While they won't be basking on the beach in barely-there bikinis, 17 indie artists will be featured in the upcoming Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue for the first time. Each artist will be paired with a different model in the magazine and online, showcasing their new or previously unreleased tracks.

Plus, 10 of the bands will jam in a two-day Las Vegas music festival called Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Beauties & Beats.

"We’re excited to shine the enormous spotlight of Swimsuit onto these 17 emerging artists, the same way we have helped to illuminate the stars of our models for nearly 50 years," said MJ Day, senior editor of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit. "Music plays such an important role in setting the mood for Swimsuit shoots. It can take the tone from fun to sultry; it’s amazing how vital music is to the editorial process."

The 10 artists who will be playing at the festival are Delta Spirit, Elan Atias & White Elephant, J. Roddy Walston & The Business, Little Hurricane, Maluca, Nick Waterhouse, Vonnegutt, Selebrities, White Denim, and headliners The Black Lips. The remaining seven artists will be featured editorially and include Bosco Delrey, DJ A-Trak, Hanni El Khatib, Kito & Reija Lee, New Look, Rhye, Toro Y Moi and The newno2.

The concert goes down February 15th & 16th at the Cosmopolitan Hotel, while the highly anticipated annual issue of the magazine debuts February 14th.

Source: Billboard.biz, Photo: Sports Illustrated