Camp Flog Gnaw 2019 was full of good music, merch, food and rides. From Stormy Daniels jumping on stage, to Drake getting booed off stage, this festival was definitely one to remember. Check out all my highlights from this past weekend at Tyler, the Creator’s incredible music festival!
Day 1
The first day walking into the festival, I was overwhelmed by the incredible outfits and views from the venue. The LA skyline and Hollywood sign that could be seen from behind Dodger Stadium took my breath away.
The unapologetic love for music and acceptance was evident in every face in the crowds. People I met came from all over the world for this experience! One guy even came alone from Florida just to see Tyler, The Creator.
My favorite sets of the day were Summer Walker, Dominic Fike, Daniel Caesar, Solange and of course, Tyler, the Creator. Summer Walker incorporated the art of pole dancing into her set, celebrating the athleticism of pole and female energy while she sang “Girls Need Love.” She even brought girls from the audience onto the stage to show their moves on the pole.
While the sun was setting over the Camp Stage, Dominic Fike expressed his shock at the fact that he was able to perform at the festival. He revealed that the year before he had to sneak into Camp Flog Gnaw, and this year he was able to rock the stage and prove he really is the “King of Everything.”
Daniel Caesar almost made me cry, and definitely made the girls behind me cry, when he pulled out his guitar and played a slowed-down version of “ARE YOU OK?”
Tyler, the Creator’s performance was mind-blowing. In his recognizable wig and suit, he played music for his day-one fans and for the fans of his newer album “Igor.” His piano rendition of “EARFQUAKE” literally made the ground shake.
After a whole day of festival activities, people were understandably exhausted. Waiting for Solange to go on, people were sleeping on the concrete with their hands covered in churro dust. The moment that Solange began performing her angelic high notes, all of the fatigue went away. Solange stunned the audience with her natural beauty, artistic choreographed dances and eloquent movements. Her dancers were women in suits and leotards, dancing to the trumpet as Solange commanded the stage with her hair flipping and spinning the mic like a lasso over her head.
Day 2
Everyone showed up in their wacky ‘fits and Golf Merch again for another day of Flog Gnaw madness on Day 2! A lot of people in the audience were college students blowing off steam for the weekend. I met a lot of fun students from UCLA, some high school students, some 50-year-old rap fanatics and even a guy who studied for an economics degree in London, jamming to YG. The festival drew in fans from all ages.
There was a lot of buzz in the air that the secret headliner was going to be Frank Ocean after a social media post from the weeks before, one girl even told me if it was not Frank Ocean she would demand a refund. Some highlights from Day 2 were definitely Willow Smith, Taco, H.E.R., BROCKHAMPTON, YG and the secret headliner: Drake. Willow Smith really said “Wait a Minute” as she had the audience patiently waiting for her to start her set. Every minute was worth it though, as soon as she stunned the audience with her incredible vocal ability and sang some songs from a new album she is supposed to release. She said “I feel so grateful to be a part of this generation” and surprised everyone with her brother Jaden Smith, who she stated was one of her best friends in a heartfelt moment.
Taco played a lot of throwback jams and opened up the crowd for some insane moshing. He had the hole crowd singing “Stand By Me,” and he also shot us a little extra dose of Jaden Smith. YG’s performance was insane and completely unexpected. He poked fun at white people and dragged some on stage to ask them questions about Donald Trump. When he asked the chick next to him her name and showed her on the big screen, the crowd went wild when she said “My name is Stormy F**cking Daniels” which led YG into his song “F**ck Donald Trump”. If that was not surprising enough, Shoreline Mafia came out and sang “Musty” as the crowd almost swallowed me in a mosh pit.
Everyone was extremely anxious to find out who the secret headliner was. People were visibly nervous and chanting “WE WANT FRANK!” while the last set was looming. Finally, Tyler showed up and said he had a couple of friends to bring out. People were almost sure Frank would be one of them. Tyler brought out special guests first like A$AP Rocky who sang “Praise the Lord” and Lil Uzi Vert who ran into the audience, getting everyone pumped to see who was next. Then the time came to reveal that the secret headliner was…Drake.
Drake sang some of his hit songs and everyone was able to sing along. The guys to my left were moshing and jumping like their dreams had come true and the girls to my right refused to even dance to Drake. He sang “I’m Upset” and I don’t blame him if he was because of what happened next. 15 minutes before the show was supposed to end, he asked the audiences’ permission to keep singing. He said he knew this was our festival so it was up to us if we wanted to hear more. People shouted “No!” and booed the world-famous rapper off of the stage.
Everyone waited around for 20 minutes for something to happen, chanting “Frank!” and then the crew started to clean the stage. It was not until the screen said “Thanks for coming, get home safe” that the crowd was signaled to leave. People were confused and realizing it was over. As everyone walked toward the parking lot, groups of people were singing Frank Ocean songs.
Despite the awkward ending, Camp Flog Gnaw 2k19 was absolutely amazing and truly worth every cent.