It's time to start planning your Bonnaroo week! Bryan Stone is out, so we get Evan Bonnaroo to fill in as guest host and share his picks for what shows and activities he has laid out. We are also joined by EDM Kyle to round out the discussion. The group covers everything from travel routines and pre-festival meetups at local hotspots (like Common John Brewing and the Manchester Walmart) to the importance of having a well-organized Bonnaroo packing list. Get practical insights on camp setup, including how to claim your space, orient your tent for shade, and quickly befriend neighbors for a supportive festival community.
The conversation also highlights music day by day, including the new Infinity Stage, and the diversity of genres-especially EDM. Kyle shares his curated playlist and top picks, while the group discusses the logistics of navigating the massive festival grounds, and the value of exploring plazas and fan-driven events like the Roo Bus party and Beer Exchange. Key festival survival tips include staying hydrated, applying sunscreen early, and bringing items to trade with fellow campers.
Kyle's Bonnaroo 2025 playlist here: https://thewhat.co/kylespicks
Get some of Kyle's Bonnaroo stickers on his Etsy store at https://dohpechytt.etsy.com/ and save 15% when you use code THEWHAT at checkout! Also, be sure and join The What Podcast for a special meetup and live episode on The How Stage inside Planet Roo at 4:00 PM on Thursday during Bonnaroo!
Listen to this episode of The What Podcast with Kyle and Evan here, or watch it on YouTube. Be sure and like and subscribe to The What Podcast wherever you get podcasts. Thanks for listening!
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Planning Your Perfect Bonnaroo Week: Packing Tips, Schedule Strategies & Survival Guide
I've also been driving my car with no air conditioning lately.
Trying to acclimate.
I'm working in an office.
Yeah, me too.
I don't have a chance.
Yeah, in the chair all day.
Exactly.
Yeah, we're laughing, but it's the truth.
Is that your way of saying your air conditioning's broken, Kyle?
Yeah.
Welcome back to the What Podcast.
It's Star Wars day, right?
It's for all the nerds out there when we're recording.
It's a big day.
It's also Cinco de Cuatro.
Cinco de Cuatro.
I'm Barry.
That's Russ.
You'll notice that Brian is not here.
He is on a special assignment.
He's trying to figure out just how much jam band it takes to actually kill a human being.
I think he's doing widespread and Pearl Jam and who knows what else.
But Russ, you and I, we went deep into the portal.
We went and got a stand-in for Brian.
We went and got none other than Evan Bonnarooo.
How you doing, man?
Doing pretty good.
Speaking of jam bands, I just got back from Vegas doing the Sphere last week.
Yeah, I wanted to hear about that.
My buddy, one of my best friends, Tony, was getting married out there.
I'm like, let me squeeze in a day early.
And we got a bunch of people to come on for the Thursday show.
It was a really, really good time, great show.
Getting in and seeing other people.
It's kind of like Bonnarooo getting to see other people's faces, see it for the first time.
It's a really special place and a special show.
How was it doing it the second time?
That was my third overall show.
So it's kind of cool to know what's going to happen a little bit.
It's definitely worth going as many times as you can.
So it definitely doesn't get old.
Nice.
Well, thanks for joining us, for filling in.
Thanks for filling in for Brian.
Big shoes, I guess.
I mean, me and Brian have similar tastes.
He's a little grumpier than I am.
He's a lot grumpier than any human being.
If he's not grumpy, he's grumpy.
If that makes sense.
He's only happy when he's grumpy.
He makes up reasons to be grumpy.
I'm glad to be here to lighten up the show a little bit.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
If Brian ever shows up and he's in a good mood, look out.
Something's wrong.
It's bad.
He'll figure out a way to make himself unhappy.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
We have a special guest in addition to Evan.
Kyle is joining us to talk about EDM.
He's been on with us several times.
He's kind of not the EDM expert.
I wouldn't say that, but he certainly knows his stuff.
Compared to us, he is.
Yeah.
He fills the hole in the market.
He fills the hole in the market.
He fills the hole.
And what I like about him when he joins us is he's not just focused on that.
So many of us, he sees the big picture when it comes to the lineup, but he also brings
that EDM expert.
And he was kind enough to put together a Spotify playlist for us, which we'll link to.
We'll link to it.
He told me he was up until four in the morning today putting that list together.
So please go check it out.
He put a lot of work into it.
But he put a lot of work into it.
And I started listening to it on Friday and again Saturday and then this morning.
And I got to be honest, I like some of it and some of it I can't stand.
Just don't like it at all.
Some of it.
But you know, that's the thing.
Some things are for some people and not for everybody.
So but it's a really cool list and I appreciate him putting that much effort into it.
Guys, we're what?
Just a little over a month.
Are you ready?
You started packing?
Yes.
Evan?
I just unpack.
So now I have to.
Oh, that's right.
You were gone.
Yeah.
But now we can finally shift focus to festival mode and start putting everything together.
I also just moved in with Skyler a month ago.
So I know where everything is.
We're all there.
It's about shoving it into the car now.
So there it is.
Cool.
Do you keep a Bonnarooo Go pack, Go pile?
Or do you use?
I mean, you travel a lot more than I do, certainly.
But is it all in one place typically?
Generally, yes.
I mean, I also don't have a house.
I have an apartment.
So like I don't have fair enough.
I don't have the luxury of having everything in multiple rooms.
So it all kind of has to be in one place.
But yeah, you just kind of keep some bins together.
And you're just like, here's my bin of my camping stuff.
String lights.
And pocket knives and that kind of stuff.
And you're just like, all right, let me just take that bin and throw it in the car.
I know we asked a couple.
We asked some folks on our Discord to send us some pictures of their piles.
And a couple of people did.
So yeah, we got a few pictures and we'll put that up.
The what.co.
Slash Discord.
If you want to join, we got some people putting their piles together in the corner.
And yeah, I see some tapestries and somebody, I don't know if this is a joke,
but somebody posted a picture of what just like a giant bubble that's clear
with like a couch inside.
I like it.
All right.
So any other news or anything we need to touch on before we bring Kyle in to talk about?
Basically, what we talked about or what we wanted to talk about was
how the actual week kind of goes.
We've all done it enough.
We, you know, we know we make those plans, but we also know the sun comes up at a certain time
and it's hot and you better take care of your feet and take care of the sunscreen and hydrate
and all those sorts of things.
And the reality of the farm is huge.
You know, so we try to try to deal with that kind of thing today on the show.
Yeah, after going for 10 plus years, you start to know how the week's going to go and you know
yourself and you know how to be realistic about what to set your expectations at.
Yeah, see, it only takes 10 years and then you know what, you know how to do this.
Yeah, that reminded me, I was listening back to last week's show.
We had Beth and Abby on, and I think at one point Beth said something about
Saturday last year.
She was like, yeah, I wanted to go see this, but it was hot and I just wasn't going to leave camp.
And I'm like, yep, yep, yep.
Yeah, it was a Michigander.
I think she wanted to see him, but yeah, those are those game day decisions.
That I mean, you could take the schedule that you make for yourself.
And then if it's, you know, over 90 degrees, you can tell that this is probably going to happen.
If it's under 90 degrees, you're like, okay, this might actually all happen.
Yeah, exactly.
And that's okay.
That's the point.
I think that's the point.
You're going to be there for a long, long time.
You'll be there for four or five minimum days.
You can't do it all.
Don't try.
Don't beat yourself up over it.
Just enjoy it.
All right, so let's get into it.
Here's our conversation with Kyle.
We're going to talk a little EDM and we're going to talk about how we think Bonnarooo might go this year.
Hey, there he is.
Friend of the show.
EDM Dubmaster.
Is that right?
Is that like so five minutes ago?
I'll take Dubmaster.
That's sick.
It feels like one of those that I felt old when I said that for whatever reason.
How are you, Kyle?
No, I'm great.
How are you guys doing?
Doing great.
Well, he's EDM Kyle to you.
He's Volkswagen Kyle to me.
Okay.
That is true.
Multi hats like everybody else in this thing.
Barry, you might be the only one that doesn't have a Volkswagen in this.
No, not anymore.
I used to.
I used to have a fastback.
Believe it or not, when I was in college, breaks went out one day going down a hill.
That's a bad feeling when you put your foot all the way to the floor.
I don't know if you guys have ever done that.
I have.
It's a bad feeling, isn't it?
You start looking for hills or something to bump into garbage cans or something.
Yeah, but anyways, Kyle's got an 81.
81, right?
81 van again.
West Valley.
Yes, sir.
Yeah.
Compliments mine pretty well.
Steely van.
And my first Bonnarooo 2018, you and I were camped out in Pod 2 together.
Pod 2, yeah.
I think you guys were camped right next to where I was in Pod 2
because I remember seeing two buses together.
It's so funny.
Yeah, I've talked to so many people that I've told like,
oh yeah, we camped in Pod 2 in 2018 and I've heard so many people like,
I was there in Pod 2.
But it was my first year so I didn't know hardly anyone.
It's so funny.
Yeah, evidently we made a mark because a lot of people remember,
I'll put the picture up, but the two buses there.
Yeah, you don't know how good you had it either back then.
Like you went from Pod 2 to like artist camping.
You'll even know, you were never in Pod 9 back in the day in 2012 schlepping
all the way across no paved roads, stepping on rocks.
That was my one and only GEA camp was Pod 2 and I must say it was pretty good.
You had it good.
It was a good spot.
We were like right near the trees kind of.
It was perfect.
Yeah, we had shade.
It was nice.
That was cool.
I think it's, I'm glad we're talking about this because part of what we want to do today,
and it's funny to me, we're all veterans of multiple Bonnarooo's with different experiences.
And so kind of thought we would go through the lineup.
We haven't really done, we've done do's and don'ts.
We've done advice.
We've done camping tips, but I don't know that we've done sort of where we go through the day,
like how it might actually play out.
We're going to try to do that.
And of course we got Kyle here because we want to talk about EDM,
which we have said many, many times, neither Russ nor I nor Brian know much about.
So we reached out to the folks who do.
And Kyle is kind enough to have made a playlist even for us.
Yeah, we'll put that in the show notes as well.
So we'll have that.
But kind of wanted to talk about like what you guys were just talking about,
how this thing actually works.
And I've thought about it a lot this morning.
I don't want, I don't know.
We'll see how deep we go.
I kind of feel like, as we mentioned last week with Abby and Beth,
I don't want to like give away too much because it's everybody's first time.
I mean, not everybody, but for the first timers,
you know, I don't want to tell you how your, your Bonnarooo should be,
but also do kind of want to give some here's what you're going to expect kind of thing.
Does that make sense?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
All right.
So what do you want to start with first?
Do we want to go through the EDM stuff or just kind of go day by day and drop in your tips?
Kyle, how do you guys want to do this?
I'm open.
Oh, man.
Let's go day by day.
Yeah, I have my stuff organized day by day as well.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's got some picks too.
All right.
Let's do this first.
Russ, you're going to show up tomorrow.
Kyle, what day are you?
What do you mean?
Kyle, what's your plan?
I get there around like one o'clock on Tuesday, usually.
All right.
So you're a Tuesday as well.
How about you, Abba?
I get to Manchester on Monday.
Oh my God.
Well, I have a, I have a, I have a 15 hour drive down there.
So you guys are killing me.
Well, we stay in Manchester.
We go to common John on Monday night and have a lot of people in town.
And then we wake up and at eight or nine in the morning, we drive right in.
And we're there Tuesday morning.
Okay.
Maybe I should come in Monday night then.
You're talking down to it.
If you don't go to common John.
Common John does have beer.
Okay.
Yeah.
Talk me into it.
He's in.
I'm actually thinking Wednesday.
So well, let's just go ahead.
Go ahead.
Evan, since you're the first Monday, how did your week?
You, you mean you kind of alluded to it, but how did your week start?
You get a 15 hour drive.
Yeah.
So the past couple of years we've been driving down.
I have a group of a core group of like four or five people.
We usually drive down, leave Sunday morning really early, get down to Knoxville
and stay in a hotel there.
It's like an 11 hour drive.
I'm in Jersey city, by the way.
And then, so 11 hours down there, we wake up and then it's two, three hours to Manchester.
Last year we stopped in Nashville for some barbecue brunch, which was really cool.
And then we're in Manchester and getting our last bunch of supplies,
go another liquor store, put stuff in plastic bottles.
And then we go whoever we meet up with, who's ever in town at common John.
And last year we had probably like 25 people meet up there.
So it was really fun.
Nice.
What was your first year?
My first year was 2012.
Okay.
So you couldn't obviously go on Monday then.
So how has this changed?
Over the years, we, we, since it's a much bigger trip for us, we've gone to Nashville for a couple
days beforehand.
Sometimes they used to have a CMA Fest at the same time or right before.
So all abroad, it was, it was, they would close out all of Broadway and have like cool shows
like Darius Rocker played one year.
So it was kind of like a nice little parlay.
So we get to Nashville like Tuesday night and then we wake up on Wednesday and drive to
Manchester.
And you're what camping?
I'm in group now with the Roobus.
Okay.
But I mean, it's tent, cot, sleeping bag.
Yeah.
Yep.
Pretty much nothing, nothing too fancy, but over the years you get, you refine your, your
gear and your methodologies.
Yeah.
All right.
We'll come back to that.
Kyle, when do you, what's your travel?
What's your itinerary?
I'm in North Atlanta.
I'm in North Atlanta.
So it's, you know, in Steely Van, it's like a three hour drive.
You know, have to cross over that, that mountain pass, whatever that is, Montaigle or whatever.
Montaigle.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Which is always fun, you know, in an old vehicle.
But yeah, I usually leave here at like 11, 10 or 11 or so and hit the road, get up there
around between 12 and two usually.
I have a whole chart on my phone where I've like kept track of all the times like when
I've arrived.
It's always around like between like 115 and 130.
Yeah.
Usually at that point, there's like no line for the security.
You just breeze right on in and they go put you up by the arch and.
Yeah.
There you are.
It's so simple.
And how many in your group?
Immediately, it's just me, but for the past couple of years, I've been meeting up with
people who are coming from other states and we all camp together in one long little convoy
type thing.
So we'll usually like meet up at the Walmart parking lot beforehand and then travel in
together.
But up until recently, it's mainly just been me just making friends with my neighbors and
having a good time.
All right.
So what's interesting about this is you guys are you've both done it, but and you have
a routine, you know, about the Walmart parking lot.
Evan, you know about Knoxville used to be Nashville.
Ross used to go to that Walmart parking lot too, right?
I did.
First couple of years.
I think it's worth mentioning the Walmart parking lot.
It's almost a festival within itself because you get so many people there
basically just waiting to go in and it's a great place to stop and like you said,
pick up supplies, pick up beer, pick up ice, everything you need that Walmart.
They have specifically tailored to Bonnarooo because they know so many people come in.
So they stock a lot more camping gear.
They stock a lot more beer, you know, food, drinks, all that stuff.
So that's pretty much where everybody stops in first thing in Manchester, right?
Yeah, that's go ahead.
I was going to say it used to be a mad dash and back then everyone was just waiting there
on Wednesday and then we got the notification gates are open and everyone sprints to their cars.
Oh, yeah.
But it kind of reminded me listening last week, by the way, thanks again.
I said Abby and Beth, but Beth made the point at the end of the show last week
if you forget something, don't worry about it.
You know what I mean?
I used to think and I've made the joke.
I used to think I was going to the moon, you know, and had to pack everything or I was going to die.
But if you forget something or you need something, there's always that Walmart
or whatever else is on the road there.
But along those lines and we made that point last week again,
get gas, fill up, check everything, you know, maybe an hour outside of Manchester.
Don't wait till you're inside Manchester, depending on when you're getting there,
but stop, get gas, fill up, bathroom break, water, whatever that type of thing.
Murfreesboro is a really good place to do that.
They have a couple of Walmarts and there's a little bit more infrastructure there.
Yeah, yeah.
Depending on which way you're coming, you know,
Montegel, like I said, there's a couple of gas stations, there's the McDonald's.
That's where we always stop, hit that bathroom right there and go down the hill and you're there.
All right, so when you guys roll in, what's first agenda?
I usually jump out and I put one stake in the ground for the canopy leg.
Because usually I'm by myself setting up camp and like, you know, it's always that
GA camp kind of mad dash for property.
Like we all have our allotted space, but you kind of want to claim your space real quick,
just, you know, so it's fair.
As usual, I jump out and get the canopies out, put the stake in,
yank that canopy across, stretch it out and try to get it like set up as quick as possible.
And then I start cracking the beers.
I start setting up camp slower and start making shade.
But yeah, I get really anxious every time about it.
Like as we're pulling in, Russ, you could relate to this.
Our slider doors on the buses are on the passenger side.
And you know, you don't really have a say on where they're going to park you when they're lining you
up, like what side of camp is going to be on.
And so there's been a time or two where they've put me where, you know, my door is opening to the
street.
I had to tell them, hey, can you like pause traffic for a second so I can turn my vehicle around?
I need to get turned around.
I don't want a camp out here on the street.
I want a camp on that side.
Yeah, because they give you, it's like a 20 by 20 spot and it's enough room for your car.
And then a tent next to it is typically what you would have.
But yeah, with our doors being on the passenger side, it opens one way.
So we have to orient the door so that it's opening into our space.
So yeah, we're not a Honda element.
You know, we can't camp on either side.
Like, you know, we're set on one side, but they're always super cool about it every time.
So it's only happened twice.
Yeah, that's what I was, that's where I was going to go.
It's all about attitude.
You know, if you come out of your car with attitude, you might get attitude back.
But if you're cool, they're usually pretty cool, right?
I got to remember these typically these guys working.
It's their first time.
They don't know, especially if you're getting there on Monday or Tuesday.
You know, they've been given instructions and here you come, you know, don't fight them.
I got one little tip for that.
If you have a couple of cold bottles of water handy, hand those out to the people working.
I was about to say that.
Yes, I do that.
They'll help you out.
You need some a little extra.
I've told this story many times.
The last real time we were back in the woods, what is it?
931, whatever the, you know, we used to go in with 20 or 30 people and me and Brian and
Brad Steiner and we would police tape off an acre.
It was unbelievable.
It was horrible.
And I got there first and got out and I had a songbirds hat on, which is a museum here
in Chattanooga and the kid parking cars.
It was his first day.
You could tell he's like, ah, but he saw my hat and we got to talk.
And so everything worked out.
And here comes Steiner in his car and he starts and I'm like, dude, I got this taken care of.
Relax.
He gets out of the car.
No, no, no.
And I'm like, okay, man, go ahead.
Have your moment.
Yeah.
It reminds me of that kid rock meme on the beach when he's like all huffed up and he's
walking.
He's like, show your ass.
Go ahead.
Show your ass.
I'll tell.
I'll talk to them.
I'll see about this.
Do you know who I am?
Yeah, you know exactly.
I'm on the radio.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Be cool and everything will happen and it'll work out.
Stake your land.
Like you said, lay out your space, pop a beer, relax.
You're there.
Meet your neighbors.
Meet your neighbors.
When you're taking a breath and you're all set up and you make eye contact with that
sweaty guy over there who's also exhausted from setting up his camp.
Raise your beer up to him and say, hey.
He'll say, hey.
And now you've got a friend for the rest of the weekend.
That's right.
It's so great.
You'll end up watching out for each other.
Share.
You can help each other.
If you help each other out with a canopy or two, they'll help you out.
Yep.
Oh, yeah.
It goes a long way.
Chances are either you forgot something.
You might have to ask your neighbor or they forgot something and you've got them covered.
It works out both ways.
So yeah, it's a good way to get acquainted and then you're pretty much
because you're going to be there all weekend.
Anyways, you might as well get along.
Absolutely.
Exactly.
You get kind of a neighborhood watch going because if you know that
they're going in at a certain time and you're staying back at camp,
you can sort of keep an eye on everything and they can do the same when you're in.
So yeah, it's good to have neighbors.
Absolutely.
And if you're my neighbor this year, I have a limited edition Steely Van Bonnarooo sticker.
Oh, there you go.
I'm all going to make like 20 of them.
So if you're my neighbor this year, you're going to get one of those stickers.
So, you know.
Nice.
Bring something.
Yeah, bring something to trade.
Yeah, bring something to trade.
Try to make it something local to you.
Yeah, I mean, you're coming from Atlanta.
We're coming from Chattanooga Avenue.
You're coming from the East Coast.
Jersey.
You know, bring something.
Whatever it is, that's kind of cool things.
The other thing, and you just said, Russ, you're going to be together for a long time.
And I was thinking about that this morning.
This is a different kind of event.
It's not like you're going to be there for a long, long time, right?
And that's really, I guess, part of why I thought about this idea for this kind of this particular show.
There's a rhythm, you know, it's an all it's 24 seven.
So it's not just go see a show and come back and it's over.
You know, there's a morning, there's a lunchtime, there's mid afternoon.
There's all kinds of different things that happen.
There's a cadence that you pick up on.
Yeah.
And so it's important to sort of set that up.
The other thing I would say, and a lot of people have said, have mentioned this,
it's going to be hot.
It's going to be sunny.
If you're prone to burning, go ahead and put that sunscreen on.
As soon as you get out.
Yeah.
Don't forget.
Everywhere.
And that's an easy one to forget about, right?
You've been in the car for so long.
You're excited.
You get out, you start setting up and before you know it, you're burned.
Right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Don't wait on that.
I don't know if you remember us, Evan Talley, our friend.
Be sure and get those haunches.
Put that stuff on those haunches.
Get them in the haunches.
I don't know if I have haunches, but I'll make sure it's on there.
Still makes me laugh.
Yeah.
Put it on those places that you don't normally think about.
All right.
So you guys get settled in and then what?
Are you going into center-roo right away?
I mean, what happens on a Tuesday?
It's not open yet.
I can't go to center-roo Tuesday.
So what are you going to, what are you doing all day long?
I'm in charge of the kind of camp design for our, we have a big rebus camp.
So I'm, I got a vest on, a clipboard and everything.
So I'm telling everyone where to park.
I'm serious.
I'll send talk with.
That's awesome.
Yeah.
And like, I have a diagram now for like where everyone's going to be.
Cause we have a big monkey bar and everything.
But after that, you can kind of walk around and see what's up in the plazas.
It's cool to just go to the park.
It's cool to just go walk over by the arch.
That used to be like checking out the new design and just kind of seeing what's around and
feeling it out.
Cause there's always a lot of like new things to pay attention to.
And there's new designs and you know, little things here and there.
So you're not going to be bored.
I promise.
No.
Again, you guys are veterans, but we've made the point,
find your landmarks and find them with the idea that they will change.
Right.
So yeah, that, that corner lot, that corner flag or whatever that looks good at noon
on Tuesday will look completely different at midnight later or even the next day when
everybody starts arriving.
So yeah, try to get a good lay of the land.
Maybe air tag something in your camp, your car or something.
That's, that always helps.
Yeah.
Also keep, you know, hydrate start if you haven't already start drinking that water,
pop the beer, have your cold drink, whatever, but start hitting that water as well.
Yep.
There you go.
I'm jealous.
All right.
So check out everything Tuesday.
Have fun.
Eat your snacks.
Find out where the bathrooms are.
Find out where the water is.
Meet your neighbors.
Right.
That's, that's day one.
Wednesday is that's when things really, what a change, what a difference.
You guys, Evan, especially you can talk about it.
The rew bus has a full event day long schedule.
Yeah.
And it's where we're on the schedule.
Last year we have, we have a totem.
We're calling it a purple carpet.
So dress up fancy and we'll, I'll get your photo.
I think we're going to have some sort of backdrop and everything to take photos.
And then this is all on the schedule too.
So we have a full lineup from I think like three or four PM all the way till
one o'clock in the morning of really awesome local artists.
And then Jason of Cherub is going to be back there again.
And shout out to Maddie and Andrew who are putting this whole thing together.
And we got a lot of great artists.
Wanda is going to be there as well.
And there's a special surprise at the end.
Nice.
Yeah.
Confirmed.
Confirmed.
Confirmed.
Confirmed.
Saw that on the schedule.
Confirmed.
I like it.
All right, Ross.
So here's the thing.
I'm, I want to come up, come over rather Wednesday.
Are we going to be able to get out there?
I mean, that's always the big question for us.
Right?
Because we got to go through Centeroo.
We can get there.
Can we get back?
No, you don't go through Centeroo.
You can't go through Centeroo on Wednesday.
Yeah, I got to go around the...
Got to go around it.
Production Road.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Kind of make a right there behind the what stage.
And then, you know, where in the woods is right there on the edge.
Just walk through.
There's a camp there.
You can walk through that.
Used to be when that was VIP camping, you know, it was sectioned off.
But now you can kind of just walk straight through.
But yeah, you can get there.
Okay.
So, explore.
Explore, explore, explore.
That's the thing, right?
All right.
So what else about Wednesday?
You explore, you hydrate, you check stuff out.
You see what's new, like you said.
It's funny, you mentioned like seeing what's new.
And I think you kind of alluded to like you used to go see the new arch.
But like now that it's a digital arch, it's like, you know, it's something new every day.
Whereas like back in the past, I was like, oh, what's the new design going to be?
Right.
So you see all that stuff.
And also like Tuesday, Wednesday, you'll find me out there selling stickers.
I'll be going up and down the camps and, you know, just trying to try to make some little
bit of food money back, you know, spread some positivity, meet some cool people,
and sell some stickers and all that good stuff.
So well, speaking of stickers, you got an Etsy store, right?
Why don't you, why don't you plug that in?
I do have an Etsy store.
It's called Dope Shit.
It's that right there, but it's not spelled dope shit, but it's dope shit.
And you spell that.
D-O-H-P-E-C-H-Y-T-T.
You thought you had me on that one.
Well, people that are listening to audio, you know, you got a lot of stuff.
True, true, true.
Good point.
Good point.
I always watch the episodes.
I forget people listen to them.
This is the sticker for this year, radiate positivity, a little radiation sign.
I've also got the classic like barou stickers and glitter barou stickers.
I've got pins and I've got keychains and I've got stupid stickers.
So I've got a lot of stuff.
Check it out.
There's also a sale going on right now through Barou.
If you use coupon code The What, all caps, you get 15% off.
And the plug-ins now.
We should set you up a little table at the Wednesday party.
Oh, there you go.
Oh yeah, that'd be cool.
What do you...
I've got an inventory.
Speaking of Wednesday...
Speaking of Wednesday, we also had somebody drop this on our Discord.
There's a Rue chess meetup.
Yep.
So if you want to play chess, bring your board, bring your pieces.
That's Wednesday from 3 to 4 p.m. in Plaza 5.
Well, along those lines, because I was just looking at that schedule,
what do you tell people it's their first time about not trying to do everything all at once?
I say you can't see all of Disney World in one day.
So you're going to miss something.
You have to live with it.
And that's why you got to come back next year.
But there's an inclination, you know what I mean?
It's like we got to go see everything all at once.
And I know how I am.
You get out of the car, let's go.
We got to go, go, go.
I guess what I'm saying is my advice is it's a marathon.
It's not a sprint.
Spend that whatever your first day, you know, just relaxing.
Taking it all in, finding out where everything is.
And then there's tomorrow.
We always say it.
Don't overdo the first day.
You want to get to Monday, right?
Somehow, some way, you got to get to Monday.
Right.
All right.
Yeah.
It's so crazy because Wednesday didn't exist back in the day.
Thursday was moving day and it was a relaxing day.
There was almost nothing really until about what?
Three or four in the afternoon.
And now Wednesday has a, you know, especially out in the plazas,
has a full schedule.
And also remind everybody, it's a huge place.
You think you're going to be able to just jump from one plaza to the next.
And you can, but it's a long way.
So just kind of be ready, be comfortable.
You know, there you go.
Get your steps in now.
Yeah.
Do it now.
I've also been driving my car with no air conditioning lately.
Trying to acclimate.
I'm working in an office.
Me too.
I don't have a chance.
Yeah.
In the chair all day.
Exactly.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We're laughing, but it's the truth.
Is that your wife saying your air conditioning is broken, Kyle?
What?
All right.
What?
Anything else on Wednesday?
There's a hydration meetup.
And speaking of stickers, there's a sticker hut.
I think we're going to be all in a group.
So that might be another good place for you to be, Kyle.
Yeah.
I got to look into that.
Yeah.
Yeah. They reached out too.
I think I'm going to try to get them some, some what podcast stickers?
Maybe some of my face.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I can't wait to do that again.
I still see that lady's face last year.
Thanks for the sticker of your face.
All right.
So again, you can go all night if you want to on Wednesday.
And you're going to want to, you're going to think about it.
But then Thursday comes and just remind everybody the sun comes up, what, about 5 45, 550,
six o'clock in the morning.
You're going to want a full night's rest.
There's another good tip.
Talking about your, your van and the door and how it opens.
If you can try to think about where the sun is going to come up.
Figure out which way is east.
Correct.
And how you orient your tent made that mistake several times.
And also maybe look around at where the generators are and the lights that they,
that, uh, Bonnarooo puts in place because that thing is going to come through your tent door
or whatever.
If you're next to it, we made that mistake as well.
Seemed like a really good idea at noon.
Midnight, you got a bright light.
We may or may not have disabled one of those one year.
Yeah, we might've turned one off.
But I'll make coffee one year, so it's okay.
Exactly.
And where the porta potties are, that was another mistake.
The slamming doors all night long.
But yeah, the sun comes up in the East.
Don't forget.
And it's going to come in.
It's going to hit your tent at six o'clock in the morning.
And it's going to be hot and bright and steamy.
So if you don't learn that lesson on Thursday, you're going to learn it real quick on Friday.
You're going to learn it.
Correct.
I've heard a lot of people say, and I'm kind of just going randomly here, but like put
your clothes in your car when you leave or your blankets at the, you know, so that they
don't get wet if it rains.
That's it.
I've never thought about that one.
But, you know, just those sorts of things.
Actually, even just the dew at night, if you get back late, that can just be due on your
sleeping bag.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
Some tents, so you'll be able to drip.
I've had that where three or four in the morning in a drop hitting you in the head.
So if you got a tarp, put it over your tent.
That helps a little bit.
What are some of those other ones?
I'm just laughing at you guys in camper van.
Yeah, these are not the issues that we face.
You guys have a dude dripping from the tent ceiling.
What are you talking about?
Oh yeah, spoiled.
That's true.
Although they also act as ovens though.
Like, I'm sure you could attest to that, Russ.
Like, it gets hot in there.
But you sleep upstairs, so maybe it's different for you.
I don't know.
I sleep upstairs except at Bonnarooo because, like you said, all the heat rises and it just
gets trapped up there.
So it does kind of cook you.
Most of the time, especially in winter, that's a great place to sleep.
But yeah, I think at Bonnarooo, sleeping downstairs.
Interesting.
Okay.
I thought you would be breezier up top.
Well, you'd think so, but all the heat rises.
And I do run fans and I've got the windows open and stuff and it helps.
But it's still just a few degrees cooler downstairs.
And every degree cooler you can get helps when you're trying to sleep.
The more you know.
There you go.
What are you guys doing about meals?
Are you snacking?
Are you grazing?
Are you full meals?
I bring a lot of fruit.
I think the past couple of years, I've just survived off of cold fruit.
I showed up with like 12 mangoes.
You just eat a whole lot of fruit and sandwiches, like cold sandwiches,
and then some festival food.
Got to get a Wookie Dog.
Got to get a Rotti Roll.
And yeah, fruit.
Yeah, of course, a lot of that's not open yet on Wednesday, Tuesday, Wednesday.
That is true.
Wookie Dogs are.
Those are out in the Shakedown Street or wherever that is.
Or whatever that little area is called.
Yeah, each plaza now has their own kind of a couple places to get something to eat.
I don't bring any perishable food.
It's not worth it.
It's going to ruin your cooler and everything that's in your cooler.
You're not going to want to cook.
All right, so we're up Thursday.
Let's start talking about lineup type of stuff.
What are you guys doing?
What's your first thing?
And I know what your answer should be.
So let's hear it.
Yeah, four o'clock.
Four o'clock.
Thursday, when it opens up, I'm running straight to the merch table.
That's why.
That's why I go to like the second center opens.
I high knee it straight to the merch table.
It's the only time I run all year and I get there.
I get my merch.
I head back to camp and then I go back into center and have a good time.
All right.
I need that.
I need to get the posters.
Nice.
All right.
What about you?
You're going to be at four o'clock.
Yeah, I'm not hearing the right answer yet.
I don't know the answer.
Four o'clock Planet Rue.
I got you.
So speaking of which, we're actually have a tent for Totem or a booth in Planet Rue this year
for Totem and we're going to be there.
I think I could announce this.
It's going to be in a shaded big tent this year with the stage.
So there's going to be extra shade there.
So I'm going to help set up the booth there and then I'm going to see Kyle at the merch
stand and then I'm going to be probably catch a shower too.
And then I'm going to be back there to see the Watt podcast at four p.m.
There you go.
There it is.
All right.
Yeah.
Ditto.
You know, the merch thing is a good point.
What you don't want, they have lockers.
So if you get a locker and you go and you want to buy merch, you can put it in a locker, I guess.
But what you don't want is to have that merch and then have to schlep it around
for the rest of the day.
Right.
So you got to plan to go get it, take it back to your camp and factor that in.
Right.
If you're fortunate enough to be close enough, no big deal.
But if you're in one of those back lots, of course, if you're there by Thursday,
you probably fairly close.
But still, you got to consider that.
Right.
What you carry in, you've got to carry around with you all day.
The locker.
I've never used a locker.
I've always been curious about it.
But lately I've been camped near the arch, so I've been able to pop back out.
But a lot of years I've been walking around carrying t-shirts and posters.
I'm just sweating.
Like I'm grabbing these shirts draped over my arms.
I'm still walking around Centeroo to see all the new stuff.
I'm like, man, I got to get back to camp.
I should pull this stuff down.
But yeah.
I will say with them, they're doing a lot more diverse merch.
When they release it the day before or whatever,
the good stuff goes fast.
So if you see like a cool fanny pack or last year they had a fishing vest,
that kind of stuff.
If you're not just looking for a t-shirt, if you want something specific,
get there early because it goes fast.
Yeah.
Overalls, cast iron pans.
Yeah.
All the good stuff.
Yeah, the Lodge.
Yeah, we've got one of those.
Those are cool.
Imagine carrying that thing around all day.
That would be straight back to camp.
Like there's no walk around Centeroo with a cast iron skill it needed.
Yeah, I was fortunate that year because Lodge,
remember they were camped just a few rows down from us.
So I just got it while I was at camp.
Didn't have to cater.
Yeah, we were very lucky.
Bob Kellerman was right next to us.
But we did have a couple of friends come by and buy two and left them with us
and come back later to get them because they didn't want to carry them around
in Centeroo all day long as you can imagine.
So yeah, that's a good tip.
Plan that out.
Think about it.
And then come back and start your day, right?
So music for you.
When's it start?
Wait, go ahead.
Four o'clock at the house stage in Planet Roo.
We're doing a live podcast.
The What Podcasts live on stage.
It's going to be me, you, Barry and Brian.
And we've got some special guests lined up.
Brad Parker is going to be there.
And so we're going to record a live episode.
So you can be there for that Q&A.
You can ask questions.
And then we're going to have like a little meetup kind of before and after.
And we're still working on an artist, correct?
We are.
I've made the ask.
We'll see if it happens.
I'm hoping.
We'll have an artist perform.
But then mostly what I'm excited about is hanging out with everybody who listens to this show.
It's going to be a lot of fun.
Plus talking to Brad Parker.
Pardon?
So the Hug and Howdy Tour.
The Hug and Howdy Tour.
That's right.
It continues.
And very excited about having Brad Parker be a part of our panel.
As I call him now, our high paid fact checker.
He listens in on all this and I get texts from him.
You got that wrong.
You got one more thing wrong.
Fix it.
All right.
Now can we talk music?
Yeah, let's get into music.
All right.
What do we got?
What's first?
What are we listening to on Thursday?
I've got a Sammy Virgie, Joey Valence and Die Spits for Thursday.
Those are my three that I really want to see for the day.
Yeah, those are three good ones.
What do you got, Abbie?
Yeah.
I'm going to shout out Shan Lauren Callahan.
She's Maggie Rogers guitar player.
She's playing who?
Shotgun Averoo at the Arch.
Got two.
Crumb Snatchers.
We've got the podcast.
I think my first artist that I'm really excited about is Will Dorado.
They're really great.
Put them on your road trip playlist.
And then I got Marcus King, Dogs in a Pile, Luke Combs, Rebecca Black, Daniel Donato,
Dom Da, ICP and maybe Frick Frack.
What do you guys think about the show?
What do you guys think about Luke Combs?
How many of those are you actually going to see, though?
You just mentioned pretty much everyone playing.
Yeah, yeah.
That's true.
This is the teleportation schedule.
So we'll see what actually happens.
I am pretty good at making a good amount of the shows, but.
Well, shout out to Dogs in a Pile.
We had them on a couple of weeks ago and we saw them perform here in Chattanooga.
And so, yeah, that's going to be a great show.
What do you guys think about the Luke Combs?
It's a little bit out of, I mean, we've talked about it before, but
that's a big get, a different get for Bonnarooo's.
It being a Thursday, it's on the white.
What do you think?
I think it's cool for Bonnarooo.
I think it's a good way to expand their market and their interests.
I had a couple other people reach out to me saying, hey, Luke Combs is playing.
I kind of want to come for that.
So if that's kind of one of the things that keeps people going,
if that's kind of one of the things that keeps the motor turning, then so be it.
Yeah, absolutely.
I think we all agree.
All right.
Evan, because the EDM, who, I mean, is that a, is this a good day?
Sammy Verge, you said Dom Dalla.
The good D.
What about the Infinity Stage?
When are you guys going to check that out?
I think Sammy's on the Infinity Stage.
I'm, if I'm not mistaken, I'll have the schedule in front of me.
It's on the other.
I think he's on there, but is it on the other?
Yeah, nice.
Whoever the first person on Infinity Stage is, I'm going because like, I just, you know,
I think we all are, right?
Let's see what that's all about.
Yeah, I think all of Bonnarooo is going to be at the Infinity Stage for the first act.
I forgot who it is, but they're going to get a hell of a crowd.
It might, it might be a merch stop after the merch stand just to walk there and see it
before it gets packed.
Totally.
Yeah, absolutely.
That's a good idea.
Yeah, I've been envisioning it for so long, like trying to, I'm so curious to see like,
if what I have in my head is going to be what it's really going to look like.
Like, we know where it's going to be.
We know kind of what it's going to look like and like, you know, comparing it to other
festivals that have similar 360 stages like that.
Like, I'm so excited.
So like, you know, we lost Calliope a while ago and like, this is,
this is, this is pretty cool.
Yeah.
Cool get.
I'm glad you pronounce it correctly too.
Yeah, me too.
I noticed that too.
Calliope.
You know, actually that's probably what's going to happen.
And this is that reality, probably go buy merch and then you got to go check out the fountain
because it's right there and then swing on over to the infinity.
Right.
And then maybe take your merch back and then come back.
That's probably how that's going to work.
Yeah.
That's how that's going to work.
All right.
Yeah.
I think both of you nailed it with the artists.
Those are the ones I want to see.
Are you gonna?
Nobody mentioned ICP.
I'm going to be there.
Yeah, I meant to.
Oh, I said it fast, but I said it.
Oh, okay.
Yeah.
Opposite Joey Valent.
So that's going to be one of those kind of.
Yeah, that's kind of a bummer.
So anything's plaza wise for you guys on Thursday or is that the only thing that's
in center?
Rue?
I got the I got a couple who stage things.
We'll see if that actually happens.
But I do want to I was going through the whole lineup and prep for this.
The whole who stage lineup, you could make a little many local festival out of that.
Every single artist there is really, really good.
So I think if you go to anything there, you won't be disappointed.
Yeah, that's kind of why I'm really curious to see how it
plays out this year with so many options in so many different places on the farm.
Like we've always said, you make your list and you think you're just going to hop from
one thing to another and catch it all and you can't.
So I'm curious to see if if it's sort of crowd control type of thing.
Like we've said, everybody's going to be at the infinity stage at some point or another,
probably early.
Right.
And then where everybody breaks up and goes wherever.
So, you know, all right.
All night.
You go on all night Thursday.
I don't think so.
I need to find the schedule.
Pull the schedule up real quick.
But I don't think Thursday, that's too early to go all night.
Like you're still getting still getting your legs.
Yeah, especially if you come Monday or Tuesday.
So exactly.
All right.
Friday.
What do we got?
There's a lot going on Friday.
Starts with the beer exchange.
Yep.
Oh, yeah.
I'm glad you mentioned that.
Yeah.
It's actually a little earlier this year, right?
It's 1030 instead of 11.
Yeah, I see 1030.
That's a good time.
If you guys are listening and you can make it, bring a six pack or a 12 pack or something
from your local.
And it's a great way to meet a lot of people that you've heard on the various podcasts
seen on Reddit.
Discord.
It's a cool way to get different beers, but mostly just to I mean, I think it's such a
classic Bonnarooo event, right?
It's the original fan made event.
Yeah.
Taco, which kind of what states of PBRs haven't you tasted yet?
Guam.
You know, yeah, they all kind of taste the same.
So I won't be disappointed.
I would have thought you had a list like you probably trying to get Alaska, Virgin Islands.
I need like a map.
I can like stick pins on it.
Yeah, pins.
Yeah, I'm thinking back to last year's beer exchange.
I believe, Evan, that was kind of the first time you and Bryan Stone met in person.
Is that right?
It's possible.
Yeah.
I just remember you two kind of going off because you had a whole Pearl Jam thing to talk about.
And then meanwhile, me and Barry got onto the Roobus and we ran into Kyle, remember?
And then you came on with us and we had a big kind of a group thing.
We recorded an episode there on the Roobus with y'all.
Yeah, we got to meet in person for the first time, Parker, Reid, and Michael.
Well, first time for you.
I've met them.
Okay.
I mean, we talked many, many times, but first time in person got the hug and howdy,
the hug and howdy tour as it was.
So yeah, it was great.
That's a lot of fun.
Like I said, plan on that.
It's Evan, you guys have surprises planned for that as well because it's right there
by the Roobus and the monkey bar and everything.
Yeah.
I mean, you guys can definitely come on down.
We'll have Dave run in the monkey bar.
We're going to have like little kind of like mini events at the monkey bar for
they're going to do like a D and D thing.
I think some people are going to do like astrology talks.
So there's always if you come to our living room, there's going to be something happening.
And then Dave, every morning he does coffee service.
So you can get coffee, hot coffee in the morning.
And he always has like a signature cocktail for the day.
So yeah, I will say usually one of Dave's cocktails, one's pretty much all you need.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.
He's got a heavy hand when it comes to pouring the liquor, which is not a bad thing.
But if you don't stay there and just drink after drink after drink,
probably one is going to get you right.
Yeah, it'll sneak up on you.
For sure.
All right.
What about the lineup?
What are we seeing on Friday?
Friday is Tipper Day and of the trees day.
So those are two of my top acts for sure.
Glass animals, got to see glass animals.
I haven't seen them since they're on the farm back in 2016.
Somewhere around there.
I'm not sure when that was.
Tyler the Creator, of course, this would be like my fourth or fifth time seeing him.
So it's cool to watch him grow over the years.
The first time I saw him, I think it was 2013.
He was like playing with Earl Sweatshirt in the old Masquerade in Atlanta, RIP.
What else?
Foster the People would be cool because they were also there.
My first spot or two in 2012.
And all I know is Pumped Up Kicks, but I'm pumped for Pumped Up Kicks.
I can't wait.
I'm so stoked.
I'm hoping I can time it just right so I can show up here a couple songs here,
Pumped Up Kicks and then move on to the next show because Friday is just so stacked.
You probably know more than you know.
I was going to say, you probably know more of them.
And also check out the new Foster the People record.
It's really, really, really good.
And it's got a little EDM influence to it.
You'd probably like it.
Okay.
Okay.
I'll have to check that out.
We've also got what?
Levity Detox Unit, Tate B.
I mean, the dubstep on Friday is wild.
And then the Infinity Stage has great like bass house artists like Abo and like Om Nom.
I think our King Gizzard and Lizard Wizard.
There's so much going on Friday.
Yeah.
Friday is crazy.
I don't know.
I don't know how I'm going to do it all.
I'm not making a plan.
I'm just putting those stars which are the ones I want to go to.
And if I'm near them, I see them.
And if not, it wasn't meant to be.
I'll see them next time.
That's the way to do it.
And what is this?
This is new since we last looked at the schedule.
Slightly stupid.
Bonnarooo Blaze 420 set on the what?
It's a trap.
Which stage?
It's a trap?
Yeah.
It's a trap.
There will be no 420 at that show.
Our friends Flip Turn.
Got to give them a shout out.
What an...
They were at Moon River here in town.
We got to interview them two or three years ago, I guess.
Amazing to see them now on the what stage.
They also played the Roobus party one year.
Yep.
They went from the group camp to the what stage in like...
I know.
Yeah.
Pretty crazy.
Very cool.
This is really crazy.
Lavity is on your playlist.
Kyle, they're one of the ones that stood out to me.
Oh, cool.
Yeah, for sure.
They're a blast.
Again, opposite that King Gizzard.
That's going to be a lot of walk by.
A lot of Goose, opposite Rainbow, Kitten Surprise.
There's just so much.
Megadeth later at night.
Friday is probably going to be the painful day.
Start early and go late type of day.
Right?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Pace yourself because Megadeth 1245 to 2.
Yep.
Got to see it.
When else are you going to see Megadeth?
Exactly.
Exactly.
Right.
Just like ICP.
Exactly.
Got to see it.
And Luke Combs.
I mean, yeah, there's so many...
That's what's interesting about this lineup is there's so many
when else are you going to see them types, but also just lots of lanes.
Lots of Foster the People, Flip Turn, Allie and AJ type of thing.
Got to see, right?
Mannequin Pussy.
Oh my God, Friday is crazy.
MJ Lenderman.
Yeah, that's going to be a long day.
Friday is insane.
Yeah.
It was horrible as I could easily stay at the other all day Friday.
Everybody who's playing, I'd be contained.
That's a festival itself that I'd pay to like a boutique festival.
That's what I mean.
I'd sit there all day, but I'm not going to.
I'm going to move around, but man.
That's what I mean by the lanes.
Yeah.
You could literally, same with the what?
I mean, you could or even that tent.
I mean, yeah, this, yeah, you can do it.
It's amazing.
Not going to get out into outer Rue on Friday.
Not going to happen.
Besides the morning.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yes.
Yes.
That's right.
Beer.
We'll be there for the beer.
It's going to be a long day.
And do with some freak flag blackjack.
I'm already tired.
You guys got a golf cart.
Yeah, we do.
We hope we do.
Yeah.
I hope we get the golf cart.
That's the one perk.
All right.
So Saturday again, that sun's going to hit us at six o'clock.
Paste yourself Saturday is recovery day.
Got to be recovery morning.
Oh, real quick about Friday.
Friday is Friday the 13th.
Oh, that's right.
And I've dropped a little Reddit post and a Facebook post about,
you know, if everyone gets some hockey mass together.
In front of the arch and, you know, shocking a beer with a hockey
mask in front of the arch at a certain time on Friday.
Like, I'm putting it out there.
I'm putting it out into the world right now.
So if we want to do this, let's figure it out.
Because like, I would love to make an artfully painted hockey
mass like a Bonnarooo hockey mass.
It'd be so cool.
And what else does this ever happen?
Friday the 13th on the farm.
Yeah.
2014.
Spooky.
Yeah.
It's 2014.
OK.
OK.
Wow.
I wasn't there then.
So like 10 years ago.
I only remember because Jack announced it on stage.
She's like, there's some crazy stuff going on right now.
Friday the 13th.
We got a full moon.
Sweet.
We're moving to Saturday.
When does it start for you guys?
And this is one of those realities because we've done it.
What's the reality?
When do you think you're going to head out?
And what's the reality of what Saturday's going to look like for you guys?
I would like to be in there according to the schedule between one and two.
I think I'll be in there probably.
I'll be in there for Mary Dropins at 445 on the Infinity stage.
That's a kit miss for me.
That's such a good name.
I related it to 445.
That name stuck out to me.
She kills it.
She's been tearing it up lately.
Yeah.
So it's Mary Dropins, Dope Lemon, like in Action Bronson, back to back to back.
And then from that point on, there's back to back stuff all day until the wee hours
of the morning.
We have a similar Roobox podcast at 4 o'clock.
That's right.
Half stage.
That's right.
And I think we have secured the artist that's going to be playing,
which is going to be pretty cool.
I think my first, like if I was not doing that on a normal day,
my first drop that I'd like get out of there might actually be like four or five for like
for Big Gigantic, which is at 630.
So it might be a little later of a start after a big Friday.
That makes sense.
You guys are talking totem on your live podcast, right?
Yeah.
Are you part of that?
Okay.
I'm not going to be on stage, but I'll probably be there to photo for it.
Oh, nice.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah.
We should mention too Thursday.
Well, Thursday's us.
Friday is actually going to be RooHamm.
They've got their slot at 4 o'clock on Friday, right?
RooHamm guys, Parker and Reid and Michael are going to be doing.
We don't know what they're going to be doing yet.
I haven't heard from them what they're going to be talking about.
I need to reach out to those guys.
Evan, along those lines,
you guys have so many things planned.
How do you, how are you going to get it all in?
I mean, you could literally just stay by the bus all week and have a great time.
So, I mean, we're organizing a football game on Tuesday.
There's like our discord server is crazy.
Everyone has all these ideas that I'm like, guys, why don't we get to do all this?
Yeah.
You guys have all this extra room in your car for all this too.
Everyone's really ambitious and everyone's really enthusiastic and somehow
it's all going to perfectly work out.
I mean, I think there was a certain point like a couple of weeks ago where Dan and
Charlotte were like, we can't do any more.
We're at capacity.
No more ideas.
Yeah.
I mean, I think Russ and I are looking at each other.
Like, I think we'll sit by the bus on Thursday and Friday and Saturday and
Sunday.
I'm looking forward to doing less.
Yeah.
Exactly.
Sit around and have a beer.
Yeah, that's right.
That's a big decision.
When's that first beer?
Yeah.
All right.
Saturday reality is it's going to be probably game day decision type of stuff.
It's going to depend on the weather.
It's going to depend on how hard we went Friday.
Right.
It does seem like the schedule's designed like that a little bit.
It seems like it's a slower start to the day.
Yeah.
But it heats up quick.
I want to see Avril.
I want to see Olivia, Sasquatch.
Definitely want to walk by and then the King Gizzard and the Arcade Fire thing.
Again, that's late.
So maybe Saturday is spent getting ready for a late night Saturday.
That's probably the reality for me.
Which is always dangerous because if you spend so much time at camp,
things can start flowing and then.
Yeah.
It ends up having the opposite effect.
You kind of get glued into that chair and then.
Yeah, that's happened.
I'm not going to deny it.
That's happened.
Feels pretty good.
Kyle, I always ask EDM because it's always fascinating to me
because it's become so important to this festival.
I think you we've talked before, you're not locked in.
You're not just EDM.
Right.
No.
You want to go see all the different things, but people can.
Like I said.
Just do EDM.
Yeah.
Oh, absolutely.
Now the Infinity Stage added with everything.
You can just bounce between the other and the Infinity Stage
and have your own little festival of just EDM music, which is fine.
It's becoming such a big part of the festival.
Like I said earlier, I'm going from Mary Droppins to Dope Lemon to Action Bronson.
So we're going from bass dance music to kind of folkish, hard folk,
Dope Lemon, kind of Texas Western kind of sound, I don't know,
to Action Bronson rapping.
And that's all within an hour and a half.
Yeah.
That's just a funny sentence just to say that you're going to go
from Mary Droppins to Dope Lemon to Action Bronson.
I mean, where else but Bonnarooo, right?
Yeah.
Where else would that make any sense at all?
Right.
That's one of the great things about Bonnarooo is you can go,
you can have a group of three or four people and you can have a radically different experience
between all three or four of you.
Crazy.
Yeah.
Yup.
Mix in a little insane clown posse and Megadeth just to round out your,
you know, your experience.
Yeah.
For example, Kyle, that 2018 year when we camped together,
we camped together the whole week.
I don't think we saw a single show together, right?
I don't, maybe the first show.
Maybe.
Maybe the last show.
Yeah.
No, I always saw you at camp.
Yeah.
I love when that happens.
I love when your neighbors have totally different experiences
because then you can like, you know, pow out at the end of the night or the next morning.
I do too.
And they tell you a whole different world that they just experienced.
And I'm telling them about this whole world I experienced.
I'm like, were you on the same farm?
Exactly.
Like what do you mean?
We got comparing schedules.
You're like, I'm going to see this.
You're like, I'm going to see that.
There was not one crossover act at all.
I would love to track us on a map and watch our dots like cross each other,
but never actually meet up.
That'd be so funny.
I know.
I bet we crossed so many times just going to different shows.
So many times.
Yeah.
All right.
What I love about this EDM lineup and thanks again to you for the playlist is the diversity.
Because as we've learned, as I've learned, I should say, EDM has become so many different things.
There's house, there's trap, there's base, there's all kinds.
If you had to tell me these are the two or three artists on the infinity or the other, don't miss.
Can you name two or three?
I mean, you got the tipper in there.
Yes, I would say.
Farewell tour.
So I'm super excited for tipper.
No totems to tipper.
A home of the trees has come so far.
He's doing amazing shows.
LSZ is an amazing project that's going on between LS Dream and Closey right now.
AT Aliens is going to fill that the sudden death spot last year.
The really hard stuff that's going to be at aliens this year with some trap and some dubstep.
That's the one you said was going to kill us last year.
Yeah.
And y'all didn't go.
You're still here, you're still alive.
Oh yeah, that's going to be a good one.
I mean, the back to back with Of the Trees and Tate B is going to be just insane.
That's going to be such a fun show.
Sack Squatch, like come on.
Russ has sent you a picture of, I met Sack Squatch's cousin recently at a car show.
He hung out with me for a little bit.
Was that really his cousin?
I, yes.
Or is that just, yes?
Okay.
Yes.
Who would lie about that?
Right.
Yeah.
Why would he lie about that?
Yeah.
But yeah, I mean, there's so much, you know, they like also on, you know, on Saturday,
we've also got some drum and bass is being represented with What's So Not.
It's going to do some drum and bass music all day.
In Infinity All throughout the day has house playing all day and you've got dubstep and
trap that's sprinkled throughout the other and all that.
They've done an amazing job of really diversifying this year, experimental dubstep and more funky
dubstep like Tipper and Detox Unit and stuff like that.
They've done an amazing job.
And so that's this lineup for me, EDM wise is the lineup that we did not get in 2020.
Was it the canceled years?
Those ones that were just too, they were too amazing to exist.
When this lineup came out, even just the leaks, although I was texting Russ nonstop
and the leaks were coming out of like, this is, these leaks are insane.
And you know, Russ didn't, he doesn't listen to Of The Trees.
So he's like, yeah.
And so then, you know, when it finally came out, you know, just as it was coming out,
I'm like, this is a miniature festival in itself, just the leaks and the actual lineup came out.
And it's just, they did an amazing job.
Bonnaroo, guys, thank you.
You've blessed us this year.
The EDM culture is very happy.
So question for you, because Bryan Stone's been on this.
He's been saying since the lineup came out, 2025 lineup beats 2020.
I'd have to look at 2020 again, but I probably agree.
I don't remember 2020 that well off the top of my head.
Well, I think that's part of it.
I think that's part of it is because it didn't happen and it was a canceled year.
It's kind of moved into this part of our brain.
That's like this, like, you know, holy grail of things we'll never get.
And that's what's kind of propping up the actual meat and potatoes of it.
But when you put them side by side, 2025, I think he's got a point.
I think it's got it beat.
I think you're right.
I think he's right.
This is a stellar lineup, to say the least.
I think the full body of the lineup is pretty doggone strong.
That's what I mean.
Again, those lanes, there's something to do all day, every day.
That's pretty good.
No matter what genre or musical background you're from, there's something for you.
They've really done an amazing job this year.
They're like Luke Combs.
I'm not a country fan.
I don't listen to Luke Combs.
I will be walking by just to, A, see Luke Combs and just he's there.
Like the bottom brought him there for us to see.
Why would you not go see him?
He's a major, major artist.
Like you're a fool not to go.
You have to trust them at some point.
Exactly.
Absolutely.
They're smart fellas.
Yeah, that's a good point.
I think they've earned that.
Right.
Maybe not my thing, but it's probably going to be really good and I want to go see it.
If nothing else, to say I saw it because where else you're going to see it.
Do you want to tease a little bit?
We might be getting the people that actually booked the lineup here pretty soon, right?
Yep.
Working on it as we do, I think every year.
I can't wait to talk to them to see if they agree.
Are they as happy with it as we are?
All right.
Are we ready to move on to Sunday?
I think so.
So what are we doing Sunday?
How could you not start out with hot dogs and dads at 1230 Snake and Jakes?
Hot dogs and hot dads.
It's a name day on Sunday.
Got that in post-sex nachos.
I'm not sure if I think that's a great name or a horrible name.
I love it.
It's a great name.
Speed dating, I want to check that out too.
Yeah, we need to get you over there for one of those, don't we?
Yeah.
We got to find out why Barry can't swim.
So Sunday is, I mean, it's another good day.
Do you spend the morning relaxing and getting ready for Vampire Weekend, Remy Wolf, King Giz?
I mean, we haven't really talked about the whole King Giz thing.
You guys going to try to see all three shows, any of them?
What do you mean we haven't talked about it?
I mention it every time.
I'm going to all three sets.
Well, okay.
That's pretty much all I've been listening to.
I'm halfway through their catalog.
You might get finished by the time Bonnarooo comes around.
By 2026.
And they only put out three more albums since I started.
What does Sunday look like for you guys?
I'm doing Fote on the Infinity,
Guerrilla T, be cool to go check out, Post-Sex Nachos.
The AT Aliens and Aruge-Aruge-Aftab conflict is crazy because those are probably the two most
opposite acts you can get.
You've got AT Aliens, Trap, Dubstep, and you've got Aruge, which is like a real meditative,
deep healing sounds.
And they're at the exact same time.
I don't know what I'm going to do.
I don't know if I go from meditation to go head bang or if I go head bang and then go
meditate.
I haven't figured out what I want to do yet.
Now, is it AT, is it AT Aliens or AT Aliens?
It's AT Aliens.
Is that an ATL?
Is that an Atlanta thing?
They're from Atlanta, yeah.
They're from Atlanta, okay.
And this has nothing to do with Big Boy and this has nothing to do with Andre C.
Giles and Outkast?
No.
There was a bit of a little controversy recently, a little legal spat that they had where Outkast
wasn't happy that they were calling themselves AT Aliens.
I don't know how that ended.
I think it just kind of swept away.
But they are awesome.
Somebody ought to check.
Possibly.
But they're really cool.
I don't know how Saksquatch and his suit and AT Aliens and their alien masks and their
hoodies and black clothes on the farm.
More power to them.
Like war.
Like war last year out there in the heat, man.
At least war was at night.
It was at two o'clock in the morning.
Yeah.
They were out.
That was at night, but they were in costume all weekend long.
They were all weekend.
They were everywhere in full costume.
They did a thing in the press tent.
We interviewed them and they were in full costume, full makeup.
That's true.
Yeah, this was like in the middle of the day.
Yeah.
Things we do for our art.
Exactly.
I don't know about you guys, but I think Hozier is a pretty great way to end the weekend.
That's awesome.
I agree.
But I'm going to watch that.
You're going to watch that.
That's one of my Infinity Stage sets.
It's a good one.
Natasha Bedingfield is probably going to be a pretty all-time moment.
I'm glad you mentioned her.
Yeah.
Royal Otis is one of Brad's babies.
So I think some of us feel something.
I've seen them a bunch of times.
We've hung out with them after their shows.
They're really cool guys.
King Giz, Vampire Weekend, Queens of the Stone Age.
That's a great Sunday.
It's a great Sunday.
And I'll be honest, I've noticed people have been kind of complaining about it, but
I'm excited that we're back to the old ways of Rue where the last act on the What Stage is it.
The past couple years of doing the Wear in the Woods and keeping the party going.
I wasn't a fan of that.
Thank you.
I like that weird kind of camaraderie, a family feeling of when the fireworks go off,
the What Stage lights come up and it's over.
And you hear the renegade sets starting up in the campgrounds and the random little
things starting, but it's that weird, you don't know what to do with yourself.
You don't know what to do with your hands.
You look at everybody around you like, did the past five days just happen?
Now we go back to camp and kind of the 100-yard stare and drink a beer and rehydrate and
talk to your neighbors and wake up next morning and go home.
It's so weird.
I love the fact that they're bringing that back.
And when it's over on the What Stage, it's over.
Go and swap stories and cry out to your neighbors and have a good time and wind down.
I like it.
Or go to a renegade set.
They'll be popping up all over the place.
I'm sure you'll hear them.
If you had to put a percentage of how much of this you will actually do,
what's your number?
Evan, start with you.
I'm pretty diligent.
I have a list that I have in front of me is pie in the sky.
But when I actually make the schedule, I print out cards for myself and laminate them.
70, 80% of that I usually hit.
Probably.
I have like a drop dead thing like last year.
I'm leaving camp no matter what for Brittany Howard.
So you guys can come with me.
So that's my strategy.
There's one artist that I'm definitely making it in for and that's you come with me or not.
So I'm pretty diligent about it once I put the schedule together.
How about you, Kyle?
I aim for that 80% spot.
That sounds so nice, but I know myself.
I'm going 65%, 60%.
I know I'm a side quester.
I'll get carried away on some totally different thing.
I look at my phone and realize, oh, I missed so and so.
And shrug it off and keep going.
I would love to see more, but I know I usually hit a little over half of who I want to see.
And I also end up seeing people that weren't even on my list, but I hear them live because
I'm eating a churro and I'm walking by and they're playing and I just get sucked into it
and 20 minutes goes by and I've watched half their set.
That's one of my favorite things about it is allow yourself to kind of be surprised.
You'll go off somewhere and then you just hear something off in the distance and you're like,
what is that?
So go check it out and you end up staying for the whole set.
And that's how you end up finding all your favorite bands.
Yeah, that's exactly right.
There's always that surprise.
Yeah, I'm in that.
Did you put a number Russ?
I'm in that 55%, 60% maybe.
Yeah, I'm thinking more like 25% if we're being realistic.
It depends on how speed dating goes.
That's true.
Yeah.
Russ is going to be playing Frick Flack Blackjack the whole weekend.
Betting everything.
He's going to lose his bus.
Yeah.
But I mean, that's the beauty of it and it's a good time.
Last year we joked it was for me was the Hug and Howdy Tour and I had a blast.
I would not have changed anything.
I got to see people that I wanted to see, not musicians, not artists necessarily, but friends.
And so yeah, this year I think I'm probably going to get out and see more shows.
So that's my plan anyway.
All right.
What else guys?
Like I said, the idea is I think that sort of puts a bow on the idea for the show is
you can plan all you want, but just plan on having a good time.
Bring a good attitude.
Bring the right attitude.
Go with whatever happens.
Be prepared, but put that sunscreen on those haunches.
If you learn nothing else from today, put that sunscreen on those haunches.
Take care of yourself.
What else?
We didn't mention where in the woods.
I really haven't dove into where in the woods this year.
You know, what do you guys have to say?
I think it's one of those things where you have to trust them.
Go check it out.
I don't think anyone's going to know exactly what's happening,
but they're doing those Southern city takeovers for New Orleans, Atlanta, Miami.
So if you have something, if you want to go get some shade in all the day.
Absolutely.
Go ahead, Ross.
I'm glad they're kind of toning it down a little bit.
I was just saying I think it's cool what they're doing with the
Southern city takeovers.
I think Thursday is Atlanta.
Let's see.
There's one day that's a New Orleans.
Oh, Wednesday is Nashville.
Friday is...
There's a Miami day, I think.
There's a Miami day.
Yeah.
So I think that's kind of cool.
I don't know how much of that I'm actually going to get out and see,
but it's worth checking out.
I guess along those lines, what I would say to somebody who's never been,
or maybe even the second time or third time is
it's entirely possible that you find yourself in where in the woods
and that's where you stay for a day or two or whatever,
or House of Yes or Infinity Stage.
There's a lot of different ways to do Bonnarooo, I guess, is my point.
You can try to hit as many things as you can,
or you can find a spot, whether it's your own camp or where in the woods,
and just that's your Bonnarooo, right?
There's no right or wrong way to do it, I guess, is what I'm trying to say.
Exactly.
Correct.
Right?
Make a guideline, not a plan.
Yeah.
You can't follow it, but you know.
Yeah.
Didn't Jack Sparrow say something like that?
Yeah.
All right.
Don't get too bent out of shape if you've made all these plans
and you've got to be at this spot at this time,
because you're probably not going to make it,
and just be flexible and be easy.
Go with the flow.
And don't attach yourself to somebody else.
Don't let somebody else's itinerary be your itinerary.
If you want to go do something by yourself, go do it.
Otherwise, you're-
Solaroo's a blast.
That's right.
You're going to be a blast.
Go do it.
Otherwise, you're-
Solaroo's a blast.
That's some of the best advice I could give.
If you want to go see something, go see it.
You'll make a friend really fast.
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah, and don't be offended if somebody
didn't want to come do what you want to do.
They don't want to come.
Don't.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I think we always do kind of make a plan for just at least one show.
Let's all get together and go see this one show together.
But other than that, the whole weekend is very fluid.
Yep.
See you.
You want to be there with people that want to be there.
Exactly.
Somewhere.
Someone that doesn't want to be there.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Anybody else?
Bring you down.
All right.
Kyle, man, thank you so much.
Absolutely.
We will see you in a little over a month.
Crazy.
I'm not ready.
I know.
Yeah.
I'm not ready.
I'm not even remotely ready.
No.
I think we're down to what?
Oh, I looked it up.
I don't remember.
It's under...
It's a little...
It's between 30 and 40 days.
Yeah.
We can probably do the math in our heads.
We're probably 35 days out.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Probably close to it.
Depending on when this comes out, which will be on Wednesday, depending on when you listen to it,
and depending on when you go in.
If you go in Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.
Absolutely.
So yeah, we're in the range.
I mean, we're just about a month out, which is crazy.
Crazy.
The year just started.
Like, what happened?
How did we get out?
We were just there.
All right.
Kyle, man, thanks.
I appreciate you guys.
Shout out your Etsy store and your Instagram again, so people can find you.
That's right.
And get some stickers.
So it's Dope Shed.
It's D-O-H-P-E-C-H-Y-T-T on Etsy.
And I've got an Instagram page.
You can also follow my van, The Steely Van, on Instagram.
If you see him in the campgrounds, he's the big orange, lovable van again, West Vaglia.
Come say hello.
I'm always down to chat and trade trinkets or whatever with people.
And yeah, I'm so excited, guys.
Like, I can't wait.
All right.
So there you go.
That was a lot of fun.
Kyle's always a lot of fun to have on the show.
He brings, like Evan said, he brings several years' worth of experience doing it his way.
I do have a small correction to make.
He said B2B stands for back to back.
It actually stands for butt to butt.
OK.
Yeah.
Especially at the hot dogs and hot dads.
There's going to be a line around Snake and Jake's to get into it for that.
I'm really curious, Evan.
We're going to have to have you back on after, maybe like in July or August, to see just how
it went for you guys with all the activities that you guys have got planned out there in
your group.
It's pretty nuts.
You got your own mini festival within a mini festival within a mini festival going on.
We have a very enthusiastic and robust crew.
So it seems like a lot of people somehow know what they're doing, believe it or not.
It only takes 10 years.
Yeah.
I want to find that person within your group who never leaves camp the entire time because
I'm going to guess there's going to be somebody.
Yeah.
And you said have Evan back on.
I was going to say, can we just make this permanent swap with Brian and Evan?
That's a fair trade.
I like it.
I do want to mention too, Evan, you were just on with the Roobus with the Goose interview,
right?
Yes.
We interviewed Peter and spec of Goose and it actually turned out to be a great conversation.
So check it out.
He volunteered at Bonnaroo in 2016.
So he knows what it's all about and he has some cool stories and it turns out that he
might have accidentally started this whole Wednesday party thing.
I like it.
Yeah, it was fun.
All right, man.
Thank you so much for stepping up.
Stepping in.
Yeah, we appreciate it.
My pleasure.
My pleasure.
Always cool to talk with you guys.
It was a lot of fun and we will see you for sure if not Wednesday in the group then at
the beer exchange, if not before in person.
It sounds like I'm going to see Taco on Monday at Com John.
I might do that.
I'm thinking about it.
I'm kind of, man, not to think about it.
I could come in Wednesday night or Monday night.
He's there.
What are you thinking about?
Yeah.
He's there.
Have a beer at Com and John's.
It sounds neat.
Speaking of having a beer, Barry, remember you called me the other day and I was sitting
there at Low Main having a beer and, you know, Graham, your nephew that owns it,
he was there working the bar and I said, oh, Graham, Barry says hi, by the way,
and he said, which Barry?
Yeah, I know, right?
I need to talk to him about that.
Yeah.
How many Barrys does he know?
Yeah, you had to, I think you had to explain it like twice.
Barry.
I did, yeah, because he was like, well, I know Barry with the band.
Your uncle.
I know this Barry, your uncle.
Oh yeah.
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
All right.
The one who lives across the street, by the way, literally he lives across the street.
All right, guys, well, can't wait to hug and howdy.
Thanks again and thanks everybody for listening.
Be sure and subscribe and hit like and even leave us a review if you want to.
That'd be cool.
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