I JUST WANT TO PREFACE THIS REVIEW – IT IS MY EXPERIENCE BUT ALSO MY OBSERVATIONS AS SOMEONE WHO HAS WORKED EVENTS, SECURITY ETC. I WAS THERE AS A REVIEWER AND PHOTOGRAPHER. I ALSO ONLY STAYED AT ONE STAGE SO THIS IS BASED OFF THAT.
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Now to start I will say, the lineup of acts was so good and each act that I witnessed gave a great performance. I was mostly camped at the Atari Stage on the field. From what I saw from the other stage, those people had a different experience so that is something to be aware of. But this is mine:
Sorry this has taken a while to post. I felt like I needed to get a bit past the festival to just collate my thoughts and not write it all with how I was feeling afterwards. Held at Mt Smart, I made my way to the festival via train. This was clearly the popular option as there were quite a bit of people at the train station with people also pre-loading etc on the way, as per usual sometimes. One thing I did have an issue with was there was no signage to direct people from the train station or other areas of the venue. I was lucky that I found a security guard who could assist me in cutting through to get to the gate I needed to be at for media accreditation.
Having worked in security myself, I found it interesting not using pat downs. I get why people don’t really use them anymore but all I could think about was the amount of alcohol etc being snuck in. But I guess they had wands and bag check which would have helped a little bit, especially for more worrying items (not that you would expect or hope for anything like that here but safe than sorry).
Once in I decided to scope out the venue. With the weather already beginning to be on and off with rain, it was no surprise that everyone lingered under the only shelter between the two stages. I made my way down to the field stage (Atari) and even though it was the only way down on that particular side, the stairs worried me. Metal stairs while raining just says danger but they were grated to help hold grip, I just don’t know how effective that would be. Getting down to the field and into the photo pit, I found the layout for the field interesting, but I will touch on that more soon. Once I scoped it out I decided to get some food in me before things really kicked off. I opted for a chicken and chips and I have to say, that small serving for $12 was ridiculous. And they were those chicken patties you buy frozen in bulk. it seemed wild to me and explains why the alcohol line was huge and the food line was pretty much non-existent. But it did the job I guess. I also checked out the 909 stage. I didn’t see much signage to show the way but there was also a lot of people so I just followed. That seemed like a good setup from what I saw. The crowd was annoying themselves in the big open car park. There were even rides and other food setups there but I decided to head back to the field stage.
DJ SIR VERE kicked things off on the field, playing all the bangers. No doubt the crowd was already into it, singing along to all the hits they knew. Then JESS B took the stage with HALF QUEEN and her dancers. Jess put on a great set, though the crowd I felt like was only somewhat vibing it. They were obviously there for who they were there for. But some of the crowd were having the best time regardless and Jess continued to kill her set. I feel she is still quite underrated here which is annoying to me haha.
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First international act to take the ATARI Stage was BBNO$. I hadn’t heard his stuff before this day, except for the hit everyone knows. Tik Tok sounds are going to play a huge part of today no doubt. He was amazing live. Not only a great outfit, but just such great energy and vibes. There was a moment where he was going to give a cookbook to the person who went the hardest in the crowd. It was signed and scribbled on. When looking closer I saw it was kmart cookbook, which in itself felt hilarious. He gave it to someone in the front to the right of the stage I believe. Considering the weather had started kicking in more, it was amazing that he was able to keep that sort of vibe and energy. Though it was during his set that things took a turn for the worst for the crowd. That’s not his fault and he did try to address it during his set but it definitely wasn’t improving. By the time the set finished , security and the festival organisers began to try help the crowd and sort things but it just wasn’t happening. Not to mention the rain had really kicked in at this point and showed no sign of calming down.
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They delayed CENTRAL CEE coming out due to the surge the crowd was having. People were getting pulled out as the crowd crush was insane. People were clearly overwhelmed or having a panic attack. Some lost shoes. It was definitely more than security and the crowd itself could handle and it did not get better. The issue with the crowd was that pulling people out won’t change how squashed the crowd is, as someone will just go into the gap. It was quite scary to witness. I ended up putting my cameras down to help direct people out of the pit as security were really needed pulling people out. One guy had a bleeding nose, another girl was having a seizure as she got pulled out etc. It was crazy. Eventually Central Cee came onstage which obviously just set things off again. The security and crew continued to help the crowd as he performed. As great as his set was, it ended up having got be stopped constantly then eventually was ended due to issues with the crowd.
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AJ TRACEY was taking the stage next but even that was delayed as the crowd surge was still being dealt with. A couple of security guards had to be pulled out themselves as they jumped in to help people and got crushed. St John were back and fourth helping wheel people out of the pit. It was dangerous and felt like it wasn’t calming down anytime soon. Eventually he took the stage which also just generally caused a worry amongst the crew as to what will happen with the crowd, not that it could get worse honestly.
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He informed the crowd due to the delays, his set would be shorter and that if things get stopped or the crowd doesn’t keep calm, he will have to end his set. The crowd didn’t necessarily improve and he did have to stop like once I think. But it was a shorter set. Great set but short. This did not go down well with a lot of fans who had wanted to see Central Cee and AJ Tracey do a full set. If I had paid for a ticket I would be in the same boat.
The crowd seemed to not be getting pulled out as much and though still squashed it seemed to have began to chill out for a bit. Then JID took the stage. During his set there were no stops or breaks in it. It really just went off like a full set should have. JID was the main act I wanted to see on the lineup, and he was the last minute addition after POLO G pulled out. But it just sold me on it even more. I would love to see JID do his own show here, he was amazing.
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TRIPPIE REDD took the stage next. By this point it just kept running as people kept getting pulled out etc. But I got worried during Trippie’s set as the rapper encouraged people to rage and do backflips etc. I get doing that with your crowds but surely he would have been told how dangerous it is out there. That combined with the fact the crowd was clearly stoked to see him made for a hectic crowd. He smashed his whole set though. Oh and he bought a fan on stage though I question if he was one and also IF YOU GET BOUGHT ON STAGE BY AN ARTIST – IF NECESSARY GET A QUICK PHOTO & VIDEO THEN PUT IT AWAY. Don’t worry about that the whole time. Other people are documenting it. Be in the moment.
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RODDY RICCH closed out the night and with one hell of a set! It was wild to see his security guard push someone off the stage on to the concrete below. He had jumped out of the crowd and quickly tried to jump up. I understand why he did it and RODDY also spoke to him to explain how he can’t do that and that his security is doing their job. But they let him stand to the side to watch the rest of the set. He seemed fine.
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By the end of the night I was soaked, tired and just physically and mentally exhausted. I just wanted to get home. I was worried for my camera gear and just my health by that point. It isn’t great to spend that long in the rain amidst a busy week. I waited until the crowd had cleared before I made my way out to the road. I had hoped me waiting would mean it wouldn’t be so hard to get an Uber or something but nope. I stood in the rain for nearly an hour. Ubers confirming and cancelling. Prices were surge and very high but I didn’t care at that point. I started getting worried I wouldn’t be able to get home as it was late and didn’t know who to call. Then a taxi driver pulled up and asked where I was going. So grateful to finally get a ride and get home. But to be fair, I didn’t know he was a taxi driver, at that point I was happy to accept a ride from a stranger (I know that’s not good). But as I got in his taxi ID was there and I took a photo and sent it to my sister etc. Luckily he seemed like a good guy and I got home safely. I can’t say the same for the rest of the crowd. As we left the stadium, I still saw A LOT of people huddled under trees, the gas station and other businesses etc trying to get a ride home. It was horrible. HOW DO YOU HAVE A FESTIVAL LIKE THAT WITH NO TRANSPORT PLAN! The only bus was a bus to the after party and that was ticketed.
I got home, put all my gear, bags and clothes out and showered. I felt horrible. Honestly, I hope both the organisers and other organisers learn from this.
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WHAT I WOULD RECOMMEND:
- BARRIER BREAKS!! This should be obvious! Down the middle and splits between the crowd.
- VIP = If you are going to have a VIP section, do it across the whole front. The way that was split meant the crowd surged to the side with no VIP area.
- TRANSPORT PLAN = You have thousands of people in a rural-type area and how do you think they are getting home? Driving is obviously not an option since they will all be drinking and parking can be limited. Buses to the city or certain train stations etc. SOMETHING.
- Think about your food and drink pricing. If alcohol is the same price as water and food, what do you think they are buying? I know this can be difficult to do but I also know the chicken I had was bulk buy frozen patties.
- I know someone climbed the marquee last time this festival happened but with weather like that, maybe consider more shelter options.
- Also I know staffing was probably a huge issue but with your security staff maybe check who is trained to be in the barrier (yes there is training for this!). Some didn’t seem to know what to do or be strong enough to do it. Also the way some just hopped on their phone. Get some volunteers handing out water (not the bottles like they ended up doing because people don’t share). I am surprised security didn’t have this off the bat.
That’s all I have at this stage. Great lineup. Artists gave the best performance the could and they killed it. But the festival needs a lot of work!