*This article will be updated as I think of more possibilities or hear of more rumors. This is what I have so far.*

Edit: 3/7/2018 Updates are in italicized font

Edit: 3/15/2018, Updates are in italicized bold font

Edit: 3/18/2018:

Updates are in block quote format

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We now know when to expect surprises: Sunday night, 10pm, Mainstage and Sunday night, 9:30pm, Megastructure. The rest of the set times are pretty much in stone at this point. For that reason, we can go ahead a cross off a number of the possibilities I listed below — truth be told, I expected the lineup to be laced with surprises throughout — this seems not to be the case.

However, from what I’ve seen in speculation, Saturday night from 9pm — 12pm on Ultra Radio should not be discounted. Brownies & Lemonade will be taking over, and while we all know that they have some resident DJs, their specialty is in bringing out cool talent. My bet is we will have some cool b2bs there.

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The original article is below, with my new comments in Italicized Bold:

We all know Ultra is hyping up some sort of crazy surprises this year. They’ve advertised these surprise performances time and time again, and the public has been guessing who might show up to fill those mystery slots since the beginning of the year (or perhaps even earlier than that). So the question becomes: what unannounced acts will perform at Ultra Music Festival in 2018?

There are a ton of names in the conversation surrounding these surprises. Amongst them, you find the usual two: Daft Punk and Swedish House Mafia. But let’s explore the depths of electronic music a little more — and, honestly, let’s be more realistic. Below, I’ll outline the usual suspects along with some others that may not be as commonly spoken about. REMEMBER — not all surprises are mainstage surprises. The Resistance flier even has a blurred out name for the Saturday Arcadia Spider headliner. Expect a techno surprise for sure.

Note: The first two are Swedish House Mafia and Daft Punk. Skip ’em if you want to read my real analysis, with realistic and wildly outlandish guesses.

Also Note: Nothing I say here includes any special information I know about or received (hint: it’s because no one has told me anything and I’m irrelevant).

Swedish House Mafia — I mean, probably not. The public reason for the split was that they created a monster and didn’t know what to do with it, the private reason (that soon became very public) was that there were stern disagreements within the group. It’s hard to completely count this one out considering Ultra has always been one of the SHM landmarks. It would set the mainstream electronic world on fire. But if there are disagreements that haven’t been worked out, I don’t know why SHM would reunite for one show. Steve Angello isn’t even booked for the festival — why would the one reluctant member of the group join Axwell /\ Ingrosso on stage if he doesn’t even have his own set at the festival? Probability — a really weak maybe. But still a maybe. This one is ‘the boy who cried wolf’ at this point. It’s just hard to tell. It would be cool to be proven wrong here.

UPDATE: As we inch closer to the festival, the tide is… odd. You’ve got one half of dance music leaning towards this happening, while the other half remains steady in the idea that it’s not. Social media profile updates, Steve Angello acknowledging Axwell /\ Ingrosso for the first time in ages, and a serious homage to the boys in all of Ultra’s promo has me thinking this is more likely to happen than I initially indicated. However, messages from Steve Angello andAmy Thomson seem to be expressing the opposite. There’s one thing I can say confidently at this point: Ultra’s tagline, “Expect the Unexpected”, won’t exactly be fulfilled if Swedish House Mafia climbed onto the Ultra Mainstage. Plenty of people headed to Miami already have their SHM reunion plur-bracelets on their wrists.

Surprise: I’m all in on the SHM rumor. We’ve got a press release from a VR guru claiming to have worked with Ultra and Swedish House Mafia (neither work has been revealed yet, I’d bet a “replay” of the set in VR available via an app), tour staff from numerous artists’ tours have suggested it, and it is unfolding to be most sensible at this point.

Daft Punk — I don’t know why you all keep doing this to yourselves. Daft Punk is not performing at Ultra. Given that Daft Punk haven’t performed together (publicly with stage production) in many years, it’s clear that they have no problem turning down massively lucrative offers. Unless Ultra is willing to take an hour slot off the mainstage immediately before them (or build a completely new stage for Daft Punk, which would be discovered days before during construction), they wouldn’t have their setup. Not only do I think Daft Punk wouldn’t perform here for brand purposes, but I don’t think they’re going to pop behind the CDJs on Ultra’s mainstage and spin a set. It’s just… not Daft Punk. Probability — seriously stop doing this to yourselves. If it happens I’ll host a livestream of Will McCarthy berating me for 45 minutes straight. Not because he thinks it will happen, but because it will be the most entertaining version of someone berating me. Seriously, I’ll make this happen.

UPDATE: Nothing has really developed with this theory beyond some extreme reaching while interpreting clues. And for those believing the Moon Man patch is revealing something about Daft Punk — let me remind you that Daft Punk are ROBOTS, not moon men. At this point I am even less convinced that this will happen than I ever was.

Adam Beyer x Cirez D — They’re already doing it in Miami. They might do it again at Ultra but I’d say there’s a better shot that Prydz just does a Cirez D set on the Spider on Saturday Night. Probability — Just a guess, but nah.

UPDATE: I’ll add a tiny bit more fuel to the fire by noting that Prydz plays immediately before the Sunday Megastructure mystery slot, and I really am leaning towards either 1) a GAIA performance, or 2) a Prydz b2b. If I were to guess, the top candidates for a Prydz b2b to close the Megastructure would be Adam Beyer, Deadmau5, and a new one — Armin. I think this would be interesting.

Nope.

Jai Paul — Not happening. But someone somewhere make him perform PLEASE for the good of mankind.

Newedish House Mafia (aka Axwell, Ingrosso, Alesso) — I could see this happening. Everyone kinda wants it to happen. Alesso isn’t booked for the date, but he also isn’t booked for the festival. No reason why Alesso would pop-up for this set but not perform otherwise. Same reason as above — just doesn’t make sense. It would be really cool, though. Probability — again, a really weak maybe.

UPDATE: This theory seems to have gone away from the mainstream talk but that doesn’t make it less likely. I’m still pretty doubtful.

Jack Ü — Now we’re talking. Jack Ü has taken considerable time off, and we’ve been hearing a new breed of music from Diplo while Skrillex hides away somewhere creating masterpieces. Due to their extended break and the ever-increasing profile of these two artists, they certainly get the “Special Performance” treatment. The two artists have also been at work throwing us off track — they go back and forth saying that they are and are not working on new material together. The last time these two performed at UMF Miami was 2014 (2015 does not count, it was 10 minutes at the end of Skrillex’s set), and this would be a fantastic time to bring back the two, regardless of whether or not they’ve been putting together new material. We know Diplo and Skrillex both individually have music ready to debut. Diplo also all-so-conveniently has the Sunday of UMF unbooked, and is hosting/headlining a Mad Decent MMW party on Friday at the SLS. New information suggests that Diplo will also be holding a party in Miami on Sunday night — this leaves the Sunday night festival slot wide open for a Jack Ü takeover. Probability — I’m going with relatively high here. This one makes a lot of sense for Jack Ü given their joint and individual histories with the festival, and it seems like the kind of show they would use to come back into the spotlight.

UPDATED PROBABILITY — This is my Mainstage Sunday bet. Jack Ü to close the fest on the Main.

Calvin Harris — In an interview very early this year, Ultra Music Festival’s CEO stated that they were going for “something unique that can only be seen at Ultra.” If that’s to be believed, then the best way to fulfill this promise would be to bring out Calvin Harris, who has restricted his live shows to mostly residencies and extremely high-profile festivals. However, anyone can see Calvin in Vegas at Omnia, so how could this be special? Simple — bring out his collaborators as well. A new-age Calvin set with the “Heatstroke” producer behind the decks, and Young Thug in front of them. Headliners at Ultra, year after year, bring out surprise guests. If anyone is a good candidate for an extraordinarily special headlining set with a handful of superstar guests in 2018, it’s Calvin Harris. Probability — Decent. This would actually fulfill the promise of the festival’s CEO — a show you can’t see anywhere else. However, it would be a beast to pull it off. If they do, I’d be impressed — but that’s not to say I doubt the power of Ultra.

UPDATE: Nothing else to say beyond that no one really expects this, so maybe this really does fulfill the “expect the unexpected” thing.

The ‘Block Party’ b2b2b2b2b — This seems like a given. It’s been a major trend at festivals (EDC, Holy Ship!, you name it…) that massive collective sets go down. Everything from The Binches (Yultron, Dotcom, Kayzo, and Ookay, which will be happening at EDC Vegas 2018) to wacky, nonsensical conglomerates of artists just having fun have popped up at recent festivals, and Ultra has lagged behind in the “crazy b2b set” trend a little. One thing that has not been spoken about all that much is that Ultra has promised surprises, but that doesn’t mean they ALL have to be mainstage surprises— which could easily translate into secondary stage surprises. It almost seems natural for some crazy bass b2bs to occur at Ultra Worldwide Stage, and for some inventive collaborations to go on at Resistance and the Techno/Trace tent (dependent upon the day). With Marshmello, Ookay, Slushii, and Ghastly all on the lineup, I find it hard to fight off the thought that we’ll get some sort of a Red Light Allstars set. Same goes for a potential Mad Decent Block Party set, as Mad Decent is hosting a party on Friday at SLS in Miami. Probability — High, very high. Crazy b2bs are practically promised at this point — the question is just about who, specifically, it will be.

UPDATE: If this idea excites you, head to the Brownies & Lemonade set. This is where it’s going down. With Manilla Killa on the UMF Radio stage that day, a Hotel Garuda surprise is possible. With Jauz and Ookay both being around that day, we could get some Saxy Feel the Volume. The opportunities are endless but if you want surprises at a smaller stage with some artists that could be on Worldwide or Mainstage, this is the place to be Saturday night. I mean, they gave B&L three hours. This is simply happening.

Kygo — This is logical. An Ultra Music artist, Kygo is an artist that I was extremely surprised not to see on the lineup this year. He doesn’t have announced tour dates that conflict with Ultra, and while he’s not really partaking in the festival circuit this year (that we know of), of all ‘massive’ artists to be a surprise, Kygo seems pretty high up there in terms of possibility. I guess I don’t really have a reason for believing this other than his affiliation with the label and the festival, along with the fact that a performance from him would certainly qualify as special, but whatever. I think it might happen. Also note that he was a surprise performer last year as well. Probability — Maybe, but without any real basis for me feeling this way. I just think it makes sense. Kinda like Jack Ü, but more sense.

Update: I’m going to lower this one to a ‘Probably Not’ just because there is no live stage surprise. I really expected this one. Unless he comes out and fills the massive gap that exists before Ookay (which would be an insanely early set time for him), I don’t think he shows.

Avicii — So Avicii said he was releasing 3 EPs in 2017. He ended up releasing one in 2017 and then said the other two were coming in 2018. So Avicii has a lot locked away, ready to be played out. Avicii actually has a history of debuting music at Ultra, with his debut of True in 2013, his debut of Stories in 2015, and his debut of Avicii (01) EP and more in 2016. Yes, Avicii isn’t touring anymore. But if he’s going to come back and play another show, it might as well be one that is pre-designated as “special” and one that does not indicate that he is coming back to the tour life. There have been rumors that Avicii booked a hotel in Miami during MMW, but the sources are weak so I won’t put any weight on that. This would be a cool return to the stage for Avicii, even if it was for just one show — and despite how much everyone loves to hate on the guy who made “Levels” and “Wake Me Up”, there’s no denying it would set the Ultra Mainstage crowd on fire if he stepped up to the decks at 10pm on Sunday night. Probability — Decent. I think, if it does happen, it would be Ultra’s ‘big’ surprise. If you’re reading this, though, you know I’m a bit of an Avicii fan, so maybe it’s clouding my judgement.

Update: Still a big maybe. Could be the Sunday night surprise — people are starting to believe it will be. I still think there’s a better chance for Jack Ü, but who knows — maybe we’ll see Tim hit the Mainstage.

TNGHT — If we want to stay within the realm of possibilities, TNGHT is a good bet. Lunice and HudMo are both on record saying that they have worked on new material. There’s nothing holding them apart except for their own endeavors. And for trap fans, a TNGHT reunion WOULD satisfy the “oh my god, this surprise is huge” kind of feeling. They wouldn’t be a mainstage surprise — more like a livestage surprise. But I can see it happening. In the same way that my Avicii theory says “we’re not back for good, but here we are right now”, I think TNGHT could put on a show here. But also, who knows? Maybe they really are coming back. This will be adjusted if we learn anything new about TNGHT in the near future. Probability — There’s no reason to think this is happening, but it could, and that’s enough to get me excited and to include it on the list.

UPDATE: Nah.

Porter Robinson — So he’ll be there as Virtual Self, and you know Porter fans would love to see him do Worlds (or maybe even new Porter music??), but he seems pretty set in the Virtual Self thing recently. If there’s anything we know about Porter, it’s that his brand is very important to him. It seems like an un-Porter move to go back and perform a Porter Robinson set at this point. Probability — Meh, weak-ish maybe. Seems unlikely given his brand.

UPDATE: Nah.

A reunited What So Not — Ok so this isn’t happening but HOW COOL would it be if it did happen? That’s really all I have to say about this. Flume isn’t booked for the dates but Emoh is releasing a studio album this year so it wouldn’t make sense to muddy the waters with a surprise of Flume, who presumably has nothing to do with the album. But I want it to happen.Then again, like Steve Angello and Alesso, Flume isn’t booked for the festival. Probably won’t happen. Probability — Not happening, but I want it to happen. Hey Ultra people — if you’re reading this, make it happen. Ok? Cool, glad we can see eye-to-eye on this.

UPDATE: Nah.

A reunited Flosstradamus — I would like to see this, but I don’t know anything about the internal reasoning for the split. Seems like it could happen, though I don’t even think the average fan realizes that Flosstradamus split up. Probability — No clue. Maybe. Could be. Not a big enough deal for Ultra to pump up as a ‘major’ surprise, but could be a side-show surprise.

UPDATE: Still a big maybe for me! Even if it’s just half the set — because Floss is playing Worldwide, I think this would resonate with fans. But who knows — if Ultra didn’t suggest to “Expect the Unexpected”, I’d say no chance.

The “alternate genre” set — Will Tiesto play trance? Will Kaskade to a Redux set? Something like this will happen. It’s just a question of who and where. It’s like the b2b thing — it’s gonna happen, but it could be anyone. So I won’t guess. Probability — Extremely high. It’s going to happen. Not necessarily these specific artists, but it will happen.

Update: This is the other possible Sunday Megastructure surprise. GAIA? Trance Tiesto? Anything could happen here in my opinion.

The “that’s the surprise?” surprise — Yea, bet on this one. If Vegas were offering a “not surprising surprise at UMF 2018” bet, I’d put my life savings on it. We’re looking at 1 or 2 big surprises, with the rest being more like “cool, didn’t see that coming but I also could see that artist for $35 + service fees at my local club”. Maybe you put the “Block Party b2b” in this category — I know I do. But I also put artists like Deadmau5, Prydz HOLO, Deadmau5 b2b Prydz, Martin Garrix, Justice, Disclosure, Dash Berlin, and others here. The kind of artist that could have easily just been on the lineup as a headliner, and Ultra decided not to tell you just so they could say there was a surprise. Likelihood — way higher than the probability that the dude who tells you that your fiat is worthless actually knows a thing about the financial world. Like, this will happen, prepare yourself for it. Also DM me for free Zwillcoin.