BONNAROO 2018: Ahhh, the family concert... the family who see's Eminem together at midnight sticks together.
BONNAROO 2018: The American Flag
BONNAROO 2018: She showed vigorous support for America with not only her outfit, but also her blanket as she sat in the midst of thousands of people walking from concert to concert.
Some may disagree as they were taught not to wear or sit on the flag. Others may high five her, which is the Bonnaroo way.
"How do I look," she asked. The shutter shut, "Great," I quietly responded as she handed me her cellphone. "Would you take my picture with my phone," she asked.
Another shutter click and I disappeared into the crowd where I next came across a large shirtless man that had a "Lost Soul" tattoo across his stomach. He was carrying a unicorn... I will get to that photo later.
BONNAROO 2018: Tattoos and Unicorns
BONNAROO 2018: Never get between a large tattooed man and his unicorn. Never.
“Dreams are the playground of unicorns.”
BONNAROO 2018: Heading through the Bonnaroo Grounds
Be who you want and dress as you like.
“Follow your inner moonlight; don’t hide the madness.”
Bonnaroo: Chilling
Despite massive crowds of 65,000... Some knew the ultimate definition of "Chilling" among the masses.
Bonnaroo and the crowds
He stood in silence as the stage set was changed while the commotion before and around him continued at Bonnaroo.
Bonnaroo, what else can I say?
Some photographs I take I will never have words for. I saw a lot of women in bathing suits at Bonnaroo because it was so hot outside. I guess some men like the European bathing suit style with a little American flare.
He has been to Bonnaroo nearly every year
He has been to Bonnaroo in Manchester, TN every year, but 2016. “I saw the Grateful Dead here,” he told me with a smile. Anxious to tell me more he continued, “I remember the first time I saw them in California, they were nothing like they are now.”
While the original group never performed as a whole at Bonnaroo, a band known as “The Dead” did in 2003. The '03 year marked year number 2 for Bonnaroo.
The group known as The Dead was made up of several former members of the Grateful Dead. The group was formed after Garcia’s death.
The original Grateful Dead group formed in 1965. They lost their lead singer who was a founding member in 1995. Jerry Garcia (Jerome John Garcia) was a lead guitarist and vocalist for the group that came to be known in the counterculture era of the 1960’s.
Drug use was far from hidden in the Grateful Dead. In 1970, the band was known to heavily use cocaine and later heroin. Garcia even had a $700 a day habit, which became widely known in the late 1970’s. The band actually held a heroin intervention for Garcia in 1985.
Garcia died at age 53 in 1995 at a rehabilitation clinic. He died of a heart attack. Approximately 25,000 people attended a memorial for Garcia in California 5 days after his death.
So, who is the guy pictured? Just a dude who loves music and once followed the Grateful Dead.
Bonnaroo: It is a Yoshi Flower kind of a day
Is that a leash or are you sharing a camel back water hose? Never mind, just keep walking – nothing to see here.
Barefoot and Burned at Bonnaroo
The sun can do some amazing things, one of which is make you appear to be wearing a tank top when you are not wearing a shirt of any kind.
"You don't know my mind You don't know my kind" - Dark Necessities by Red Hot Chili Peppers
Bonnaroo love
Did you know that scientist have done studies to prove that when two people gaze into one another’s eyes, their heart rates synchronize?
"If I know what love is, it is because of you." — Herman Hesse (German born Swiss poet, 1877-1962)
Bonnaroo: Sitting in the dimming sun
A 1980’s band shirt that read “Suicidal Tendencies” adorned his body as he sat in the dimming sun while people walked by. He would sometimes kick his half leg into the air to draw the attention of females who passed by, some stopping to talk others walked the other way.
Bonnaroo and the fake moon
Sitting under the man made moonlight at Bonnaroo.
"Moonlight mood when twilight is ending
You're in my moonlight mood and our hearts are blending
There on the same old wall that we used to know long ago
You walked there in a ribbon of moonlight"
-Frank Sinatra, Moonlight Mood
Bonnaroo: Love the dance
In the distance, a familiar disco tune came on. The three friends started dancing and the moment they shared will likely be long remembered.
“You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,
Love like you'll never be hurt,
Sing like there's nobody listening,
And live like it's heaven on earth.”
― William W. Purkey, Professor of Counseling and Development at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Bonnaroo, it is too much for some
He was asleep in the middle of the heavily occupied store front area of Bonnaroo. It was an area that was reminiscent of a third world marketplace, yet more organized and perhaps a little cleaner. But, the vendors were everywhere and many were demonstrating their goods outside of their tents.
He quietly slept as if he were passed out, his hands clinching his face. Some passerby’s stopped to stare at his chest to see if he was still breathing. I stood over him as he slowly opened one eye, “Hey man, are you okay or do you need some help?” Dazed, he slowly sat up with my son standing behind me. “No, I was uh… I’m fine – I’m okay – sleeping,” he responded.
For some, the 24 hours of parties, live music and bizarre behavior is overwhelming. For others, it’s just the alcohol and / or drugs.
Bonnaroo: Some of the music distances you from the noise
Like a maze, music allows some to become lost no matter the outside distractions. Some can tune out the world around them as they simply listen.
“Music is a language that doesn’t speak in particular words. It speaks in emotions, and if it’s in the bones, it’s in the bones.” ― Keith Richards, Rolling Stones
Bonnaroo: The romantic meal
Bonnaroo 2017: Hundreds of people busily walked past them in the midnight hours, but they never saw one. With a small flashlight and the light of a cellphone, the two quietly enjoyed a romantic meal a minute past midnight. In the background, the sounds of Red Hot Chili Peppers fell over them.
“Every great love starts with a great story...” ― Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook
Bonnaroo: What is age?
All ages having fun in the "Silent Disco" at Bonnaroo.
For those who have never been, it is a massive dance area under a tent with no audible music from the outside. You must wear your headphones or the headphones they provide for you. If you wear their headphones you hear the DJ (he can be seen in the background).
"Youth can not know how age thinks and feels. But old men are guilty if they forget what it was to be young.” ― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Centipede man at Bonnaroo
What were they saying to one another minutes before the performance of U2 at Bonnaroo? I have no idea? I could guess based on their actions after the short discussion I froze in time... It likely went like this...
Centipede man: Hey man, I can use this stuffed centipede to get us to the very front. What I will do is, hold it above my head and make it look like it is crawling towards the front and everyone will move out of our way. Are you in bud?
Bud: Nope, you are nuts
Centipede man: Watch this
Did it work? YES!
Bonnaroo: Music, art and light
Music, art and light – all forms of energy that give you distinct feelings of freedom in a way that just words fail to give.
When I photograph at night I don't use a flash because of a fear that it would distort the light that I see. The reds at a concert, the light strings that someone swings around, the glow sticks tied to a persons body to show that he or she is in the moment, etc.
Bono of the group U2 was performing and those in attendance were in their own worlds taking on the feel that the music was introducing into their bodies. Some people were uniting together with smiles, some were crying while others were dancing with light.
During an interview that took place over 18 years ago, Bono told a reporter, “Music can change the world because it can change people.”