Warped Tour’s logo announcing their final year; Photo courtesy of https://vanswarpedtour.com
Summer and music festivals go hand in hand. After all, #Beychella finished not so recently and there are still dozens upon dozens of music festivals that happen every year. One big one that is not talked about as much as it should be? Warped Tour.
If you’re unfamiliar with the name, it’s okay. A bunch of people are. What you need to know is that Warped Tour is a yearly travelling music fest that offers almost 100 bands that fall under the umbrella genre of “alternative” every year. Even better, tickets are usually around $50 and they hit basically every major city.
Some big names like Katy Perry, Blink-182, My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy and Paramore started out on this tour that has lovingly been named “Punk rock summer camp.” Warped Tour has given countless alternative bands their start by letting them tour all across the country to hundreds of music lovers every day. You should also know that this summer will be its final full tour. This is a big deal.
This tour has been running since 1995 and now services roughly 600,000 people every year in over 40 cities. What makes this music festival so unique is not only does it travel, but it puts a huge focus on new bands, dedicating two whole stages to largely unknown bands so they get a chance to perform in front of a crowd and gain a following. Founder Kevin Lyman, who used to work on Lollapalooza, also learned that early bands would often play to empty crowds because fans knew when big names were playing. To combat this, Kevin Lyman created “The Wall.”
A crowd looks at the blown up “Wall”; Photo cred: Ashley Turner Photography
“The wall” is one of the icons of Warped Tour. Sometime in the winter, the bands that will play Warped Tour are formally announced, but attendees don’t know at what time they’ll play until they’re on Warped Tour grounds and either buy a line up or take a picture of the giant inflatable wall. Also, you can’t predict based off of previous dates because the line up changes every day. With over half a dozen stages, you better hope your favorites don’t conflict.
There’s a bunch of other interesting tidbits about Warped, too, that makes it different. It’s an all ages music festival, although they do recommend due to heat and noise that children under eight do not come. I first went to Warped Tour at thirteen. Parents with an underaged ticket can get in for free and if they’re not into the music, Warped Tour offers “reverse daycare” where parents can pop in, sit down and cool off with some fans or A/C. Warped Tour also does a ridiculous amount of charity doing things like offering early admission if you turn in some canned food items or an old cell phone.
One of the most important factors about Warped Tour isn’t a statistic a show of success. It’s personal. I went to a music festival at thirteen that was filled with emos and goths and metalheads and punks and all of the “scary” looking people and I felt safe. Sure, my dad followed me when I was thirteen, but if I needed to leave him for a little bit, he felt that I was safe. Almost every single band at that festival takes a moment to talk about how Warped Tour is a place where you can be yourself and loved and accepted. They preach kindness and self confidence and all of these good messages that most people don’t connect to a music festival that plays to crowds of heavy eyeliner and bright pink mohawks.
Personally, I’m heartbroken to see this tour go away. I’ve gone with my dad and friends every year for the past seven years and my eighth will be my last. My dad went with my older sister before me. Luckily, a lot of great bands are showing up to see Warped Tour off on their final tour. You can find more information about Warped Tour on their official site, but below you’ll find their list of bands playing this year.