Bonnaroo Music Festival was founded in 2002. The extravaganza takes place each year for four days. The concert was produced by AC Entertainment and Superfly Presents. The show takes place at the Great Stage Park starting on the second Thursday every June. The main events that motivate people to attend the music concert are the multiple stages that involve live music of different genre such as hip-hop, country music, folk, indie rock, world music, jazz, gospel, pop, classic rock, and pop.
Last year (2015) June, I attended the Bonnaroo Music Concert to enjoy and gain more insight of what takes place during the event. Artists such as R-Kelly, Kendrick, J Cole, Miguel, and Vince Staples performed and they were all lively. The part that I enjoyed most during the event was when Kendrick Lamar was performing. When Kendrick took to the stage, there was a loud shout from the audience to welcome him. The reason for the huge fan base is because he was a debutant in the festival since rising to fame in 2012 and had become a household name after the mentorship of Dr. Dre. People started shouting “we want 10 Day”, which is a song by Lamar that has its theme originating from the time he was suspended from senior school for ten days. The first song Lamar performed was “Acid Rain” that carried the people away and they joined in the singing when it came to the chorus.
The ultimate moment came when Lamar sang the “10 Day” chorus. During the chorus, people in the concert were shouting at the top of their voices. As the presentation continued, Lamar stopped singing and gave the crowd a chance to sing the choruses. After the first presentation, some levelers were invited on the stage to dance, while others joined in the rap. Some of the songs were repeated because the audience could not stop enjoying the lyrics. Lamar was on stage for two hours, but it seemed as though he had performed for twenty minutes only. The only evidence of the hours spent on the stage was the sweat-soaked clothes for Lamar and his dancers, and my legs were too tired to continue standing.
During the presentations, the DJ had to control the volume of the music speakers to allow the crowds sing along with the artists. The common music was hip-hop, rock, reggae, and gospel. There was a high tempo when reggae and hip-hop musicians were on the stage since most of the people liked the two music genres. In addition, the crowd sang together with the artists as if it was a choir, and the volume of the music systems was overwhelmed.
In music concerts, people are expected to have mixed reactions such as shouting, dancing, and singing together with the artists (Maus). The music performed, and the responses of the crowd were clear signs that the event was successful, and the people were enjoying. I attended the event for one night, but it felt as if I had been in the concert for all the four days because of the dancing I did on the first night. In addition, after the performances, my legs were aching and I had to take painkillers. The concert still rings in my mind, and I am waiting for it to be held in 2016 and I cannot miss because I know there will be new performances in the lineup.
Work Cited
Maus, Fred Everett. "Classical Concert Music and Queer Listening". Transposition 3 (2013): n. pag. Web.
