After much anticipation for the very long awaited festival of the year, Auckland City Limits was definitely worth the wait and didn't disappoint. I was fortunate enough to have snagged a ticket through Auckland-based and NZ self-managed Online Magazine: Coupdemain last year. I had high hopes and it was everything I could have wanted and so much more! I arrived a little after 9am to beat the crowds as the day slowly began to heat up, it took a little while for people to go through after 11am but it wasn't as busy as I had assumed it would have been and I found topping up my cashless wristband was fast and easy once I was in. I had heard Bay Dreams had been crazy for queues and after my experience and seeing how long lines were at Our House: Summerfest I expected my experience to be somewhat the same - I was wrong.
The first act I saw perform was Jess B and boy was she amazing! Evident in her on-stage presence, this young woman was born to perform on stages. To be quite honest I wasn't very familiar with her work, and wasn't sure what to expect. I walked over to her stage, front barrier and was instantly stunned at how talented she was - joined on-stage with her was P-Money, Ruby and her hype girl Shaq, who goes by the name @half.queen on instagram. The crowds were slowly turning up to see her perform and everyone was getting down, dancing and hyping up for the day ahead with the many acts to follow - a guy even did the "Death drop"! It was nice seeing young, vibrant and talented women on-stage representing many female rappers/artists and women in general trying to find a place in this world and staying authentic and true to themselves. Jess B is no doubt going to make even bigger waves in New Zealand and overseas - her flow, sense of fashion easily impresses. I fell in love and I felt 'giddy' inside is the best way I can describe it.
Attending events of this magnitude have you on your feet for over 12-hours, now depending on if you stay the entire event from beginning to end you may wonder - "How am I going to survive?" This is what I was asking myself over and over again leading up to the event. And I am surprised in myself I lasted for 14-hours, arriving 2-hours before gates opened. It was difficult at times being in direct sunlight for a long period of time but it was so well-worth it. Staying hydrated is definitely key to any major event especially if it is spent outside - and staying on top of eating throughout the day helps too. I didn't want to spend too much at ACL and managed to keep everything I purchased under $50.00. A feat in itself considering how expensive things pile up throughout the day.
Major highlights for me and favourite artists I saw perform were: SWIDT, Katchafire, Grace Jones, Peking Duk, Future and Tash Sultana!
Onehunga Hip-hop group SWIDT brought the party and energy to the Spark Stage's - Performing a few of their tracks from their Stoneyhunga album, my favourite tracks being: 312, Ric Flair, Little did she know and ending their set with "Player of the Day". I would describe SWIDT as a "Breath of fresh air" to the New Zealand Hip-hop scene and a group act on the rise. In the short time they have been on the music scene, already they have accumulated a large following of loyal fans. Many of the people who turned out to see their act sported Hawaiian T-shirts in support. I managed to get front barrier to the left of the stage - if you haven't seen them perform, definitely add them to your list of people to see in the future.
Tash Sultana was incredibly moving, a one-woman-band at only 22-years old. When I first saw the line-up for this event, I knew I had to see her. Already with a world tour and selling out venues, I can see just why she has become so recognized and praised for her talent. Her voice is magical, mesmerizing and enchanting - you can see how passionate she is about music watching her playing her instruments getting lost within herself. I've never quite seen someone like her live before. Her music can be described as : Psychedelic, Alternative, Reggae Rock. A star on the raise with a bright, successful future. She is just as good live as you see in her videos on YouTube if not even better! She has a voice once you hear it, it never quite leaves your mind and sticks with you - I cannot rave about this woman enough. "Notion" and "Jungle" of course were my favourite tracks of her she performed, being the ones you can find me playing on Spotify on repeat. Hearing these songs live pulled at my heart strings I tell you, I was deeply blown away.
Future and Peking Duk's sets were what I can describe as a massive dance party - a mass rave. Young Thug was meant to be performing alongside Future but dropped out at last minute, even so Future and his crew put on an amazing set - my favourite tracks he performed were: “Relationship” and “Mask Off”. Peking Duk’s set was what I would describe as - drinking a glass of cold, filtered water on a blistering hot day. Refreshing and what we all needed. It was the perfect way to end the night after 14-hours on my feet. They performed a lot of familiar tracks they’re well known for an remixes to Lorde’s “Perfect Places” and The Killers “Mr Brightside” to name a few. To wrap up their set they performed “High” my absolute favourite song of theirs. Everyone was getting among it, letting their hair down and having a good time. The best part of the festival was being right in the crowd - no one gives a fuck how you look, how you dance and its one of the most euphoric experiences a person can have and I would hope everyone is able to experience it many times in their lifetime. I had so much fun letting myself break out of my shell a little, as I am quite shy and an anxious person. Music for me is a safe and comfortable place to be, to really be who I am and fully embody everything happening around me and vibing with people who enjoy the same energy that festivals and concerts bring. It is quite therapeutic giving yourself over to the music and letting go of any public insecurities you may have. I’m a little disappointed my Asthma started playing up a lot in between sets but apart from that I had the time of my life.
The rest of the day was spent eating delicious food, sipping water from a funky Alien Water Container I purchased. Exploring the grounds, taking in the pretty sights and people watching. Browsed through a few stalls that were selling quirky, interesting pieces of jewellery, clothing, tie-dye throws, flax hats etc and was greeted with plenty of friendly smiles from strangers throughout the day. They also had the Hot Rods out for people to admire and look at for the avid car lovers which I enjoyed having a good glimpse at. I ended up winning a $10 Top-up credit for my Cashless Wristband for food and I was pretty stoked with that seeing as I was on a limit on what I could buy and put that towards my last meal for the night - I'm so gutted I didn't get the name of the dessert in the combo I bought. It was so good!
Overall, my Auckland City Limits experience was crammed to the brim with memories I will keep forever and positive thoughts when I think back on that day. I would 10/10 recommend any music or festival goer to attend in the future. There is a little something for everyone and even had a Kiddies Limit for the little ones who came along, 10-under were able to get in free of charge compared to the $180.00 entry for everyone else or $300 for VIP. Despite me not having to fork out the cash, I think for that price it is definitely worth what you get out of the day if you are big on music and a fan of the line-up. Realistically, not everyone has the luxury of spending that kind of money on a ticket (Me included!) or can afford making purchases throughout the day. I would suggest saving up a few months beforehand to cover your ticket and extra expenses. I have to applaud everyone who helped make everything happen. I'll definitely be back next time ACL rolls around the corner again. As tiring and exhausting as it was, it definitely paid off and was worth attending.
Thank you again to Coupdemain for sending me along and helping tick off more goals on my bucketlist. And giving me the opportunity to be part of something so exciting and memorable.And thank you to all the artists I saw perform who put on one hell of a show!
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