As the sun dipped toward the horizon on June 11—one of the year’s longest days—thousands of campers had already transformed the fields of the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, into a sprawling tent city. The festival officially runs four days, but attendees may now arrive as early as Tuesday. By Wednesday most fans were settled in, and the first wave of festivities had begun in Outeroo, the network of satellite campgrounds that comes alive before the main grounds open on Thursday.
Outeroo comprises nine large camping plazas, each with its own vendors and entertainment. Area 7 hosted the Who Stage, relocated this year from the main venue. Music began at sunset with harpist Yomí (Michele Annise), a Bonnaroo favorite who shifted her set from the stage to a shaded grove behind it. Hundreds of fans stretched out on blankets and hammocks while her ethereal blend of classical harp, hip-hop, and experimental soundscapes drifted through the trees—a serene counterpoint to the high-energy shows elsewhere. Yomí will perform daily in Outeroo throughout the weekend.
In Campground 5, festival-goers lined up at the largest food court in Outeroo and flocked to House of Yes, a converted barn that has delivered boundary-pushing performances since 2018. Partnering with Little Cinema, the collective offers five straight days of programming ranging from Dirty Circus cabaret and Blast Off dance parties to immersive film screenings, drag revues, and sound-healing sessions with Voice Cult. The barn filled to capacity as soon as the doors opened, suggesting that House of Yes may have outgrown its current home.
The most popular Outeroo destination, Where in the Woods, was already pulsing with EDM fans well before sunset. Nestled in a lush forest dotted with hammocks, the stage features a powerful sound system and a dazzling multimedia light show. Once the music starts, back-to-back DJ sets keep the beats rolling nearly nonstop until the festival ends, and surprise appearances by main-stage headliners only add to the venue’s mystique.
Wednesday’s pre-party hinted that Bonnaroo 2025 could be one of the festival’s most memorable editions yet.
