I attended the Pilgrimage Music festival in Franklin, Tennessee on September 22 and 23, and I wanted to write a review about it. Yes, I know it’s January of 2018 and I’ll thank you kindly to stop judging me. I’ve been busy. 🙂
The Damage/Cost
A two-day early bird pass cost $209.29, and here’s the breakdown:
- Base ticket – $175
- ‘parks/foundation fee’ – $2.50
- ‘FGT’ fee – $9.60
- Delivery charge – $6.00
Mail delivery is the only option, even for us locals, so why not just roll the fee into the price of the ticket instead of listing it separately? The fees are explained as follows: ‘A portion of each ticket goes towards our charitable partners which include MusiCares and Friends of Franklin Parks as well as covering shipping costs.’
Why, or Justin-ification
Two hundred dollars is a lot of money. However, let me point out one justifying factor (other than the fact that music gives me life). When Justin Timberlake dropped The 20/20 Experience album back in 2013, I wanted to get tickets for his Nashville show. Until I found out the cheapest tickets started at $200 apiece (thanks to the TicketMaster racket and ticket scalpers). So the cost of a two day pass would be worth seeing Justin Timberlake alone.
The Set Up
The festival is in its infancy, with 2017 being the third year, and takes place on the historic Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, Tennessee. The property used to be a horse farm, there’s still a large barn on site, and has been transitioned into a two hundred acre park . The word ‘park’ is used pretty loosely though, in my humble opinion, considering there’s very little natural shade.
The Lineup
There are three major stages, and two smaller stages dedicated to local talent and children’s entertainment. There were 57 artists scheduled to perform, and I admit I had to familiarize myself with quite a few beforehand as they weren’t on my musical radar.
Dilemma
Ride share, shuttle, or drive? For the uninitiated, traffic in the greater metropolitan Nashville area is horrible seven days a week. Just to emphasize how big of a deal the logistics are, there’s an entire page on the festival website dedicated to traffic, parking info, ride sharing, and shuttle service information. I decided to drive and park at the Liberty elementary school for $20. It was one of three festival designated offsite parking lots, and a short walk or $1 (each way) air-conditioned trolley ride to the park. Interesting tidbit, parking was free for three or more passengers at all three locations.
The Weather
If you Google ‘average temps in September for middle Tennessee,’ it’ll tell you to expect some rain, and that daytime temps can range anywhere from the low 70’s to upper 80s. It was 92 degrees on Saturday and 91 degrees on Sunday, with clear skies and no rain. Remember the part about there not being any natural shade available?
The Experience – Day 1
Man, listen. It was hot. In fact, I still have visible tan lines. Seriously. I’d post a picture but this ain’t that kind of blog. We arrived shortly after the gates opened at 10am, well hydrated and carrying our low backed folding lawn chairs over our shoulders.
I came prepared, even though I left my frozen cooling towel at home. Turns out it wouldn’t have mattered because it was Africa hot. Hell hot. Sub level of hell hot. I brought a lightweight bag with a portable battery charger, wipes, a refillable water bottle, a hat, and sunscreen. Unfortunately the hat was cotton and generated more heat if worn properly, so I mostly held it slightly above my head to shade my face from the sun.
We picked up lunch on the way to the Infiniti Gold Record Road stage, where we popped a squat at the front of the clearly designated blanket/chair area. The first 10 yards or so in front of each of the three major stages was reserved for standing only, and the rule was strictly enforced. Our lunch consisted of somebody’s idea, or maybe re-imagining, of beans and rice with sausage, but that person has clearly never even been to New Orleans. There was plenty of it left when I properly disposed of it in the trash.
We checked out The Texas Gentlemen for a bit. Annoyed by the lack of crowd participation, they threw out a few expletives (at a family friendly event) until a handful of people began to react accordingly. Shortly thereafter we left our belongings and walked across the (desert sands) festival grounds to the Midnight Sun stage to see Nashville-based artists Ruby Amanfu with Steelism. She sounded amazing (just like her recorded sound). At one point she mentioned the straps of her shoes were literally burning her feet (and she was under the shade of a stage), but she didn’t let it affect her performance. She said a quick prayer and soldiered on.
We visited a few vendor tents as we crossed back over to the Infiniti stage to see New Orleans natives Big Sam’s Funky Nation. I’ve been wanting to see this band for a while now. Maybe it was the heat, and I’m probably in the minority, but I was a little disappointed. Yes they were lively, and they brought that New Orleans sound, but it felt forced and kind of fake to me. Sort of like when someone smiles at you, and it’s a good imitation of a smile, but you know it’s not real because it hasn’t quite reached their eyes. However, I realize entertainers are human and have good and bad days, and professionals go on with the show regardless, so I’d definitely give them another shot if I caught them at a different venue.
We packed up our stuff and walked back over to the Midnight Sun stage to see The Shadowboxers. If you don’t know, you better ask somebody. At first listen, you might think Justin Timberlake joined another boy band (he produces this trio), however I would urge you to listen harder. Justin isn’t a member and these guys have real talent.
By the time the Shadowboxers finished up, we’d been sitting in direct sunlight for almost four hours, so we sought shelter at the closest misting tent. Unfortunately it was full. People were literally laying on the ground trying to cool off. And even though I’d used what little energy I could muster to get there, I couldn’t even be mad at them. If that’s what they needed to do to keep from getting heat stroke, more power to ’em.
We made a loop around the nearby food tents to a small eating area to see if we could find a little shade there. Unfortunately the area was covered by those partial (completely useless in 90 degree heat) sail shades, so it wasn’t much better than being out in the direct sun.
Getting desperate for relief, we thought we could make a pass through the barn to look at the artwork, but the line was ridiculously long and not moving. So we slowly made our way back to our seats. I’m not going to lie, I felt a little dizzy at this point, even though I’d made it a priority to stay hydrated.
I knew I needed to eat, but the heat had taken my appetite. And I enjoy eating, so that should tell you all you need to know about the weather. I was a bit concerned at that point, but I felt too drained to see what the nearby vendors had to offer. So I remained in my chair and continued to drink water.
We decided to stay put at the Midnight Sun stage because it was just too hot to move back and forth anymore. However, it wasn’t a big deal because we could hear artists on the Infiniti stage from where were sitting in front of the Midnight Sun stage. And this is how we enjoyed Nikki Lane (on the Infiniti stage), a Nashville based country artist.
No disrespect to Shovels and Rope, a talented folk-rock couple out of Charleston, South Carolina, but they were simply background noise as I worried about literally passing out if I didn’t give my body some kind of nourishment. And yet I was worried that I may literally get sick if I ate, because I was so danged hot.
I finally got up the energy to get a plate of pulled pork mac and cheese with an ice cold glass of berry lemonade. Turns out the sugar in the drink really helped me feel normal enough to eat and keep the food down. Listening to Better than Ezra on the Infiniti stage while we ate certainly helped as well. Even though we couldn’t see them, you could definitely hear that they were having a good time.
Once I felt almost human again, it was time for one of my favorite bands to get on the Midnight Sun stage. I’ve been to countless Trombone Shorty shows and this is the only one I’ve ever been to where I did NOT get up on my feet. Which should be another indicator of how hot it was, because I thoroughly enjoy shaking what my momma gave me at a TSOA show. We’re no strangers to excessive summer heat in middle Tennessee. But when you’re subjected to 90 degree heat with NO SHADE, for hours, it makes a big difference.
As good as Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue were, I couldn’t help but hear Gary Clark Jr. playing his guitar on the Infiniti stage. It takes a LOT to take my attention away from a TSOA show, but his rendition of If Trouble Was Money, Bright Lights, and Come Together had me tapping my toe to a different beat than the one on the stage in front of me. If it wasn’t so hot I may have wandered over there once the TSOA set ended.
I absolutely loved Walk the Moon. I would bet money that anyone reading this has heard Shut Up and Dance at some point in their lives. In fact, it seemed to become the unofficial festival theme song if you look at all the social media clips. Avalanche is another one of those tunes that stays in your head, but beyond those two hits, I didn’t know much else about this band. Turns out they were kind of my favorites of the weekend, and I enjoyed their entire set. They performed a few songs from their upcoming album (released two months after the festival), and I especially loved One Foot and Headphones. The lyrics are just as enjoyable as the music.
The Avett Brothers seemed to give a lively show as well, as far as I could hear. They were pretty entertaining even without the visuals to go along with some of their commentary.
As the sun began to set you could see an obvious shift of the crowds to the Midnight Sun stage where Justin was due to perform at 7pm. It was at this point we decided to move further back, closer to the gates, as every little piece of empty real estate around us began to fill up. I felt a little unsettled because it was the first time we were able to get a good visual of just how many people were on the property.
The BEST DECISION I Made
I really like Justin Timberlake. He’s one of those performers who can sing any genre and make it sound good. In fact, he brought Chris Stapleton (and his wife) on stage with him to sing Tennessee Whiskey, Fire Away, and Sometimes I Cry before launching into his own music. It was somewhere around Senorita, or maybe Holy Grail (without Jay-Z), that I started feel a little anxious about the moment when the show would end and the huge crowd had to leave. This probably stems from having to sit in major traffic twice a day, five times a week. As much as I was enjoying the show, I decided to leave, and the ride home was relatively smooth. I would find out in the morning what a good call this was.
The Experience – Day 2
When I woke up Sunday morning, I seriously considered skipping the festival. Until I thought about those two bills I laid out for my tickets, and I quickly found my motivation to return. Before heading out, I browsed through social media to see how the remainder of day one went. While people raved about Justin’s performance (he really is awesome entertainer), but they also ranted about the chaos that ensued after the mass exodus.
The people who paid $35 for an on site parking pass didn’t even start to move for 45 minutes. And even then, the only reason they were able to get out was because some random guy took it upon himself to start directing traffic. There were quite a few comments about this unnamed ordinary hero, and it’s people like him who renew my faith in humanity.
Apparently the mass police presence that directed traffic into town that morning were nowhere to be found at festival closing. There were many comments about it taking two hours to get the interstate, which is only four and a half miles away! Something else that was poorly planned was the singular drop off and pick up point for all mass transportation. So the city trolleys, multiple coach buses (shuttling people back to surrounding local cities), and Lyft and Uber drivers were all trying to pick up their respective passengers in the same single, one way lane.
With my cooling towel packed in a plastic bag full of ice water, we managed to make it to the festival grounds shortly after 11am. We planted ourselves in the vicinity of the Midnight Sun stage, underneath a pitiful tree, near the fence line and close to the front gate. Although the shade was minimal, it was better than nothing. Not only did we have to continually move as the sun made its way from east to west, but we also had to occasionally dodge (deadly!) falling Osage Oranges, which are actually green and kind of look like mini brains.
Unfortunately we missed Kingfish (guitar/blues), but we managed to catch The Settles Connection (gospel). Valerie June gave a nice acoustic performance on the Inifiniti stage. She’s a Tennessee native with a southern twang and unique sound. If I had to describe it I’d call it soulful bluegrass.
Next up on the Midnight Sun stage was another of my festival favorites, the Muddy Magnolias. This unlikely female duo from very different backgrounds are Nashville based and I just love their energy. Their performance alone was worth venturing back into the heat. They manage to cross many genres with ease but the rock based American Woman is probably my all time favorite. Their debut album Broken People was released in October of 2016, and I look forward to what future albums will bring.
The Revivalists (Infiniti) and Fitz and the Tantrums (Midnight Sun) both gave very energetic performances. Fitz and the Tantrums can definitely make your hands clap, and have that song stuck in your head all day. Out of my League is another of my favorites.
The highlight of day two was seeing Mavis Staples perform. She took the stage at 4:55pm and started out singing her recent stuff. But once she sung a few crowd favorites, like I’ll Take You There, the heat had taken its toll and I was ready to go. However, I was glad to have had the opportunity to see a living legend perform live at 78 years young, sounding just as good as she did in her 30s when she sang those classic songs with The Staple Singers back in the 70s.
Photo courtesy of PilgrimageFestival.com
The only two headliners left to play on Sunday were Ryan Adams, and Eddie Vedder (from Pearl Jam), and no disrespect, but I wasn’t all that upset about missing either of them. In my opinion, I’d definitely gotten my money’s worth out of the two day event.
By The Numbers
Here are some numbers to help you wrap your head around the size of the crowd.
2015/2016 attendance: 12,000 (per day, per year)
2017 attendance (see the infographic below):
Pros
The event was very family friendly, and the crowd was courteous and well behaved. Which surprised me because heat can make people rude and mean.
The acts started and ended ON TIME.
There was a lot to do in addition to the music.
There were plenty of food and drink vendors offering a wide variety of selections.
The on site parking at the elementary school was very well organized, and I had no trouble getting in or out on either day.
The traffic coming into Franklin for the festival was well organized and moved fairly well with the help of local law enforcement.
Kudos for having plenty of medical personnel on site. Surprisingly I only saw one minor medical issue and it was resolved quickly.
Cons
THE HEAT. Even though they had a lot of neat things set up, unfortunately I could only experience it through social media. It was just too hot to walk around and enjoy everything. Since this festival is still in its infancy, maybe they should consider moving it to October? If not, they should start planting a lot more trees now. 🙂
The two day pass is pretty steep, even for someone with a little disposable income. I’ve been to other music festivals (with actual SHADE, real seats, and multiple headliners) where VIP costs is about the same as the two day Pilgrimage pass. And the ‘early bird’ pricing only saves you $10. I’ve already gotten early bird offers by email for 2018, but why would I lay out all that money and I don’t even know who’ll be performing yet? Personally I’d rather pay a little less and have fewer artists on the bill. That would also prevent having to choose between artists, or leave one performance early to catch the end of another. And don’t get me started on the cost of VIP ($750!). That’s about what I pay for a round trip fight and decent hotel room for a 3-4 day getaway. They could definitely pair down some of the ridiculous ‘VIP benefits’ to lower the price. I mean seriously, who needs ‘concierge services’ in the middle of a farm?
Even though the patrons were all ages, the marketing seems to be directed towards millennials and hipsters. Even down to the terminology (artisanal, craft beer, locally sourced, organic, gluten free, shabby chic, vintage). Which is interesting given the average age of the festival goer was 40. I might be wrong but I don’t imagine many youngin’s in their 20s with enough disposable income to be able to afford this event. But if you Google the festival, all you see are pictures and videos of shiny happy young people.
They only allow one sealed bottle of water per person to be brought in from outside. Reason being, the proceeds for all bottled water went to some charity (it was clearly marked on the bottle but I don’t remember the details). While this is honorable in theory, I would rather pay a fee to bring in a small cooler of my own (subject to size restrictions and an inspection of course).
They could use more or larger misting tents, as well as more shaded areas.
There were water stations available to refill your water bottle, but there weren’t enough of them to handle the amount of people. However, kudos to the festival for monitoring complains on social media. On Sunday they’d provided more water stations to keep up with demand. They also responded to complaints about the porta potties running out of toilet paper and the hand washing stations running out of water.
As the day went on, the lines for food, drink, and merchandise got longer and slower. Some people complained that they stood in line for 40 minutes or longer.
The Infinit stage seemed to be louder than the Midnight Sun stage, which would’ve been a simple equipment fix. It worked in our favor when we decided not to move from stage to stage, but it was a bit of a distraction when the performances would overlap. It seems this was a much bigger problem from the previous two years, and they’ve managed to work out the proper stage locations, so maybe they’ll have the sound adjusted just right for 2018.
Lyft should be ashamed of themselves. As a festival sponsor, they were charging people anywhere from $100 to $200 to go less than 20 miles. Because there were so many people trying to use the service, the app wasn’t displaying the total rate before people requested an actual ride. I get raising fees when demand is greater, but this is a major event that THEY SPONSORED. Meaning, they had guaranteed fares. There was no need to raise fees, let alone price gouge. Several people commented they were able to contact Lyft and get the fees reduced, but they were still charged ridiculous rates for such short distances. Not a good look.
Final Thoughts
I’m glad I went, but honestly, it would take a hell of a line up to get me to return next year. The cost is just too steep, and there’s the unknown of the weather to deal with. I even looked into volunteering to bypass the cost and here’s what I found. There’s a $20 non-refundable application fee (there’s a maximum of 150 volunteer spots), plus a $225 deposit, to be refunded after you work your required nine hours. Um, I don’t think so.
Maybe I’ll reconsider in a few years when they’ve had a chance to really learn, grow, and improve upon what they’ve started. They’re already on the right track by monitoring their social media outlets, and actively seeking feedback about what went well and ideas for improvements. After all, this whole thing was started by an artist (Kevin Griffin from Better Than Ezra), and Justin Timberlake recently came on board as an organizer. Both artists have homes in Franklin, TN. Given time to mature, I think this could be a nice, major music event in my own back yard. No travel required.
Musically yours (three months later),
Angela