Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival is a four day music festival in Manchester, Tennessee that will forever change your life. The moment I got to the farm last June an overwhelming feeling of acceptance came over me. All walks of life together in one place sharing this radiant positive energy that you can feel amongst the crowd. Everyone sharing these moments together as one. No shoving through crowds, no anger in the long lines for bathrooms, no judgment. Only positive vibes, high fives from every single person in line to the festival entrance, and amazing conversations with strangers that become friends. For all these reasons and more, you simply need to take a trip to Bonnaroo this year.
The festival is held on a 700 acre farm, with enough room for it's thousands of campers, ten stages, Broo’ers Festival, and the best food stands and trucks you could imagine. Some of the best meals we had were from the Food Truck Oasis. Which is exactly what it sounds like; a heavenly section of the festival with 10-15 food trucks of every style of cuisine. Our favorite truck was ironically from right down the highway in Champaign, IL, called Cracked. They served up the best sandwiches and sweet tea but what kept us coming back for more were their iconic "sloppy tots". Made from their crispy tots covered in smoked chorizo and drizzled with Cracked’s signature Sriracha sour cream.
Last years line up had over one hundred and fifty performances including J. Cole ft. Chance The Rapper, Ellie Goulding, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, The Chainsmokers, Halsey, and Dead & Company. This year the festival is promising another amazing line up - rumored performances for 2017 include Red Hot Chili Peppers, U2, and The Weeknd.
At $274.50 a ticket (4 day general admission) + a single car camping fee of $59.75 (split this with your group to make it less expensive) + extra food and gas costs. I know the prices can be a bit steep. However, as a brand new "Bonnaroovian" I attended last year and was able to see almost every single act I wanted to (30+). Dividing the price I paid by the amount of shows I saw, it makes every concert I experienced about $16.00. That's unbelievable! Being able to see up to 150 performances in a four day period, surrounded by the most positive energy in the world is something that I think absolutely everyone needs to experience.
