

Gregg Gillis

Here's the Girl Talk mashup (Wale comes in at 3:58; Fugazi enters at 5:25):

LISTEN: Girl Talk – Let It Out

Source material after the jump:

Wale:

A deeply disconcerting take on Fugazi's classic:

(via)

Nathan Grossman at the GWHatchet.com is reporting that George Washington University has canceled next week's Fall Fest appearance by mashup champion Girl Talk. Apparently there were concerns over security and on-stage antics. No word on a replacement act or legal ramifications:

the University cited security and safety issues as one of the reasons for pulling out of the deal. He said GW officials wanted a barricade in front of the crowd to prevent audience members from getting up on stage, a common activity at Girl Talk concerts.