California Roots Festival

The day is young and the anticipation is high. It's Thursday, May 26, 2022 and today is finally the day, Day One of the California Roots Music and Arts Festival. You can feel the longing in the air as the early morning Monterey mist sweeps over the grounds, the hushed excitement as people are finally welcomed back in through the front gate, into the festival, back home.

People streamed through the gates sporting everything from fuzzy, neon green t-rex onesies to lace dresses echoing the grace and beauty of butterflies. There were those wearing items sold in festivals past and those rocking band tees with pride. There were families, couples, friends, fans, and lots of puppers. What every person had in common was the glint of hope in their eye and the extra bounce in their step; this was the moment we'd all been waiting for.

It was a classic Monterey morning and the Pop Up stage featured Sonic Serendipity at 10:00am, the sky echoing their mellow vibe. People were meditating in front of the stage as the ocean breeze swept overhead, hints of fog rolling across the trees. Gray skies framed the warmth emanating from the stage as bells chimed, bowls rung and drums beat in perfect harmony. The effervescent sound summoned a wave of calm that crashed over the early morning meditators like a wave, the music sweeping into its crescendos and decrescendos as the tide rises and falls, manifesting the same sense of bliss. The occasional tinkling of the bell and the crash of the gong was a call to wake up, to show up, to get ready to party.

As the first day kicked into gear people excitedly bought limited edition blankets and steel pints in anticipation of them selling out. Artists showed off their stuff and people settled in to start the show. The buzz of the crowd in the Bowl for Eli-Mac, the first show of the day, was palpable.

As Eli's set came to a close she opened up to the crowd, creating a feeling of intimacy with the entire stadium and sharing how much Cali Roots means to her, how much it means to her to be back and how much she's missed the festival. She left us with the promise of what's to come and simultaneously manifested feelings of love, anticipation and desire that we carried to each and every show.

Throughout the day some people that I spoke with were here for the first time, and some had been coming to California Roots longer than they've been alive. A young mother with her two children has been coming to the festival since 2012. Her five year old daughter danced gleefully in her arms to the booming bass and hypnotic energy of Stephen Marley, emulating her mother's fierce dance moves and posing proudly for her father's camera. When I asked if it was her first time at the show her mom laughed and told me her daughter's first show was in 2016 when she was pregnant with her. Clearly thrilled to be a part of the party, her little one danced and sang along to every word, at home in the crowd and thrilled to be back to what she knows: front row of a live show.

Throughout the course of the day I spoke with people who'd traveled from all over the state, the country, and the continent to come to this homecoming festival. Nearby places like Carmel Valley and Brentwood, and places a little further away like Durango, Colorado, Florida, and the Greater Toronto Area in Canada. The lovely Sousa family, made up of brothers Josh and Sean Sousa, and Sean's wife Ashley, along with their friend Patty Smallbone, traveled across the continent from Canada exclusively for California Roots. Truly a family affair, Sean was the first to attend for two years, then brought his brother Josh, and then his wife Ashley. Together they have been coming to the festival for three years, and this year they brought their close friend Patty with them to experience the magic for the first time. When I asked Sean what makes him want to travel such a long distance and bring his family to Cali Roots year after year, he described the festival as, "heaven on earth," putting to words the communal relief of being back after three long years perfectly when he said, "[it] feels like we were just here. It feels exactly the same, but just a little different."

**Names used with consent