Insane Clown Posse at by Bonnaroo 2025, photos by Ashleigh Newnes
The Bonnaroo campgrounds opened for the 2025 festival on Tuesday, June 10, and Thursday’s sets were successful, featuring acts such as Marcus King, Luke Combs, Dom Dolla and Insane Clown Posse.
However, the festival had to be cut short early Friday afternoon.
A panel discussion, moderated by Andy Langer and featuring Marisa “Missy” Dabice from Mannequin Pussy and Bret Kaser from Lip Critic, began on Friday at 1 p.m.
During the discussion, Langer asked Dabice, “Listening to the rain, thinking about all the people that might be out there; in 2005, you were a camper. Talk to me about that experience.”
Missy began to share her story about skipping her senior prom when Langer received a notification to evacuate, interrupting that panel.
Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival staff were instructed to pack up and exit quickly. Attendees were advised to pay attention to their social media and emails for further instructions, and to take shelter in a vehicle. “No vehicle? Find a friend.”
Meanwhile, Abbie Callahan, a singer-songwriter based in Nashville, was scheduled to begin her sound check at the Who Stage, when the first lightning strikes occurred, causing delays and ultimately the cancellation of the performance. Still, she expressed her excitement about being invited to perform at Bonnaroo, saying everyone had been “so sweet and so nice.” Her debut EP, Grossly Aware, is set to be released July 25.
At 7:49 p.m., a mass message was sent out stating, “We are beyond gutted, but we must make the safest decision and cancel the remainder of Bonnaroo.”
Cars were lined up, attempting to leave the festival, while many others chose to stay behind for a while, making the most of their night. Some planned to pack up the next day when the festivalgoers who had enjoyed a weekend full of party favors would be moving more slowly. Throughout the night, vendors re-opened, and Foster the People performed a surprise DJ set in a location called Where in the Woods. Meanwhile, some campers engaged in mud wrestling.
Throughout Outerroo, plenty of campers proudly declared, “They’re not Bonnaroo; we are Bonnaroo.”
Luke Combs
In the weeks following the cancelled festival, Bonnaroo updated its refund policy to offer a full 100% refund to ticket buyers, instead of the initially offered 75%, which would have charged attendees for the first day of the festival, which did take place.
Following Bonnaroo’s cancellation, “Remi Wolf’s Insanely Fire 1970s Pool Party Superjam” was a sold-out concert at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl, featuring special guests Hayley Williams, Mt. Joy, Brian Robert Jones and Grouplove, and many of the other performers who were set to play quickly cobbled together shows at additional Nashville venues.
Bonnaroo has not yet made an announcement regarding a 2026 festival.
