A recent thread on r/electricforest lit up with fans naming their dream returns for Electric Forest 2026 — a mix of electronic tastemakers, jam-band favorites and a few curveballs. The original poster laid out a clear top five and the community piled on with hopeful shoutouts, wishlist names and the usual festival-grade shitposting energy.
Here’s the core wishlist from the thread:
- Pretty Lights — Fans called for a return to the Forest’s late-night magic, hoping for the lush, sample-driven live sets that made PL a festival staple.
- GRiZ — Soulful sax, heavy funk and a big live band vibe: crowd favorites want GRiZ back for those feel-good high-energy sets.
- Goose — Jam-room chemistry meets festival scale — the band’s loyal following would love a full Forest weekend presence.
- Porter Robinson — A generational electronic artist whose emotional, cinematic shows fit perfectly with Forest’s immersive stages.
- Worship — Listed in the original post — fans were divided on whether this was a band name, a set-type, or a bit of playful meme energy. Either way, it caught people’s attention.
Replies ran the gamut. Some fans pleaded for ODESZA for “mental health reasons,” others threw out heavy hitters like Skrillex and Subtronics, while a cluster of commenters hoped for more melodic bass and psy-electronic names — CloZee, Gramatik, Rezz and Kai Wachi showed up in the thread alongside festival-friendly DJs like Walker & Royce and Illenium.
Notable fan shoutouts:
- Rezz — following a new album and recent touring, fans want her portal returns to the Forest.
- Above & Beyond — some missed their recent tour dates and are optimistic they’ll swing through Forest.
- Walker & Royce, Illenium, Hyperbeam (Odd Mob & Omnom) — suggested as likely fits for next summer’s circuit.
- CloZee, Gramatik, Subtronics, Kai Wachi, Alison Wonderland — frequent fan picks for bass-heavy stages.
- Sammy Virji, Hamdi Observatory & local favorites — representatives of the on-the-ground, community-first voices from attendees.
Tonally, the thread was equal parts hopeful and meme-ready — one commenter summed it up with a long, enthusiastic “Cheeeeeeeeeeeese,” which is as much a part of Forest culture as any rumor. Take this as a fan pulse check rather than a roster leak — it shows what the community is craving heading into 2026: hybrid sets that blend live instrumentation and electronic production, plus the occasional throwback headliner.
We’ll keep tracking chatter and official announcements as festival season planning ramps up — for now, this Reddit thread is a neat reminder of how vocal, eclectic and stubbornly optimistic the Forest fanbase remains.
Extra Chill editorial — keeping an ear to the campgrounds and a finger on the rumor board.
Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/ElectricForest/comments/1p6f91v/top_5_recent_artists_to_return_in_2026/