Top Five Shows 2016 Edition (And Why)

1. LCD Soundsystem - Much like everyone else I had high expectations and I was absolutely blown away! My group and I were towards the back of the What field for this one. Only one other person I was with was as stoked for LCD as I was and we danced our asses off, despite being tired as hell. The setlist was fantastic, we kept giggling whenever James would talk to the audience and say "Hi everyone!" (dunno why that tickled us so but it did hah) and it was the perfect way to kick off the late night stuff. 

2. Dead & Co. - When I found out about the Orlando shooting it really shook me as a member of the LGBTQ community. It was in the back of my mind all day on Sunday and it was so surreal to be surrounded by so many loving and positive people and then find out about such a tragedy. Seeing Dead & Co's logo with the pride flag immediately made me weep. The words spoken that evening were exactly what I needed to hear, and it was such a powerful moment for me. Besides that, the performance was absolutely amazing. John Mayer fucking crushed it and I have definitely been listening to GD a lot since I got back home.

3. Oh Wonder - I don't know why the hell this tent was so empty, but this was the best undercard show of the year for me, hands down. Everyone was singing along, the band was so thankful for everyone who showed up and they were so happy, they fed off of the energy of the crowd and gave it right back to us. I cried so so many tears during this set. It was just my best friend and I at this one and we were extremely close. I was absolutely blown away, and I will never miss a performance by them whenever they are around. I came into the show as a fan, I left as a huge fan.

4. M83 - Checking this out right before LCD was amazing! The stage setup was so cool and I couldn't have put together a more ideal setlist for me if I could have tried! I was really hoping to hear the Mai Lan songs and I was not disappointed. I loved the huge crowd and all the lights and totems and the general energy. 

5. Big Grams - This is high up because it was the only set where my whole group and I had a great spot and were all high energy and dancing our asses off. We met some great people in the crowd we were all feeling amazing. One of the funnest shows of the year for me for sure.

6. CHVRCHES (pit) - One of my only pit shows this year, and I went in with slightly lowered expectations because although I am a huge fan of their studio work, videos and streams of their performances left me less than impressed. However, I was stunned because I thought Lauren sounded great! I was so excited to hear High Enough To Carry You Over because that's one of my favorites. I was bummed they didn't play Tether though, because that's what I was most looking forward to! But the fifteen year old in me who never got to see Paramore grinned when Hayley Williams came out, so that was kinda cool. 

7. Two Door Cinema Club - It was my first time seeing these guys and they are one of my favorites, so this was a blast for me! The energy was awesome, the setlist was great, they sounded on point, and I loved the new song they played! It was very different from their other stuff but I thought it was really fantastic. 

8. Hinds - After a bumpy start due to some issues at The Who Stage, the technical issues were resolved we were rewarded for waiting! These girls were so cute, and they were so excited at the turnout they had. They sounded absolutely amazing, they brought the energy and the crowd loved it! Their album is still one of my favorites of the year and I was really anticipating this show, and I couldn't have been more pleased!

9. Lizzo - Holy shit, what a blast! Her DJ's set before the show started was dope, the choreography and dancers were fantastic, and Lizzo killed her performance! I love her positive message and thought she was such a great fit for the Bonnaroo vibe. I caught the first few Marian Hill songs before heading to Lizzo and I was glad I made that decision! 

10. Hundred Waters - This performance left me truly floored! I wasn't even planning on going, but my sister wanted to meet her friend there so I went with her before Hinds. I only caught about half of the set, but I was beyond impressed. I'm gonna try to catch another show when I get the chance! 

11. Tame Impala - Underwhelming, but still good! I loved the songs they did play, although I did wish for a little more. However, it was sort of a blessing in disguise because as I was getting pretty tired and I dunno if I would have made it to 3 haha. Standout moments for me were Let It Happen, Why Won't They Talk To Me, Yes I'm Changing, Elephant, Eventually, and of course Brand New Person.

12. Death Cab For Cutie - The only reason this is towards the bottom of my list is because I've been to full DCFC shows before and that is far superior to an hour long set. But, this was still so good and so much fun. I cried a couple times and it was just me and my sister at this one, which was chill. We were right behind the pit and had our feet in the sand which felt amazing on Sunday haha. They brought the energy, which I wasn't really expecting, so that I was nice. The parachutes going around were cool too!

13. St. Lucia (pit) - This was my first pit show at Roo (none last year) and I bought a water bottle of apple cider moonshine off of this old country lady about 20 minutes before getting in line. I usually don't drink at all, much less during the day at Roo, but for whatever reason I was feeling frisky. Anyways I have a super low alcohol tolerance level and let me tell ya, five swigs off that bad boy and I was toasted. I partied my ass of in the pit while the rest of my group sat beneath a shaded tree at the back of the field. I may have also cried at this set during I Wanna Love Someone, and I could blame it on the moonshine but tbh I'd have done it anyways. I had a lot of fun here though! 

14. J. Cole - I wasn't even gonna go to this set but my sister wanted a buddy for this show so I tagged along, and he actually really impressed me! I'm still not a huge fan, but I gotta give the dude his respect. Chance's appearance was amazing though, I lost my shit when I heard No Problems start up. It was the only one I caught so it was cool to be there for one of those. Really really hoping he comes to Roo 2017 for a full set because that was like a morsel of an appetizer. 

HM - Kalliope Thursday night, Andra Day, FJM, beginning of Purity Ring was sweet, RL Grime, LANY, The Floozies

Overall I give this year all the thumbs up and red 100 emojis. My group and I were a lot more prepared versus last year, we got a way better camping spot (Pod 3 baby!), I did a lot more non-music wise that I didn't do last year (lots of Grove hangouts, fountain frolicking, partying in general), we had a better group overall, our neighbors were way cooler, no security issues whatsoever, I saw more shows... literally none of us had one bad thing to say about this year. For my personal experience this blew last year out of the water for me and I am already sooo stoked for the Roo Cycle to start back over.