so, big news everyone...I went to my first proper big festival and what better festival to go to than one which is hosted by Radio 1: Radio 1's Big Weekend.
I became a regular listener in 2019 but I have always tried to tune into Big Weekends before. However, I have never managed to actually get to one....until now.
Due to my disabilities, it has been difficult to get to Big Weekend, or any other festival, because it was never at a location close to where I live. However, this year, it was in Coventry, which is 30 minutes away from where I live, and I was lucky enough to get tickets! (lucky enough because the tickets are like gold dust).
Although I wanted tickets for the Saturday, I got tickets for the Sunday and, after some initial disappointment, I realised that there were acts on the Sunday that I hadn't seen yet so it turned out ok.
Having never been to a big festival like Big Weekend before, I did not know what to expect. However, it was surprising how moderately easy it was to get to. I live half away from the site but there was only so far that I could get in the car. Luckily there was a shuttle bus service that took people from the dedicated car park to the site, and back.
In terms of the actual festival itself I loved it! I saw plenty of superstar acts, from George Ezra to Mabel, dance legends, Jax Jones and Chase and Status and of course, the one and only Harry Styles.
There were other stages as well, such as the BBC Introducing Stage, the dance pyramid, and the Future Sounds stage (originally called the In New Music We Trust stage). Whilst I did walk past the dance pyramid, I stayed at the main stage, firstly because the stages were spread out (the main stage and Future Sounds stages were at separate ends of the site) but also, secondly, a lot of the acts I wanted to see were at the main stage anyway.
I have already touched on this but one of the highlights of my time at Big Weekend was Jax Jones, who was surprisingly good, playing everything from Instruction (a collaboration with Stefflon Don and Demi Lovato) to Out Out, a collaboration with fellow DJ Joel Corry and Charli XCX.
Of course, the big highlight for everyone at the festival was Harry Styles. Looking cool in a purple sparkly jumpsuit, he belted out his best solo hits, such as Golden (a personal favourite of mine), As it Was and Sign of the Times, along with a surprise rendition of What Makes You Beautiful. As someone who had only ever seen Harry as part of One Direction, I was dubious but he actually was really good. I have seen some people noting that it is almost like Robbie Williams when he left Take That and changed his style of music to suit his preferences and honestly, I agree!
Overall, the Big Weekend was amazing and the fact that my first big festival was hosted by my favourite radio station meant a lot to me. Thank you Radio 1. I will definitely be coming back in the future if it comes near me again.
Em x
PS: I am dedicating this blog post to my fellow regular listeners, Ally, Dani, Emma, the three Toms and Lauren. Thank you Radio 1 for bringing us all together xx
