If you are looking for another Coachella or South By South West then you have come to the wrong festival. Lockn' is fun, exciting, and a breath of fresh air to so many overly commercialized music festivals that exist these days, but, most importantly Lockn' keeps music at it's core. Music, even though it's the first word in the subtitle for these type of events, seems to be slipping away from many music festival's attention. Lockn' hasn't faltered on that end. Since 2013 when Lockn' (At the time called Interlocken Music Festival) started, the festival put the musical content of the event first.

Lockn' started in 2013 with a swath of fantastic bands ranging from jam-bands such as The String Cheese Incident and Tedeshi Trucks Band to legacy rockers such as Further and Phil Lesh. The lineup was strong for a virgin festival, and it paid off for them. 25,000 people showed up, and had a rocking time. The festival has remained a powerful name for American Jam/Rock festivals. This year the festival saw record numbers of 30,000+ attendees. Year-to-year Lockn's lineups remain similar hosting several repeat acts like Phil Lesh and the String Cheese Incident, but Lockn' doesn't let that aspect go stale. The organizers promote the acts to play together, creating super-groups and hybrid-bands. The combined groups make the festival that much more appealing for the attendees who travel hundreds of miles for this festival. Several times we were approached asking if we had heard any rumors of who may or may not be coming out on stage with so-and-so. It was kind of silly, but that is such a good thing for lockn' to be able to hold over the heads of their attendees. Lockn' can use surprise as such a powerful, non-malicious tool with their festival. That is what keeps the crowds coming. They want to see X playing with Y because one or both of those acts could be their absolute favorite. Other festivals try to change up the content of their lineups so much, but Lockn' goes for a different approach. Work with who they are comfortable with and put creative spins on how it can be produced and showcased.

Lockn' 2016 in Arrington, Virginia

Festi.World rolled into the farm the afternoon of the first day. Thursday, August 25th. The roads were organized, staff was everywhere helping direct people and answering questions, and the familiar scent of greasy food filled the air. One of the first thing we noticed was the heat and humidity. It was hot, but the throughout the weekend the beauty of the people, sights, and sunset quickly made up for that fact. We were in awe of how beautiful Oak Ridge Farm was. The alluring sunset on Thursday set the tone for the entire weekend.