Voodoo Experience

Voodoo is really at the perfect time of year. Even though they had to shut down the last day, I had a really enjoyable experience the day I went to catch Florence & The Machine.
What I love most about this fest is the people-​watching. While I did feel a hair over the median age, tons of people costume for this festival making people watching that much more enjoyable.
The festival grounds at City Park, when they’re not inundated by flooding, are great to host festivals with trees here and there to provide shade. Getting close enough to a stage to actually see the face of the person performing is wonderful, and I really love all the cool art installments that cover the grounds and would love to see if there is a map for them next year!
I’m not really coming to Voodoo for the food, and wasn’t event sure what I had eaten since it was brought to me in the dark but I think it was good. My biggest qualm with this festival was the bathroom situation… Once you break the seal and are a little on the drunky Smurf side, finding that bathroom was like trying to find the right path in the Labyrinth… in the dark. I think they had these cool electric signs designating boys/​girls but I think they either came down/​went out or the blurred lines of being said drunky Smurf made these more difficult to make out.
I totally understand that they’re trying to create a privacy barrier around the boy/​girl sections because these chicas are wearing leopard body suits and might need a little bit more room to wiggle out of them before getting in a porta-​potty but once you found the bathrooms past the black tarp, no one is gonna police dudes in the girl section or visa versa, so I hope they work that out for this year and create more available porta-​potty areas.
Keep an eye on the site, the line-​up pops up in June!

As a Fest head and a person that loves to travel, I attend different festivals every year since 2012. For 2015, it was Amnesia in Montréal, Canada, Hangout Festival in Gulf Shore, Alabama and Voodoo Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana. I was really excited to attend Voodoo this year since it falls on Halloween and the line up includes Joy the Formidable, Metric, Modest Mouse, Ozzy Osbourne, Florence and the Machine, and Zac Brown and others. The food vendors were really nice and the variety was really. The theme of carnival was really nice and entertaining. One of the reasons for my one star rating is for how the Festival treats their attendees who is GA. As a music lover who attends a LOT of festivals, I cannot always afford VIP but I like to be close to the stage so I can see my favorite act sings. So I give priority to who I want to see by skipping some acts that I may catch somewhere else or is not favorable by me. It doesn’t matter if you go early to wait for your band because on Friday, Voodoo barred the WHOLE front area of the main stage from GA by at least 50 yards. I am not sure if this is a regular thing for them because they didn’t fence out GA on Saturday night. So far, this is the first festival I seen do this. Most other festival have a small section for VIPs near the stage with seating or chair but do not take the whole front area. Saturday wasn’t too bad. Yes it rained and you can’t blame the Fest people. I was happy that I got to see Jane Addictions and Ozzy Osbourne from 15 yards from the stage because I waited one act prior in that spot until they came out and of course, it was worth it. And I thought the Festival people handled things very well in getting us out and safely. Sunday was canceled which REALLY sucks for me because i didn’t know it would cancel because the website said «rain or shine». I don’t blamed the Fest people to cancel for canceling due to the weather and unsafe condition it has caused. But I turned down the Giants/​Saints tickets with my friends (which turned out to be a historical crazy game with 15 TDs scored) because I was there for the festival. Not only that I paid a taxi $ 20 + tip to get there and waited one hour in the rain to find another taxi to pay another $ 20 plus tip to drive me back to my hotel the officers in the park told me Voodoo Fest was canceled. I went to the website and followed the instructions for getting a partial refund which I thought was kind of them. After waiting and getting the runaround from several of their representatives, the partial refund never happened. I rather have them tell me «no refunds» in their website than tell me it’s coming or «they are looking for it» for four months. Before I left New Orleans, I was planning to give them another chance so i can get a feel of the full three days Festival experience, but lost trust in them. If you are a music lover and really want to feel some awesome Music Festival vibes, I highly recommend Firefly, Boston Calling, Electric Forest and Hangout. This year I am exploring and attending Kaboo, Sasquatch, and Oshega.

First time at this festival in 2015 during Halloween. You have to admit New Orleans is the best place to be expressive and artistic. Before I begin there are a few reasons that made this 3 starts: it was raining which my friends and I anticipated but man it was tough trying to get around, super smelly, and worse part is trying to get from one stage to the next I was a hot mess. On a positive note the people were very friendly and it was such an amazing show. You are super close to the stage which was pretty cool. Ozzy Osbourne was one of the artist that was performing that night. Well one of the nights the voodoo had to be closed due to the weather conditions and thank goodness it did. I was able to even to enjoy their music down in the French Quarter. I love it there. If only they would perform more often at a more intimate and small crowd. Even if it does get crowded the music can be heard around the area. IT was definitely an unforgettable night.

I was impressed with Voodoo. I thought the art vendors were great and had some really neat stuff. There was pretty much no line when we went in both days of the festival. My partner and his family complained about the line-​up this year, but I thought there was a great mix of artists, and I discovered some cool bands I’d never heard of/​seen before as well as some of my favorites.
There was also a good mix of food and price points. I appreciated that I could get a huge plate of nachos or a shawarma wrap for a reasonable price or shell out more for more frou-​frou fare. There was a cool art video at the Pepsi tent, and while there were only two booths for free water, we never had any trouble finding them or had to stand in line for more than a minute or two.
When I saw the pics of the venue on Sunday, I could see why they cancelled the last day. It was disappointing, but I feel like it was the right decision for the safety of all involved.

I really had fun at Voodoo 2015. Friday night was the best: the weather was perfect, it wasn’t too crowded, and there were some really great shows. I was able to get really close to the stage for Jack U, and Florence and the Machine put on an amazing show. Her voice…
Voodoo had some really great food vendors this year. Dragos is always a winner at any NOLA festival. They also had multiple locations of Food Drunk, who as always came through with their pig cones and crab/​crawfish mac and cheese. Getting into the festival took no more than 10 minutes.
I’m not going to dock them points for cancelling on Sunday, since they did provide a ¹⁄₃ refund on the 3 day pass, but I will say this: it rains in New Orleans, and weather forecasts are a thing. Emphasizing repeatedly that you are a rain and shine event, and then cancelling because of rain, looks kind of ridiculous.
I will dock them because there must have been 15 stands in there, including stands at every stage and more scattered throughout, which were selling beer $ 8 beer and $ 10 mixed drinks, but only 2 stands in the entire festival offering free water. The location of these stands was not on any map. Also, the festival grounds were pretty gross on Saturday night; they should have anticipated this and planned accordingly.
I’m definitely buying my 3 day pass in December!

I was first introduced to Voodoo in 2013. My then boyfriend, bought me weekend passes to go with him. He goes every year. So with my relationship, I inherited Voodoo.
Let me start by saying Voodoo is an amazing experience. There’s booths and tents all over the place. I feel like the real experience comes from how you manage your time. Everyone loves something different. I enjoy popping my head in every tent/​booth and judging which ones I want to come back and visit. Be prepared to walk out with tons of freebies.
Food– In 2013 I recall there being tons of food choices. We couldn’t figure out what to try next because it all looked delicious. (I’m typically a healthy eater and use these opportunities to enjoy foods I wouldn’t normally eat) The past two years seemed to have less food choices and I actually found myself walking back and forth just trying to find something halfway tempting.
This year less than 10 minutes walking through the gates I won VIP (LOA) passes. The hubby and I got super excited. We go to the LOA area and were somewhat disappointed. There wasn’t much more there than what was out for the regular passes. I’d never pay the money for it.
Music– My first year I was so beyond excited to get to see Kid Rock. No one will ever live up to his performance in my opinion. Never the less, I’ve seen some good shows. This year however, had by far the crappiest line up ever.
Even with the crappy food and line up I had an amazing time enjoying everything else with my husband and friends. I would also like to give my thanks to Voodoo for choosing to put our safety ahead of their desire to make money by calling off Voodoo Day 3. After seeing the pictures I very much respect that decision!
We’ll continue to make this a yearly tradition!

Canceled due to rain. Really? Not a storm with lightning and high winds — just rain. You know why??? Because City Park is a swamp waiting for rain! I’ll save my $$$ for Jazz Fest where just rain doesn’t cancel the day. Boo for VooDoo

Mind Blowing BBQ devoured, Food Drunk equals one happy carnivore. I was also pleasantly surprised to see THE KING CAKE BURGER make a guest appearance.

This is not a review on the acts there, just the venue. I used to be a huge fan of the festival. They changed the location, and layout and now I hate it. Don’t worry, this isn’t a rant on how change is scary and I don’t like my music to change, its just an observation that they did things without thinking of how they affect the common experience. I just got the general admission ticket and maybe things are a lot better if you pay for LOA or something else, but I doubt it. The line to get in was ridiculous, long wait, security was opening wallets out of purses, and trying her hardest to be supercop. The lines on the day before we went reportedly were waiting for over 90 minutes! That is a problem that needs solving.
At first when you walk in there is all of the arts and crafts. Some of the same that you find at other festivals/​art markets.
The food selection has exploded. That is the one bright spot in there. They used to have few options and choices, now they have a jazz fest style tents and some good selections.
The layout of the stages is confusing to me. There is one large stage for techno and dubstep. One large area and stage for one person with DJ equipment. But that was the only stage with a large crowd area. Not a large crowd, but the area if one showed up they would have room and a clear view. The other three stages face each other in a large triangle. Think about that. At one point when all three stages were in use, you couldn’t hear anyone distinctly. just a mash of noise as you were walking to the food area or back from one stage to another. The pit area was smaller in all three of those and they decide to put the largest act of the night in one of those right where a line of trees can obscure your sight if you didn’t get there for the previous act.
Of course your probably going to buy an $ 8 beer. You knew festival beers were expensive coming in and you begrudgingly pay for one or two. Now you have a REAL problem. You have to pee. This place is worse than Mardi Gras, because there is a place to pee, you seem so close, but it is a disaster. I’ll try to draw you a diagram. Think of a box with one doorway in. and lining the inside of that box are port-​a-​pottys. Now add about 200 people trying to get in there. There is a line of confusion before you enter that box, once you make it inside it is chaos. there becomes a line for every single toilet. Now you get lines that don’t just stop at the middle of the box people jump in and the lines begin to merge. Now people are facing in two and three different directions trying to figure out what toilet line they are really in. One single row of toilets would have been much better. But with so many people hiding and smoking weed and other illicit drugs, what’s a little public urination going to hurt? find a bush or a tree (sorry ladies).
They would have to get a really good act for me to consider going back.

I did not attend voodoo on Friday, where I heard that there was a really long line to enter. However, I did attend Saturday and Sunday, and entering was not an issue. I’m not very picky, I just want to drink, ride the ferris wheel, eat and listen to music. I don’t care about the teens, as adults can be just as annoying from my past experiences. However, I had an absolutely fantastic time, and I can’t wait to go back next year! Voodoo can’t modify itself to everyone’s idiosyncrasies, its a place to relax and have fun, so have fun! I took off a star because I thought the food workers could be a bit nicer, although that is an issue with the individual restaurants and not the organizers. However, if I had to serve hundreds of potentially rude, entitled hungry people all day, I’d probably be a little pissy too. See you next year!

call me crazy, and maybe i am just the oldest 28 year old on the block, but i thought voodoo SUCKED.
okay okay the bands/​performers did a great job. round of applause.
as for the organization of the venue? let’s just say it left a lot to be desired.
why don’t you pay crap tons of money to stand in a two hour line? that was with us cutting! nooo thanks.
security once you get to the front of the line? non-​existent. heck, security at the whole thing? non-​existent. no one who was «working» the entire event had any clue as to anything that was going on. i was not a VIP, but if i was i would have been pissed off! there was not even one person, not even one old woman with a cane, manning entrance to said VIP areas… what a joke.
i also assume a certain level of disgustingness at these types of events where the bathrooms are concerned… but there should at least be TP! for the love of god give me toilet paper!
i get that people smoke weed. i get that under age kids will be drunk. but what i do not get is why i have to watch presumably 12 year olds snort crack. nooooo thankssssss.

All my life I’ve been looking for two things: a set of gilded glockenspiel hammers and a music festival where I can watch hoards of teenagers pass out from too much weed and molly. At least I wasn’t the worst-​dressed person around, which is rare (leotard crammed with socks and old tires to clog up unreliable sphincter).
In attending Voodoo Fest, I felt like I was participating in a sort of flashmob tableau vivant where members of the New Orleans community put random bandanas on their heads and wear pants they wouldn’t usually be caught dead in. Nickelback was awesome this year, and I really hope that the little girl with the loud wah-​wah music and strange name comes back next year (Pyrex? Krilljets? Something like that) Also, whoever whines about $$$$ for food at music festivals needs to shut up and get in the possum hunting bidness — I’ve never met a festival vendor that didn’t take my possum pelts.
There were many, many portopotties, which was fortuante bc I soil myself frequently and without warning. The long lines at the front allowed people to appreciate my striking visage (face burns), for which I am sure they are grateful. I’m off to the Brothers 3 lounge.

Since I am finally recovered from Voodoo I thought I would write my review. First off, I would like to say I love Voodoo Fest, this is my third year and I will probably go every year in the future as long as I can. However, this year I noticed some HUGE issues.
The Bad:
1. The entrance line was outrageous, I heard some people say they waited for 3 hours! I have been to many festivals and never experience a wait to enter that was longer than 5 minutes.
2. The porter potties. There were only two bathroom locations with about 20 porter potties each. The lines were crazy long, about 20 minutes each time you waited.
3. The stages were far too close to each other. You could hear other sets while at a different stage.
The Good:
1. IT’S VOODOO! For me even with all those set backs I loved every minute of the festival. It is one of my favorite festivals I have ever attended year after year. The line-​up is always diverse and pulls big names. City Park in the fall is beautiful and the crowd is one of a kind!
I hope the event coordinators make some of these changes next year, but I’ll be back either way!

What an awesome Experience I had this past weekend.
The line up was DOPE.
Outkast
Skrillex
Arctic Monkeys
Pretty Lights
Flux Pavilion
Action Bronson
…just to name a few.
Things I did not care for:
$ 8 Beers
The 2 – 3 hour line at the entrance
Lauren Hills’ tardiness and performance
I will absolutely go back next year but expect all these little bugs to be ironed out.
ie: NO Lauren Hill, serve PBR’s and have more than one entrance ya dummies!

This was my first year at voodoo and was soo excited to finally see Foo Fighters! I’ve only been to ACL and Made In America but Voodoo is already on top of the list.
On the first day, the lines were really out of hand to get in but they resolved it and I didn’t have to wait to get in on days 2 – 3. Depending on which security check you get, dictates what you can bring in. On my last day there, I had the strictest lady. She was checking everything on my body and even went through my wallet. I know she’s doing her job but she made a lot of enemies that day. My friend and I even saw her go through a girls boobs and actually got a full bottle of crown out.
Prices for the festival is cheap compared to other 3 day concerts. I didn’t get a chance to try any of their food but I noticed there was local food/​carnival food available.
As for transportation, there are two lines outside city park. One for taxis and another for the buses going on route to Harrahs. We made the mistake of trying to get a taxi that first night and that took way too long. So we just took the buses the following days (1.25/person). There wasn’t any über vehicles available at this time.
The grounds were typical and spread out except they have some carnival rides in the center. There was one stage that had pretty crappy speakers but I really like how there was very little wait time between sets. I don’t think I had to wait more than 30 minutes if I was waiting for another artist at the same stage to play.
Also, it was soo much easier to fight to the front of the crowd here. It was still crowded but not nearly as crowded at ACL. The line up was great for my liking and I would consider coming back. What a great way to spend Halloween.
Yes: people do dress up for all 3 day. DO it!

The Voodoo Experience is a great concert! One of the many perks of living in NOLA.
This year was super organized with a well laid-​out. Case in point: Ms. Lauryn Hill being late. Someone came on around 30 min after she was supposed to start and let the crowd know (so we wandered to another area). When she came 45 minutes late — they let her go on and shut her down at ending time: 7:15pm. Unfortunately, that was also mid-​song. I’m sure they let her know that was going to happen. Could they have let her finish the song? Yes. Should she have been on time? Double yes. They let her finish up the set at another stage later that evening, which was nice. Anyhow, love that the only time something runs like clockwork in this city is at a concert!
There are less stages than in the past (now 4). Honestly, I like that more since you aren’t pulled between wanting to see multiple people perform at the same time. The line-​up are clearly displayed at several areas inside the venus incase you don’t have reception to see online (which you probably won’t due to the amount of other users in close proximity). You also get a great mix of local talent along with big names. Where else would Big Freedia play in the same weekend as Outkast (amazing last show btw, so glad we got to see them!)? We are still looking forward to Foo Fighters this evening!
Hints:
— Best time to buy tickets is during the December pre-​sale. You won’t know the line-​up, but you can always sell them if you don’t like who is playing.
— The will call line on the 1^st day is super long. Better to get tickets in advance to avoid all of that!
— Wear a costume, but make sure it’s warm! It gets chilly at night in November (seems like this is surprising to people for some reason).

I typically don’t do festivals of this caliber, not that I’m not into them, I’m just more into performances in a more intimate setting. The big stage productions with a crowd of thousands of people are great for production value, but from a concert-goer’s perspective (at least this one), the idea is not all that alluring.
This being my first Voodoo experience, I was rather wowed by all the happenings of this fest. One main contributing factor I’m sure is the fact that the opening day was Halloween, and thank the forces that be for that day and the scantily — dressed that evening. I could not control the A.D.D. like, at all. There were a lot of really interesting and creative costumes out.
The set up and flow of the fest is good, I found whenever I got separated from my people, it was no big deal explaining where I was and the ease of finding ‘landmarks’.
I also noted that someone gave this fest a one-​star because of the long line getting in. I agree, that line was heinous and appeared to be going nowhere. Luckiky, i had a weekend pass, and I said ‘eff this line’ and walked right over to the ‘exit’ (because clearly there’s re-​entry) and bypassed all that line nonsense, i agree they should have a separate line or something if you have your pass already.
Happy I got to see Outkast for the first time ever in my life, being a fan of their music since the early 90’s, following their music and the eternal sabbatical they eventually took, i thought I’d never have the opportunity to see them live. Well I did, and it was awesome. I have Voodoo fest to thank for that.
Thank you.

Loved.
My first VooDooExperience was 2013 with an amazeballs lineup. I forked over the 500 bones for VIP loa access. I was in the absolute front for NIN and the Cure and holy crow, for those reasons alone was the price tag worth it.
Lines at the bar and restroom were laughable for VIP… Not enough Indians to serve the VIP chiefs! It was easier to leave loa to get a drink/​food or suck it up in a porta, the lines in LOA were not acceptable.
The stages do need to be further apart… The noise bleed was troubling at times.
But what an awesome, eclectic environment on the whole.
I can’t wait to see who is on the lineup next year!

VooDoo Festival is a favorite along side the others I’ve visited which include Coachella, Wakarusa, Bonnaroo, Snowball, among others.
What I loved:
*Proximity to Bourbon Street and the French Quarter — lots to do when the festival ends, which is sometimes as early as 9pm.
*Variety of music — Rock, electronic, jazz, etc. Eclectic and intriguing.
*Merchant tents — Variety of things to discover and at reasonable prices (art, clothing, henna, etc.)
*Climate — 70s and sunny, bit of a chill at night which should be expected (bring a jacket).
*Southern hospitality! It does exist!!!
*Most legit sponsorship I’ve seen — two booths with complete interactive photo booths, free swag, and even free backstage passes (yep). Plus up front and personal band interviews throughout the day.
*Public transportation — Easy and cheap. Don’t party and drive.
*We did not opt for VIP, but I can see why people would. We got along just fine GA.
*SPACE — So much space, all around us, and we were CLOSE to the stages. Amazing.
What I didn’t love:
Trash EVERYWHERE. This is a serious issue that needs to be fixed.
No free WATER — How is this not a part of sponsorship???
Sound bleeding between stages — At one point during Moon Taxi’s set, the singer yelled, «well maybe I’ll just have Kid Rock sing it for me»… it was bad.

The Voodoo fest has easily become one of my favorite weekends of the year. This year was no different than years past with awesome performances (Blink-​182) and epic ones (Girl Talk). Girl Talk, aka Gregg Gillis, came dressed as Freddie Krueger! His set was the highlight of the night and probably the weekend. He even invited quite a few people from the crowd (looked like over 20ppl) to dance on stage with him for the entire time. Gotta love Voodoo mixed with the Halloween weekend!
The good:
— The art at Voodoo was quite a sight! The Fledgling sculpture was awesome :)
— Sat night lineup was kicking!
— Carnival rides were a cool addition.
— The October weather is always refreshing.
— The setting in City Park could not be better!
The not-​so-​good:
— Food was nothing to write home about. C’mon food vendors this is New Orleans after all. Go big or go home!
— Bathroom lines were super ridiculous as always. Can’t the organizers understand that one porta potty for every hundred people is not good planning.
Another wonderful reason to come here for Halloween is to experience Voodoo Fest!