We got connected! Connection Festival 2016

Summer music festivals in Florida have it all: the blistering hot sun, torrential rain storms, 100% humidity, and most importantly, fans willing to brave the elements for their love of music. This year’s Connection Festival was no different, as the annual music festival saw its greatest attendance yet.  Hosted by Pauly Shore, a.k.a. the Weasel, and x102.9 fm, the festival featured a wide range of artists from big names to some local favorites including Wu-Tang Clan, Cage the Elephant, Taking Back Sunday, the Bouncing Souls, Against Me!, Big Data, and many more.

Pauly Shore kept everyone entertained in-between sets, bantering with both the crowd and the bands as they were about to play. In classic Florida fashion, the mid afternoon rain storm was not enough to stop an great set from St. Lucia, as well as cooling off festival attendees. As the day progressed, punk rock took over for a few hours with performances from the Bouncing Souls, Against Me! and Taking Back Sunday.The rain then returned but this time in the form of champagne showers as the Wu-Tang Clan took the stage to ‘bring the ruckus,’ spraying the crowd with bottles of champagne while performing all of their hits.  Although their set time had expired, Wu-Tang Clan were not ready to leave the stage, staying an extra 15 minutes to pay homage  to hip hop greats of the past. This only heightened the anticipation for the the final act, Cage the Elephant, who closed out the festival with unimaginable amounts of energy.

The success of this annual festival only seems to be getting better yet fans must patiently wait another year for this one. Now, if only we could fix that amphitheater in Metropolitan Park!