"If I wasn't doing this I would still be doing this."

Luke Combs

Pulling up to Bonnaroo in Manchester, TN filled me with the excitement of a young girl heading to a carnival. This is my first “Roo”, as the regulars call it. Day one and I’ve already laughed so hard I cried and peed in the woods.

Leslie, the founder of Love, and the reason I agreed to this had never heard of a Wookiee. I laughed trying to explain these creatures but once we arrived at Where In The Woods it became self evident. From my high school days I was familiar with the Wookiees, they could be found twirling around bands like Widespread Panic and generally have a can do attitude. Once you spot one in the wild it is easy to find them moving forward.

Each area of Bonnaroo is named things like What Stage, Which Stage, This Tent, That Tent, Infinity Stage, etc. it took a minute to get with the lingo but I appreciated the culture and how much work goes into pulling something like this off. My favorite part of these events is the set up and bonding over the travel adventures to get here and to create something memorable for both us and our audience. We arrived Wednesday night and cruised around on a golf cart checking out the various stages and activations. I was blown away by the scale. The 530 acre farm was purchased by Bonnaroo promotors in 2007 for $8.7 million. In 2023, the festival contributed $339.9 Million to the regional economy, these Wooks have some serious spending power.

On Thursday morning we got our Love Lounge set up and our beverage ambassadors arrived to get everyone in glitter, merch and pass out electrolytes. The heat was in the 90’s and storms were brewing which made the humidity almost 100%. These conditions made it easy to pitch and share Love Electrolytes. I even got my first friendship bracelet from a festival goer who won our VIP upgrade experience. A few of the girls and I have now really bonded, I sort of feel like I joined the circus. It brings me back to when I was developing and designing night life in LA. I still worked the desk job but got to get out and see the scene. I really do love it and being around people has helped me shake off my funk and remember that there is a whole world out there just waiting to be discovered.

The main event for Thursday night was Luke Combs. A local Nashville guy who I had heard of because he covered Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.” A song that has been on my mixed tapes since its release - truly a part of the soundtrack to my adolescence. My Dad always thought a man sang Fast Car, we corrected him a thousand times, it made me smile to actually hear a man sing it live. Gosh I miss my Dad you never know when it will hit you. At least now I can look back and laugh, it has taken me a few years to get past the pain of losing him and I know that loss is the catalyst for wanting such extreme change in my life right now. Life is just too short and he would always say, “if you aren’t happy only you can fix that.” Luke also moved me when he sang his song Doin’ This. He told his story of playing bar to bar in Nashville and never dreamed he would be headlining Bonnaroo singing to 40K people, most of them knew the words to every song. “If wasn’t doin’ this I would still be doin’ this.” Meaning it was never about the money and fame but the true love of music and storytelling, something I relate to very much. Taking a gamble with Love feels a little bit that way right now I can only follow my heart and see where it leads.

One of the girls I have really bonded with is Meghan, she handles the build out and set up of our elaborate activations, and is a huge Luke Combs fan. It was really fun seeing the show through her eyes and joining in on the enthusiasm. She is also an experienced festival goer and launched her company after doing Burning Man camps for Elon Musk and the other tech bros. Honestly, I was a little intimidated by her and thought maybe she was from Mars with those crazy pigtails. I didn't know if we would get along. A few pulls of tequila and a set list later I can with confidence that we became best friends.

I wanted to go back to the RV after Luke but she urged us to go see some Australian DJ at Other Stage. I am very easily peer pressured and hoped on the golf cart, knowing if I didn’t my FOMO would get the better of me. We pulled up behind the stage and came out the side, I had never seen so many people come for a DJ. The moment I tuned into Dom Dolla I started dancing. He was an adorable showman, at one point he took off his baseball cap and put on a cowboy hat. The crowd went wild!!! and I fell in love with all of it. Here are some photo’s from his Instagram, A few I took and his current Australian Rolling Stone Cover. He’s now on the short list of people I want to work with for Love, he IS the energy we want to bottle and share.

We all went to bed happy. Anna, who feels like another little sister, and I slept on the pull out in the RV. So funny our little road adventure, the next day would not be as amusing.

Around 2pm the rain started and never let up. We closed the Love Lounge when the festival cleared the areas around the stages. High winds and lighting were in the area and people were urged to shelter in place. Most were camping and that meant tents and cars for the foreseeable future. We had another activation in OuterRoo so I cruised out there to check on the girls and help close up shop. There was not enough room on the golf cart for all of us so I hung back at the camp ground and ended up in a party barn taking shelter from the storm and signing with strangers. I really dig this stuff and the creativity really was next level. They even had art station set up for crafting. I helped clean that up when we realized everyone was rushing in and the table and chairs were needed to help keep everyone safe.

I want to give Konane a little love. All these clothes were handmade and festival ready. I might have to commission a few special pieces down the road. I wanted to try stuff on but was soaking wet so I promised I would find her again if ever I was in Knoxville. Check her out online.

I made my way back to our RV and then we waited, it rained and rained. I din’t think it was really that bad. Growing up in these parts we get heavy rain but it usually clears out pretty quickly. We went to a 7pm BBQ at another friend’s RV and that is when got the bad news that Bonnaroo would officially be cancelled. The roads had turned to mud rivers many of the tents washed out and the festival organizers didn’t want to get in a “Red Cross Situation” where they would have to call in for supplies. With the roads so muddy it was getting hard to accept the 24 deliveries of food and water needed to keep so many people fed let alone the trucks to handle the potties and showers. It had turned into a logistical nightmare and the best thing to do was trigger the insurance claim, refund everyone and send them home. This is only the second time Bonnaroo has ever been canceled in 25 years. It was the right call. We suck around and enjoyed the feast prepared by Texas chef Tim Love. His grilled broccoli was like nothing I have ever had before. Salad and steak with enchiladas and cheese dip too. Tim rode back with us to Nashville and said he was coming to Charleston soon. A new friend made the journey worthwhile.

The girls and I had a soft landing at SOHO House Nashville. I love getting to see these properties all over the world. Malibu has been my base camp since it opened and at one point the London House was my home. The smell of Cowshed always makes me happy and takes me back to my Notting Hill days. I took a long bath and laughed at our crazy adventure, realizing that this was the third time I have had to evacuate this year. What is it 2025? I knew you were going to be crazy but come on.

A few more photo’s from the road. My niece gave me a troll doll to take, we named him Mr. Dingles. Here he is on Broadway in Nashville hitting the Honkey Tonks. It has been fun reporting back with his adventures. The before photo of Anna and I as we were leaving Charleston, little did we know the adventure ahead of us…And our lovely RV my make shift office with a full moon giving me a full heart.