In the ever-expanding ecosystem of U.S. music festivals, the East Coast has often played second fiddle. While Coachella owns the desert, Outside Lands reigns over the fog, and Lollapalooza floods the Midwest with neon wristbands each summer, the Northeast — despite being home to a wealth of successful acts across genres — rarely tops a festival-hopper’s dream itinerary. But this year, Governors Ball made a convincing case for New York City’s place on the circuit — at least on paper.
Headlined by Tyler, the Creator, Olivia Rodrigo and Hozier, Gov Ball leaned into its Gen Z core. Sharing more sonic DNA with Outside Lands than with its closer cousin Boston Calling, NYC’s early-summer staple offered a local alternative for East Coast kids who didn’t feel like flying cross-country just to scream “RUN” back at Tyler. The smaller stages had their own treats to offer, tugging at the hearts of radio pop lovers and indie kids alike. The inclusion of more alternative acts, like Car Seat Headrest — who, letting out a sigh at the sight of smokers in the crowd, closed their set with “Stop Smoking (We Love You)” — or the guitar prodigy Mk.gee made the festival’s portfolio diverse enough to appeal to most Spotify users with oddly specific playlist titles. On the flip side, it’s hard to call Gov Ball an intergenerational experience: for three days, the percentage of high schoolers in Queens visibly spikes, and anyone over the age of 35 is often someone’s designated ride home.
It is, however, impossible to deny: Gov Ball is straight-up fun in a youthful, mildly absurd way. Flushing Meadows-Corona Park is a remarkable setting — shady and relatively cool even in the middle of a hot June day, with trees adorned with hot pink fur and Lady Liberty herself (or rather, Lady Liberty’s head) serving as a landmark; it feels like a fever dream of Alice’s Wonderland. For city dwellers, it almost feels like a weekend countryside escape rather than the chaotic three-day bender festivals are often made out to be.
But fun can only carry a festival so far — and on Saturday, poor communication and a sudden weather delay brought things to a standstill. The first half of Saturday’s lineup was abruptly cleared, disappointing fans and dipping the day into logistical chaos. During a regular day, the arrivals are usually staggered depending on the crowd’s willingness to attend someone’s 11am set, but Saturday’s doors opened hours after the initially planned start time, and got hit with the entire festival crowd all at once, resulting in hour-long lines stretching all the way through the park. When the rain came, it was powerful but short-lived. The crowd management issues, however, persisted throughout the whole day. Disappointed visitors took to Instagram, documenting their frustration in the comment sections under the posts on the official Gov Ball account: “highly disappointed in my experience this year and don’t know if i’ll be returning next year”, “where’s the refund for Saturday” — the digital paper trail was undeniable. It remains to be seen whether this mishap will deter music fans from attending the festival next year, but one thing is clear: if Gov Ball wants to hold its place among the greats, it can’t afford to keep missing the mic when it comes to communication.
And, let’s be real: we want Gov Ball to thrive. New York City is, famously, a crown jewel of creativity in the U.S., an ever-relevant destination for the young generations of dreamers and wanderers. The idea that a place like this might lack a large-scale music festival? Laughable at best — near-criminal at worst. But, if Gov Ball truly wants to live up to its potential, it’ll need to do more than book smartly. It’ll need to run smartly too – a requirement that, for a festival with more than a decade-long history, should not be a tall order … and yet seems to remain one to this day.
Arina Zadvornaya is a graduate student in the College of Engineering. She can be reached at az499@cornell.edu.
