An alternative look at Big Wekend

When it was first announced that Radio 1's big weekend was coming to Hull this year, it was clear that the impact on the city would be great; and I suffered severe FOMO after letting my bed head get the better of me and waking up sometime after the tickets were sold out. Hearing Scott Mills announce the tickets are sold out shouldn't be as painful as it was to me (haha).

But I was lucky enough to to witness the effects on the city from a whole new perspective as an outsider. My interests were pursued at the radio 1 academy, where I saw Bastille in conversation with Clara Amfo, and managed to get a nice response from Professor Green as he walked by me and responded to my cheery 'Hiya!', with an equally positive 'Y'alright mate?'. The academy allowed young and old people to look at opportunities at careers in media, the arts and music. There's a clear demand for it in the city as the events were pretty full and all the people I spoke to that attended the sessions left feeling motivated and happy to have been inspired by, and in some cases even meet their idols.

Besides the academy, there was a general excitement and buzz surrounding the city for the week leading up to the Big Weekend. In particular one friend suggested that a flight he'd seen on his way to college was Katy Perry's jet. Not wanting to disappoint him, we went along with it, and cherished his excitement. The enthusiasm among the people of the city spilled into the vibrance of the city centre. The new Victoria square fountains and repaired streets, in the centre and at the marina, created a new city to explore and fall in love with again. Although, I'm sure the weather played a brilliant part in this, the festival itself marked the kick-off of an exciting summer in Hull, and of festival season, too.

The timing of the festival was, unintentionally necessary. Following the events in Manchester last Monday night, it would have been easy to label live performance dangerous, and choose to put it off until it was deemed safer. But, the festival increased its security, and made goers aware of this, making attendees feel more secure and setting a great example for other festivals to follow in. It was also so clearly important to highlight that music is created to unite, and that by choosing to live in fear, we would be giving in the fight against atrocities like what happened in Manchester. The festival paid respects flawlessly, with Artists giving tributes during their individual sets, and holding a minutes silence on both days, all of which were respectful and considerate, and showed an unrelenting and powerful stance against attacks against on the vulnerable. A strong message to send, and emphasised that music makers and music fans alike partaking in the minutes of silence, will continue to make as much noise as they can (and should).

As I'm typing this listening to repeats of Blossom's and Dua Lipa's set, I'm dreaming of times I can be exploring the festivals themselves, and basking in the atmosphere of live music. For now, though, it's lovely to reflect on the effects its had on the city as a whole, and it has been wonderful to witness, Fingers crossed 2017 offers more to come; and I've got my toes crossed that I can nab some tickets for next year's Big Weekend.

(P.S. I've included links to my favourite performances from the weekend below; but almost all of the sets can be relived on BBC iPlayer)

Kings of Leon - Goes without saying really but they smashed it and ended the weekend in the best way.
HAIM - Absolutely amazing, and watch out for Este's infamous bass face throughout.
Imagine Dragons - A phenomenal band with ridiculously catchy songs, and Dan gave a beautfiul tribute to the Manchester attack.