5 Years After COVID: How Bonnaroo Survived & Came Back Stronger

It’s been five years since COVID-19 shut down the world, bringing live music and festivals like Bonnaroo to a halt. In this episode of The What Podcast, we reflect on how the pandemic impacted the festival industry, from the mass cancellations of 2020 to Bonnaroo’s remarkable post-COVID comeback. Barry even records while battling COVID for the first time, making this anniversary discussion all the more surreal. We revisit key moments—like when SXSW was the first major event to cancel, the uncertainty surrounding live events, and how the music industry adapted with virtual performances.Beyond the five-year COVID milestone, we also go over the latest updates for Bonnaroo 2025 including the possible replacement of the House of Matroomony and events at the House of Yes. Also, be sure and join The What Podcast for a special meetup and live episode on The How Stage inside Planet Roo at 4:00 PM on Thursday during Bonnaroo!Listen to the full episode right here, or watch the video on YouTube. And don't forget to like, rate, and subscribe to The What Podcast wherever you get your podcasts!______CHAPTERS(00:00) Intro(02:26) Last week's episode with Tuba(15:30) Bonnaroo news(27:00) Contest update(31:27) 5 years after the COVID shutdown(49:36) Outro______ 🎧 LISTEN LINKS Website: https://thewhatpodcast.com Spotify: https://thewhat.co/spotify Apple Podcasts: https://thewhat.co/applepodcasts YouTube Music: https://thewhat.co/youtubemusic Amazon Music: https://thewhat.co/amazonmusic 📱 SOCIAL LINKS Discord: https://discord.gg/zShHTeCYGn YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thewhatpodcast X: https://x.com/thewhat_podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewhatpodcast/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewhatpodcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thewhatpodcast Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/thewhat.co Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thewhatpodcast The What Podcast theme: "Aquarius" by *repeat repeat, used with permission. Other music provided by Midist and used with permission. We love to hear from you! Send us an email at [email protected] or call (423) 667-7877 and leave us a voicemail. We might just feature it on the show.