In 2016, I tackled my first festival: Music Midtown. At the time, I thought it was the best day of my life—so many bands all in the same park, jamming outside all day. Next, I tackled Bonnaroo… It made Midtown seem a bit ~high school~ (maybe it was the millions of flower crowns and lineups that just didn’t suit my taste anymore).
A venue in middle-of-nowhere Manchester, TN, known as “the farm”, became a little 700 acre environmentally sustainable Neverland. There’s basically a never-ending lineup, on top of waterslides, bouncy houses, a “mini beach” called the Oasis, and so much more. Despite ‘Roo being much bigger, it had a good bit in common with Midtown, and many other festivals.
There’s usually crazy expensive food, plenty of smiles and singing, lots of glitter, sweaty people dancing their hearts out, no parking on the face of the Earth, and a universal happy-go-lucky mentality. I expected the usual walking into Shaky Beats, but a few things were a little different than what I’d experienced before…
- Any bodily movement counts as dancing if you do it fast enough.
- “Womp” & ”Wub” are the only lyrics you need to know.
- Bring glitter. And backup glitter. And back up for the backup—this is not a joke.
- Pants are not mandatory, and most people don’t bother.
- You will be handed various candies by generous festival goers (maybe even a tangerine).
- It’s time to reapply glitter.
- You are surrounded by some hardcore ravers. Do not make eye contact; do not engage.
- ^^ jokes! Some people are pretty hardcore into their EDM, and they can be some of the nicest people you’ll meet!
Shaky Beats was definitely a new experience, and I loved it. Hopefully I’ll be attending many more fests—a couple more raves included. ;)
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