Whether it's your first Bonnaroo or you’re a music festival veteran, we welcome you to Inforoo.
Here you'll find info about artists, rumors, camping tips, and the infamous Roo Clues. Have a look around then create an account and join in the fun. See you at Bonnaroo!!
Post by Dave Maynar on Nov 16, 2010 17:47:56 GMT -5
I live in Knoxville and now people who started going early on. I had wanted to go for a few years but never did due to having small kids and bills. In 2009, I was looking at the line-up and was talking about how I wanted to go. My wife asked me why I didn't and told me I should since the kids were old enough for her to handle for the weekend. I scraped some money together and was on my way!
Post by TalonissinolaT on Nov 17, 2010 17:30:11 GMT -5
i first heard about roo in 2005..i had recently moved to miami and on some random music channel they showed "270 miles from graceland: bonnaroo 2003" several times. i dvr'd it and after watching that a couple dozen times, i really wanted to make the trek for '05, but was unable to make it happen...so when i moved back to arkansas in spring of 2006, i convinced a couple of friends that we had to make the trip...then went back for '07 and '08...i haven't been able to attend the last two years because of financial and personal reasons, but, music gods willing, i'll be back again in 2011...
Post by sweetmelissa on Nov 17, 2010 18:06:23 GMT -5
Growing up, I was always the kid who had a fascination with music and festivals. Being born in 1982, not many of my friends shared the same love of the 60's and 70's music and vibe. There were a couple of shows I went to here and there, and Beale Street Music Fest. I ended up marrying a guy that shares the same love for music.
I remember reading an article in 2004 (probably the same one Captain Jack alluded to) about Bonnaroo. After sharing that information with the husband, we both knew we wanted to go. Grad School and bills kept us from going until 2007. At that time the husband was just getting back in touch with some awesome family in North Carolina. His cousin, Meredith, had been to Roo a couple of times and talked us into attending Asheville Music Jamboree with her and then meeting her at Roo 07.
We were so blown away by the atmosphere and kindness we found at Roo that we were in attendance the next two years. Good friendships have come from just a few days, camping together and listening to music. It is beautiful when so many people can come together so peacefully.
We missed 09 because my husband wasn't a fan of the lineup. Hopefully we'll find ourselves back on the farm this year.
Post by slapshotbrew on Nov 17, 2010 21:46:32 GMT -5
August of last year a friend was trying to explain what this was all about to me. He had been a couple times and could barely put into words how much fun it was. He showed me a video of Girl Talk '09 and thats when I decided I HAD to be there. We went this year and had an incredible time. Going back next year with an even bigger group.
i was 15 my mom didn't nessicarily know what she was getting into but she bought herself and i tickets and thanks to her i'm the strung out bonnaroo hippie you see today lol
I was in my graphic design class during my senior year of high school and my friend called me over to his computer to show me something and the '06 lineup was on his screen. I decided right then and there that I was going. I went home and talked to my mom, not expecting her to say yes at all, and she just asked who else was going and that as long as I wasn't going alone it was ok. And I've been every year since.
Post by laurensmackho on Dec 4, 2010 6:47:10 GMT -5
I was supposed to go in 2006, but my roomie didn't have enough money to cover her rent. 300 bucks that was supposed to go to my ticket ended up going to the Man. 2007 rolled around and the line-up looked sweet, so I went. It was a crazy good time and I've been back every year since.
Every year my fraternity brothers would return to school a week before classes started to fix up the house. In '07 I was walking behind one of my friends during this "work week" and saw the lineup from that summer on his t-shirt. I had never heard of the fest and was amazed by his stories and the lineup from that year. I later found out that another one of my bros had been in '06 and 3 car loads worth of guys decided to make the trek the following summer ('08). I never went on spring break in college, but finding the money for a music festival seemed much easier and much more my style. Since then, about 25 of my friends have made the journey (some going every year and some not). I have my ticket for Roo X already and plan to go every year, at least for the foreseeable future. The fest has increased both my passion for music and the diversity of what I listen to and I think it is a powerful thing that this one-weekend event is something that I think about and look forward to every single day of the year.
2005- My future husband and BFF was living in Florida going to school and I was at home in Illinois. During one of our many phone conversations he mentioned that these tickets would be going on sale soon. He sighed. Then he said F-it, I'm tired of reading about this festival in Rolling Stone every year and wishing that I had gone. I'm going this year. I checked it out and agreed to go along and see what it was all about. We went together again in 06, stayed home for 07 and 08, I went by myself in 09 and 10, but we're going together as husband and wife in 2011!
Honestly I do not remember..But I do know.. That i remember checking out the 2008 lineup and wishing i could of went (no job or money made that impossible), I watched the fest from home in awe... In 2009 I decided to finally make the short 2.5 hour drive to manchester.. will be doing it every year as long as i can
I was on PT back in 2002 (yeah, showing my age here), and there were rumors about this festival that no one knew anything about. I remember going to the bonnaroo website and it was just a message saying "big announcement coming soon," or something of that nature. There was so much excitement around the whole thing in the community, but I had plans to be out of the country during the dates. Had some friends go and they all told me how amazing it was. Missed the first year, and the next I got tickets as soon as they went on sale. We still had no idea what we were in for; but since that year, I've only missed one roo, and that was because of school.
read about bonnaroo in rolling stone in 2005. crazy stories about vending and general insanity...
fast forward a year - saw an ad for bonnaroo in rolling stone. saw the word "radiohead". after a quick conversation, tickets / flights were acquired. also acquired: new friends, sense of community, appreciation of the South, musical nirvana.
Post by Mean Mr. Mustard on Dec 10, 2010 10:20:09 GMT -5
Mine is similar to Idio's. I saw a lineup of bands in that had Radiohead, Tom Petty, Elevis Costello, Ben Folds, Les Claypool, and MMJ (I listened to zero 'jam band' music at the time so all those artists went over my head) and thought how can i miss this. Unfortunately, a friend got married that wknd in 2006 so I couldnt go. That stirred my interest and I kept an eye out for the 07 lineup. When I saw Tool, Police, The White Stripes, Ben Harper, Wilco, Flaming Lips, etc. I was in and Ive been back every year.
Edit: On top of that my musical tastes were extermely diverse and I was all over the place going to shows, and I was looking for a way to consolidate that. Bonnaroo was perfect due to its diversity of artists. However, unfortunately it has my addiction to going to shows much worse.
Post by strumntheguitar on Dec 10, 2010 10:39:01 GMT -5
I frequently visited a local coffee shop and eventually my favorite Barista kidnapped me and my good buddy and forced us to follow him through the night to a gigantic fireworks shop in TN. From there we noticed a whole bunch of cars all lined up to go to the same place so we figured what the hell.
Post by jerrysalive on Dec 11, 2010 18:10:35 GMT -5
wellll I was actually fortunate to win 2 tickets and airfare to the 08 roo I like to think it was a good dose of instant karma, I was sitting at my house watchin a movie, a friend called and reeeeeaaally needed a ride to work so I said sure, on my way to pick her up a local radio station was giving away tickets to the Shins (i'll call in for any radio contest, seriously) happened to be lucky caller #12 and they told me I was also entered in to a drawing to win 2 tickets to bonnaroo! I proceeded to get rip roaring drunk that night and woke up to several missed calls and texts from my friends the next morning who had heard on the radio that I won, my crew has grown from 2 to 10 and I don't plan on missing a year eeeeever again
Post by konstantine on Dec 13, 2010 23:21:57 GMT -5
My friend went last year and had a blast. I love the south (MMM accents). We have friends in Nashville so we're making a week long affair of it and visiting some people.
Two years ago we did The Rock Boat but the weather was SO horrible I'm really turned off from doing another one. It was high 30s/low 40s half the time. I guess it's really not shocking for Florida in February when you're from Michigan. I'd love to get to SXSW eventually. The only other music fest I've done is Dfest which is in Tulsa so nothing close to Bonnaroo.
Its was 2004 and didnt have the money to go but couple of my friends went and we live in the town beside manchester so they came back early sunday and I took one of there bands and went sunday night and seen Trey Anastasio with the nashville symphony and it changed my life forever. I have now been to every roo since except 2009 only cause my wife delivered our baby girl just a few weeks before roo that year and just could bare to leave her for the weekend.
Living in Knoxville at the time a group of friends had asked if I wanted to go to see Widespread at some festival near Nashville. I did not end up going but they went and said it was a blast. Eneded up it was the first Bonnaroo. Went to the next 7. Missed the last two but looking forward to to the 10 year anniversary.
about 8 of my friends went in 09. 2 had a reaalllyyy bad trip and said they would never go again. my friend told me about seeing mgmt's set and how awesome it was with all the people dressed up in light up stuff and the glowstick wars, and showed me some pictures, and i knew i had to go. i intended to go this year (2010) but didnt think i would make it cause i was broke. mid-may i found out i was getting a 1,000 dollar bonus at work, so i talked my friend into fronting me the money and bought a ticket. drove down with some friends, stopping in columbus, ohio to add to our caravan. nearly got arrested at the gate, but the ONE thunderstorm all weekend saved us from a complete search of the van. had an amazing time and cant wait for this coming year, and every year after :]
edit: oh yea, i live in buffalo, new york. it was quite the road trip lol
When I was in high school I was really big into Robert Randolph (thanks Dad), and was surfing the web one day at home and I came across a festival that Robert Randolph was playing that summer. It was Bonnaroo, but at the time my musical tastes was mostly classic rock, so the only folks I recognized was Robert Randolph, The Dead, and Bob Dylan. Thought it was and interesting little festival, but didn't think too much of it then.
Fast forward to the fall of 2006. I had just started college and my music tastes were rapidly expanding. Friends of mine from high school and college told me about a festival that they went to that summer; Bonnaroo was the name. I then remembered that Robert Randolph had played there years before, and I asked them to tell me more about it. They told me the awesome bands that played there and the awesome people you meet there.
At the time I hadn't yet listened to the bands they all raved about: Radiohead, Beck, Ben Folds, Death Cab For Cutie. But my interest was piqued, and decided to look into it more. Fast forward to when the line-up came out, my musical tastes had expanded further and the line-up looked amazing. Got my ticket and trekked to Bonnaroo by myself since none of my friends who went the year before decided to go in 2007.
Got there, saw how large of a festival it really was, got my mind blown by The Black Keys and Tool on my birthday, knew I had to come back every year and hopefully I can make it 5 straight years this summer.
I have always loved live music and concerts. I remember as a kid in 1969 being driven a few miles down the road from Macon to where the Atlanta Pop Festival was going on at Byron Raceway...to "see the hippies"...lol. Even then I knew that I shared a kindred spirit with them.
Although I went to too many concerts to count over the intervening years, and had many good friends who were musicians, I never made it to a festival. (unless you count the one-day extravaganzas like Champagne Jam, etc.) There just wasn't much of a festival scene by the time I was really old enough to go.
By the time that festivals were making a comeback, I was tied down with the suburban lifestyle, being a mom and finally finishing school. I still dreamed of going to a fest but it seemed such a longshot. Believe it or not, I could not get used to the idea of spending that much money on myself.
Fast forward to 2009. on Tuesday of Bonnaroo week my oldest daughter Maggie called me from college to say that her good friend had won 2 tickets in a radio promotion and invited her to go, and would I help her prepare for the trip. "absolutely!" I remember saying, and rushed home from work to start rounding up my camping gear for her, and making a packing/shopping list for supplies.
the next day at work I got the phone call from Maggie that changed my life. "mom, Brooke can't get off work and she said that I could have the tickets. Only nobody can go on such short notice. Is there any chance you would want to go?".
so the rest is history. Last year I bought myself and both daughters tickets during presale as part of Christmas. This year I did the same.
As a result, I have met so many amazing people, heard so much great music and reclaimed that inner child that so wanted to get out of the Ford Fairlane on that hot summer day in July of 1969, and disappear into the crowd.
this has to be one of the best examples of karma in my life thus far. Thank you, Maggie.
I am a huge Metallica fan, as is a good friend of mine, when he said they'd be there in 2008 I was there. It was a great time. I now am a bigger fan of Roo itself than Metallica or any other band, with the exception of RHCP/John Frusciante.
read about bonnaroo in rolling stone in 2005. crazy stories about vending and general insanity...
I think I read the same article because this was the first I had heard of it. I started getting Rolling Stone in '05, I was 15 and it was when I was first really getting into music. I didn't think about attending a music festival much then, but flash forward to '08. I am working on the Obama campaign and a fellow staffer was talking about his experience in '07 and how excited he was to go in a few weeks and see Pearl Jam, Kanye, etc.
I planned on going in '09 with my freshman year roommate, but we were not able to put it together. Finally, with some friends from high school, I talked them in to going. '10 might not have been a stellar lineup, but the experience will keep me coming back for years.
Post by dobber3000 on Dec 23, 2010 16:23:12 GMT -5
Last year was my first roo. Heard Wiiiidspread was playing in 02 when I was at College of Charleston, but couldn't afford it and didn't really have the guts or whatever. I always heard little things about it here and there. Then in February 2010 I was like oh ish I think I'll check out that Bonnaroo thing before I die. Basically just using the force in order to fulfill my destiny. Greatest time, best shows, of my life!
Post by HighlySuspicious on Dec 25, 2010 13:06:03 GMT -5
My roomate ended up at roo with me last year because I won a bet against him the night before. The bet was that we would have a mini decathlon ..... if I won he had to buy a ticket and go (he was on the fence of whether or not he wanted to buy one) and if he won he got to slap my EXTREMELY sunburned chest as hard as he could.
There were 5 events and I was sweating it after he beat me in the first two, chess and super smash brothers. I then came back and won the next three in a row (ping pong, foot race, heads up poker) and he promptly printed out his ticket.
Not really a story of how I got there but an idea on how to get your friends to go .....