The Guinness Book of Records recognizes the largest music festival in history to be the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival, which occurred in Bethel, New York, from August 15-17, 1969. An estimated 400,000 people attended the event, which was promoted as an effort to celebrate peace and love. However, the festival soon turned chaotic when it was overwhelmed by lawlessness, drug use, sexual experimentation, and poor organization. Despite the chaos, Woodstock is still remembered today as a pivotal moment in modern music history.
Coachella
The largest music festival in history is the Desert Dance, held annually in the California desert town of Paloma, California. Started in 1986, the music festival features over 30 days of Arizona-style concerts and activities, attracting more than 100,000 people each year.
Bonnaroo
The largest music festival in the United States is undoubtedly Coachella, which has drawn crowds of over 400,000 over the years. Bonnaroo is another great American festival that is consistently ranked among the top three in the world. It’s a great place to see some of your favorite artists perform and to meet new artists you may have only seen on YouTube.
Austin City Limits
It’s hard to say for sure, but the top two contenders are likely either the Bonnaroo Music Festival or the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Both of these events are held over a span of several days and last for 12-14 hours. The music lineup at Bonnaroo includes around 70-80 acts, while the lineup at Coachella is more like 300.
Lollapalooza
The largest music festival in history is the annual Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee. This three-day event held every June features 12 different stages of live music. Notable performers have included Phish, The Grateful Dead, Metallica, and The Flaming Lips.
Electric Zoo
This question is one of the most asked in the world of music, and one that has no clear answer. There are many lists circulating about the top 20, but no one list is accepted as the ultimate authority, and each list has its own flaws. The answer to this question depends on the measure you use to determine the winner. If you take into account ticket sales or attendance, then the answer is likely to be Coachella. However, if you consider only the number of artists who performed at each festival, then Electric Zoo is almost certainly the winner. While the lineup of artists at Coachella might be larger, the number of attendees at the New York City festival is often double that of California’s.
Governors Ball
While many people claim that the biggest music festival in history is Bonnaroo, the claim is not accurate. The most accurate answer is that the largest music festival in history is the Budweiser Made in the USA Music Festival. This festival is held every year in late September in Columbia, Missouri. In 2019, the festival will be held from September 27th through the 30th. The festival features three days of live music on three different stages.
Firefly
Who doesn’t love music festivals? If you’re looking to try out your favorite acts or discover new ones, there are plenty of music festivals to choose from all over the world. Just be aware of the risks. For example, the most recent example of a very large music festival disaster was the tragedy at the Firefly Music Festival held in September of 2017 in Dover, Delaware. The festival saw an attendance of approximately 75,000 people each day and unfortunately, it was not able to attract enough fire suppression sprinklers to adequately protect the large gathering of people. There were a total of 68 injuries, two of which were serious enough to require hospitalization, 12 of which were burns, and one fatality.
Conclusion
The answer to this question is straightforward yet surprising: Woodstock. Taking place at the now-famous New York State venue in 1969, the iconic event gathered some 400,000 people from all over the world. The event was unique in that it encouraged attendees to purchase a permit to enter the festival for $18. If they could afford it, they were allowed to bring along their own food and water and pitch a tent on the sprawling farmland.
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