Day 1 Bonnaroo 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
The anticipation was building like a locomotive on the run. This year would be my 4th Bonnaroo experience, 2 of the years I attended I actually performed with my band, the Nikhil Korula Band, in 2008 & 2009, but this year, I was coming as a fan. Due to the fact that the festival only usually asks bands back every other year, I wouldn’t be playing, however, due to the graciousness of the festival, Bonnaroo hooked me up with 2 VIP passes and a VIP parking pass for the weekend. The absolute best part about representing yourself and doing your own booking is retaining the powerful contacts you earn by playing everywhere you perform. Getting the chance to play at Bonnaroo is a highly esteemed honor in and of itself, but even just getting the chance to witness the musical prowess of the roster for 2010 was almost just as good as performing there again.This year, the lineup included headliners Kings of Leon, Stevie Wonder, Jay Z, Dave Matthews Band and a BUNCH more worth a gander.
Unfortunately, due to travel arrangements, most of our travel to the festival would take place on the official 1st day of the festival. There were some great bands that I would have liked to have seen again like Temper Trap and Mayer Hawthorne & the County, but this year, the stars didn’t allign to make it happen. I was happy though to avoid traffic all the way there (and back) as I was told by some friends of mine caught in the Bonnaroo traffic that it took them 4-6 hours just to get into the grounds. I guess there really is no easy way to get 80,000+ people into a festival. 
The most awesome part about Bonnaroo is how organized the festival is. >From picking up your passes to how promptly each act performs, Bonnaroo has their act together all the way around. We picked up our passes at 4am, which is when we reached, and low and behold, there were still volunteers there waiting for bands and guests of the festival to pick up their credentials. This year, a few of my friends wanted to camp, but knowing how valuable a shower, bed and bathroom is at this festival, I opted to stay at a hotel not too far away.
Like a kid going to bed on Christmas Eve, I did my best to sleep knowing how much fun the next few days would bring…
