The Year of No-Chella
Our festival reality now and from now on
The year of 2020 has disappointed us enough, but clearly it’s not done yet. We’ve been hoping and counting days throughout the darker months of the year to finally set our minds free, let it all go, just be free. And then, by the end of winter, the news of COVID-19 spread and suddenly everything is locked up and cancelled.
A quick search on www.musicfestivalvizard.com shows that every single event is cancelled, cancelled, cancelled… From Coachella to Roskilde, from Tomorrowland to Lollapalooza — whatever your preference is, everything is revoked. There are a few hopeful ones close to the end of the year, but I’m pretty sure that they’ll be cancelling their festivals soon as well.
But why do young people need that kind of gatherings? What is so special about festivals? First of all, it’s the feeling of unity. A group, well actually a very large group of people with same interests get together to set themselves free. It’s about losing control, forgetting everyday troubles, even if it’s just for a couple of days. It’s being lost in music with people who think alike.
Another reason is socialising. Human beings are social creatures and we need to communicate in order to keep our mental health stable. Festivals are great for meeting up with old friends and finding new people to hang out with. Of course, alcohol and other substances we dare not talk about make everything seem even greater than it actually might be. Simply put, music festivals of larger scales have emotional, social, physical and cognitive benefits.
But Coronavirus sabotaged all of this tremendously. 2020 sure seems to push our boundaries and forces us to get creative. I loved it when Italians did their balcony-festival kind of gatherings. Everyone still stayed safe and at home, but got to let out some steam on their balconies. We need creatively thinking people like that right now.
So are we ready to let go of festivals this big? Because it could be our reality, even the next year and the year after that. Are we ready to accept the fact that there might never be “parties” that big anymore? How do we even replace them? Are we ready to evolve past half-drunk festivals to some other level of communication and the feeling on unity? It’s not the end of the world. But it certainly seems to be the end of an era.
All I have is questions, but the answers are within every single reader of this article. Whatever we decide, whatever you decide, remember to stay safe and healthy. That’s all that matters.
