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As the fifth and final Dreamville Festival has been put to bed, we recap the good, bad and dreamy moments of this year’s fest. And stay tuned for the new four-year music fest under the Dreamville label coming to Dix Park next year.
BEST
Weather
This year’s fest was definitely the warmest and sunniest, complete with a chill breeze and partly cloudy skies to provide some relief from the heat. Even nighttime temps didn’t fall below 70—a plus compared to previous years’ nippy evening weather (not having to carry around a jacket all day? Big win)—but rain did start to fall Sunday at the end of the night. It was hot during peak daytime though, but luckily with Dreamville’s many shaded areas, there were plenty of spots to escape the heat.
Liquor Pop-Ups
No one pulled out the stops more than this year’s liquor partners. Patrón set up a literal house in the middle of the festival pouring drinks in the brand’s signature tequila bottles, while Hennessy featured an energetic DJ set by Mannie Fresh and guest bartender appearance from Normani. And, as always, Casa Bacardi offered a tropical oasis to enjoy refreshing ’tails and make a wish in the branded fountain.
Art
There were oodles of photo ops at this year’s fest, including a plethora of backdrops by local artists—showing that Dreamville Fest is more than just a music fest. Interactive structures also abounded, including a rainbow-hued string display that moved with the wind, neon rainbow setups, an inflatable flower installation, sunflower benches and much more.
NC Apparel
North Carolina represent! Artists repped local sports with fashionable ’fits—from Lil Wayne’s branded Canes jersey to Ludacris’ UNC Tar Heels getup.
Food & Bev Ops
This year marked Dreamville’s largest food and bev lineup to date, with more than 75 vendors—and a majority from NC. Options included Chirba Chirba Dumpling, Birrieria El Patron 323, Buoy Bowls, Island Noodles NC, Oak City Fish and Chips, and Oink ’N Moo, to name just a handful.
Throwback Artists
While we love the top artists in today’s rap/hip-hop game (GloRilla ATE), it was a delight to see early aughts faves like Ludacris and Wale take the stage. Luda got the crowd hype with fan-favorites, even playing “Move Bitch” twice for an abundant crowd that belted along the lyrics both times.
Stage Visuals
Dreamville really upped the ante with the stage visuals this year. Think raging flames setting the scene for 21 Savage; a smokeshow during Lil Wayne’s headlining performance, plus supercool graphics for his gaggle of coperformers (Hot Boys & Big Tymers, Birdman, Juvenile, etc.); an endearing animation behind Earthgang; lightning effects and strobe lights showcasing Erykah Badu; and *lit* light shows during the evening acts. And we’d be remiss not to mention J. Cole’s two-story home setup, where he kicked off the show upstairs sitting at a desk, working his way down to the first-floor couch.
Safety Precautions
Walk anywhere on the grounds and there’s likely a medical tent in sight, a great comfort in the case of an injury, dehydration or other medical emergency—even a Narcan tent as a fail-safe. Water stations were also scattered throughout, in addition to Electrolit samples near the entrance. And staff were quick to rescue patrons in need during sets (s/o crowd members who waved their phone flashlights to gain attention).
WORST
Sound Issues
Despite two entire days of live music, J. Cole’s mic failed during the opening of his final headlining performance, a major flop. Erykah Badu’s mic also went out while she was on stage with him—and Earthgang’s sound system was having issues at the start of their set. Luckily, Cole noticed his vocals weren’t projecting and restarted his first song for the enormous crowd to hear, and Earthgang’s DJ stopped the set to figure out the issue before the duo came on.
Huge Crowds
With 52,000+ people in attendance each day, Dreamville sold out once again—and it showed. Sunday was especially packed, with clusters of festivalgoers descending on Dix, making it hard to maneuver throughout the grounds. Toes were stepped on and several folks had to be escorted out of the throngs during individual sets (though alcohol and other substances could definitely be in play). During his Sunday set, even J. Cole paused to take it all in—marveling at how far the crowd stretched.
Long Lines
Perhaps inevitable when it comes to a festival of this size and scale, lines for merch and some bars and some food vendors stretched endlessly. Hands down, the GA merch tent was the roughest scene, with throngs of festivalgoers snaking through the grounds to snag a hoodie or T-shirt—barricades had to be brought in on day 2 to help. Even in the VIP area, we waited ~20 minutes for an order of fries—but, worth it (!).
Poor Service
After five years, we thought Dreamville had finally figured out the shotty service situation. Saturday we were able to text/call/post to social media with minimal delay, but Sunday harkened back to the dead bars of years’ past, getting worse as the day went on. By the evening, we were unable to text or make calls, and Instagram wouldn’t update.
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Comments
Complaining isn’t fair especially when nothing is perfect. With crowds this large, there was no way to avoid a few Let’s discuss the positive points with this festival, each and every year.
Spike in economy and jobs without violence.
People came together and enjoyed a weekend of great music, food, friendship and togetherness.