Music Midtown took place during probably the hottest weekend in September in the middle of Atlanta, Ga. Piedmont Park was flooded with people.
My overall feeling of MM was positive. The music was absolutely incredible. If you like all genres of music like me, this was the lineup of your dreams.
I mean, yeah.
But.
There is a but. And not just Iggy’s.
The organization was horrendous. They scheduled Jack White and John Mayer at the same time, just as they scheduled Eminem and Zac Brown Band. Also, after attending Bonnaroo, which I hope you saw our coverage of, I was expecting MM to be smaller. I was completely wrong. Imagine it being near 90 degrees and shoving your way through hundreds of thousands of sweaty “drunk frat guys,” as my dear friend put it.
I don’t have an exact number, but according to some promoter,s there was somewhere north of 100,000 in attendance, which, if they used all 175 acres of Piedmont Park, would have been fine, but they only used about a fourth of that. There were only three stages.
Unfortunately, MM does not have a “code” like Bonnaroo, either. My group ran into many, many rude people. For example, I was rocking out to Bastille’s set. And suddenly, basic b—-es. They pushed in front of me with not so much as a sympathetic look from the girl’s boyfriend and proceeded to stay on their phones. On their phones. On their phones.
Honorable mention of crazy people was the first girl we met at MM. She was super cute. Gold glitter eyeliner, purple lipstick, kind of looked like a fairy. Until she decided she’s going to take acid and use my friend and I as bodyguards while she did so. The words that followed were, “I’m too young for this,” and we’re in our 20s.
Those girls aren’t important though. What is important is that I really had an incredible time watching insanely talented musicians, and despite the crowds, I got pretty good spots for all shows. Here are my faves.
1. Zac Brown Band. Say what you will, but these guys are some of the most talented musicians I have ever seen. They covered “Enter Sandman” by Metallica, for crying out loud. I could not handle all the glorious covers and fiddle playing. I cried. Actual tears.
2. Iggy. Freaking. Azalea. Not only did she look flawless, but she was also really hype. She knows how to put on a show and please a crowd. Did I mention she brought out T.I.? Because she brought out T.I., and it was amazeballs.
3. Bastille. I was not expecting to fall this in love with you, Bastille. Never leave me.
4. Jack White. I was really conflicted about this, because he recently talked smack about my Foo Fighters, but I missed his set at ‘Roo, so I had to go. I am so glad I went. He played everything from ‘Steady as She Goes’ to ‘Seven Nation Army’ to ‘Lazaretto,’ and it was beautiful.
5. B.o.B. I had a ton of fun twerking along to this guy. He bounced all over the place and sang all of my faves. And then I touched his hand, and I’m never bathing again. Jk, that would be gross. But still, he was really fun.
Would I return to Music Midtown? Yes, but they have got to do some crowd control and schedule shows better. I had an awesome time in Hotlanta and would suggest it to friends, but only super chill friends who don’t mind crowds or seeing drugs or sweat.
