Let’s be honest, Bonnaroo Music and Arts festival has been bestowed upon the citizens of the world for one reason and one reason only, for the music. Residing on a farm in Manchester, Tennessee, Bonnaroo is not for the faint of heart. That said, going to Bonnaroo is like attending two different festival, since daytime at Bonnaroo is significantly different from when the sun goes down.
Bonnaroo by day has far more to do than solely listen to music. A ‘trip’ to Bonnaroo would not be complete without a splash in the festival’s waterpark with its flagstaff mushroom water fountain. After your first few splashes in the mushroom, make sure to make your way over to the ‘Big Ass’ 40-foot water-slide.
Bonnaroo is not only a music festival but an art festival as well. The venue is laced with art vendors for all tastes. With that, Bonnaroo has craft tents for concert attendees to make their own creations. Don’t forget about Bonnaroo’s morning yoga.
By day, Bonnaroo has bacon land. It’s very own food station consisting of everything from bacon flights to bacon garlic knots. Need I say more?
Unidentifiable bass behind a young child’s laugh can also brand Bonnaroo by day. Bonnileve it or not, for some, Bonnaroo is a family event. By day it is not unusual to see everyone ages 1 to 81 on the farm. Nothing says feeling young like Bonnaroo’s notorious Bonnagrannies.
When the sunsets on Bonnaroo it becomes an entirely different empire. When the nightfall comes, the rave kids come out. Bonnaroo goes from being a family filled fun farm to a PLUR haven. Get your sunglasses ready folks, because glow sticks on the farm illuminate the night.
Another fabulous Bonnaroo-by-night past time is the ground scores. That’s not to say the ground scores at Bonnaroo in the day aren’t great, but the night scores are simply fantastic. In the day you are likely to find a pair of Ray Bans and a half eaten corn dog while nighttime ground scores are of questionable small baggies and cell phones with two missed calls and a text from ‘Kim Stripper.’
Another fantastic feature of Bonnaroo’s notorious nights is the Kalliope stage. The Kalliope stage is a small, transportable stage that was originally made for Burning Man. The Kalliope crew created the stage out of the body of an 18-wheeler truck. The stage is now complete with top of the line fire, bubbles, lazers, and C02 cannons.
The only time Kalliope sees the light of day is during its infamous secret sunrise sets. Last year, Skrillex blessed the Kalliope stage with a secret sunrise set. This year, Cherub played a secret set at the Kalliope stage as the sun rose. Below is a picture of my RooCrew in front of Kalliope at the Cherub sunrise set.
Let’s just say there is enough fun to go around at Bonnaroo all day.
