BottleRock 2024 Festival Recap

Memorial Day weekend is the “unofficial” start to summer, and so is BottleRock Napa for folks in Northern California. For the last 11 years Napa Valley has hosted this unique music festival to kick off the summer full of music, food, and of course, wine. What’s so unique about this festival is the focus on food and wine, which is why Napa is a perfect backdrop to a festival that’s not only focused on music, but what Napa is know for, which is it’s culinary and wine scene. This year’s festival was headlined by legendary artists like Stevie Nicks, Pearl Jam, Mana, and Queens of the Stoneage. Some notable artist’s performing at this year’s festival include, Megan Thee Stallion, Kali Uchis, Bebe Rexha, St. Vincent, Norah Jones, Ed Sheeran, The Offspring, Nelly, and T-Pain.

BottleRock does a great job of blending genres and having a diverse lineup every year. You can see artists like Stevie Nicks, Gogol Bordello, Akira Galaxy, and Pete Yorn all in the same day and if that wasn’t diverse enough, you can also head over to Williams Sonoma’s Culinary Stage and watch celebrity chefs and musicians and celebrities cooking and talking about their own brands. Some highlights from the culinary stage this year include Chef Jose Andres with Bradley Cooper, Steph Curry, and Bradley’s business partner Danny Digiampietro who run “Danny & Coops Cheesesteaks.” Some other highlights from the culinary stage were The Offspring with Alton Brown, Chef Andrew Zimmern with Neil Patrick Harris, David Burkta, and Bianca Del Rio. If you were lucky enough to catch the demo with Neil Patrick Harris, you would have seen him doing magic tricks, his husband David Burkta creating Napa inspired fair foods, like Foie Gras with cotton candy and chicken strips with caviar, but you’d also notice that Bianca Del Rio was giving Andrew Zimmern a magical drag makeover. Andrew’s drag name became “Foie La La” and everyone loved watching the transformation.

Another notable culinary demo was with Melissa King, The Beaches, and local drag queens Starya and Frankie Fictitious, who were lighting peking duck on fire, dancing with flame throwers, and spraying everyone with champagne.

Some notable performances included The Offspring who performed on Sunday with a special guest, Ed Sheeran. During their song, “Million Miles Away” Ed Sheeran walked out on stage to a roaring and very surprised crowd and performed the song with the band. Megan Thee Stallion also had an electric performance full of dancers and flames to keep the crowd going at the end of night one. Stevie Nicks had a magical but chill performance on the other side of the festival from Megan Thee Stallion and a lot of fans were moving back and forth between the main stages to catch both performances.

Some additional artist highlights were Stephen Sanchez, Larussell, Tower of Power, Bebe Rexha, The Scarlet Opera, Loveless, Action Bronson, and Grace Mckagan.

If at any point you wanted a break from music, you had a few options of things to do. BottleRock has a “Spa” area where you can get tattooed, get an iv hydration, your hair done, and so much more. There’s also a “Club” where you can take a break from the weather and hang out in an air conditioned building with a bar and some Dj’s playing music. There’s also the Silent Disco which starts out next to the Spa and at the end of the night transitions to a dance party at the Truly Stage.

For those guest who are interested in all things food, wine, and alcohol (or mocktails) there’s plenty for you to do as well. Many local wineries in the area have booths set up around the venue with their own decorations and spaces to not only hang out in, but you can buy cases of wine to have shipped home, or in some instances take with you at the end of the night. Brand sponsors like Hendricks Gin, Aperol, and Pacifico have their own activation booths set up with photo booths, swings, and so much more. Lastly, you can’t forget about all the food. Many local businesses have food stalls at BottleRock including Humphry Slocombe, Mustards Grill, Morimoto, Slanted Door, and so many more.

In the end, BottleRock is one of those festivals thats one of a kind with a plethora of things to do and bring people together with music, food, and beverages. It’s an incredible weekend full of things to do whether you want to spend your entire day listening to music, or getting a message, or just focusing on culinary demos and discovering new wineries and restaurants. There’s something to do for everyone and there’s even a center for kids! If you’ve never been to BottleRock and have ever thought about it, this is your sign to go and experience something different from your average music festival in a beautiful location in Northern California. Take the opportunity to make a trip out of it, visit some wineries, explore Napa and most of all, have fun.