Another year of attending Hangout Fest is in the books for United By Pop. The three-day festival in Gulf Shores, AL, was held on May 17-19. With over 50 artists — including the headliners Lana Del Rey, ODESZA, and Zach Bryan — it was a fun-filled weekend on the Gulf Shores celebrating music.
Day One
The first day of the fest, fans eagerly arrived early. Despite the windy weather and the forecast showing potential rain, it was a great (but humid) day with a stacked schedule of artists.
The Beaches and Del Water Gap were some of the highlights from Day One, putting on performances that were full of rock. With the ocean scenery behind the stage, it felt like a movie scene.
Dominic Fike performed over at the Hangout Stage, giving not only an incredible performance showcasing his wide range of talent but also playing a new song, “coast2coast,” off his latest project, ’14 minutes.’
Closing off the Mermaid Stage for Day One was Matt Maeson giving an acoustic set. His live voice sounds exactly like his recordings, and it was an intimate setting that left the audience moved by his vocal range and passionate lyrics.
The most anticipated performance of the night was Lana Del Rey, who made quite an entrance, riding in a golf cart and looping around the crowd while waving and greeting all her fans. Her set production and design were majestical, and her backup dancers were visually appealing. Throughout her set, she kept bringing out special guests: Nessa Barrett, Benson Boone, and Jelly Roll all came out to perform with her. Jelly Roll even closed the show with Lana singing “Sweet Home Alabama.”
Day Two
Saturday was a nice, cool, cloudy day — which is rare at Hangout but much appreciated after such a humid Friday. And even though the day was cooler, that didn’t mean there weren’t performers giving off the heat.
Taking the main stage at the beginning of the day, Knox performed on the Hangout Stage. Chappel Roan, who performed in the afternoon, had quite an impressive showing for her set. Her crowd was the most engaging of the weekend.
That night, Cage The Elephant wasted no time in bringing their high-energy performance up. Immediately once the band took the stage, the lead singer ran around on stage and in the pit, interacting with the fans in the crowd. People crowd surfed during their set and went wild. As the sky was a bright blue, fading into nighttime, Cage The Elephant finished their set by singing their well-known hits “Cigarette Daydream” and “Come a Little Closer.”
Odesza was the last performance of the night, and it was mesmerizing. The set included a drumline, pyro, and lasers, leaving the whole crowd in awe.
Day Three
Sunday, the final day, was bright and sunny, filled with major artists such as Reneé Rapp, Megan Maroney, and Zach Bryan. Their sets were some of the highlights of the day, drawing massive crowds.
Zach Bryan ended the festival with no flashy production but a strand of lights above him with his band by his side, full of raw talent and charisma, singing his emotionally heartfelt lyrics.
We had such a great time attending Hangout Fest and are already counting down the days until next year.
