This past weekend, I had the opportunity to go to ASTROWORLD Festival as a representative of KANM Radio. I went with another person from KANM, Vatsal, and two friends from Houston. We left College Station for Houston early in the morning, enjoying a peaceful car ride, listening to music from artists that would be performing at the festival. After picking up my friends from their apartment, we all headed to ASTROWORLD, full of excitement for the day to come. 

While I waited to get my media pass, I told my two friends, Juliette and Anita, to go wait in line, since they were general admission, and Vatsal and I could go in through VIP with our media passes. After getting our wristbands, we went to the VIP line and waited for the gates to open. There was only one entrance for General Admission, so hundreds of people were lined up, waiting to get in. I was extremely thankful that we didn’t have to wait in that line. Ten minutes later than scheduled, the gates finally opened, and people were let in. It didn’t take long for Vatsal and I to make it inside, and we figured it would be about fifteen minutes until Juliette and Anita would make it through the line, so Vatsal and I went exploring. 

We first headed to the Media Lounge, which had snacks, water, and WiFi for us. Next, we explored the Astrodome, which had a brilliant light show going on inside, as well as the arcade and other fair events. After taking a look around, we got some food to eat while we waited for Juliette and Anita to come in. After three hours, they called us letting us know they were close, so I went and stood by the entrance waiting for them. I suddenly heard a bang, and looking to my left, I saw people had broken down the gates and were running through them, passing security, just to get in. Not too long after, they made it inside, and they were very frustrated. Juliette was so upset that she didn’t even want to be there anymore, and when I would ask people what they thought about the line, everyone was angry about having to wait for so long, complaining that it was unorganized. 

However, once they were inside and we got to see some more acts, people’s spirits were lifted. Juliette, Anita, and I were able to make it to the barricade for Megan Thee Stallion, who put on a fantastic show. And then, we got pretty close for Migos. However, once we were put through mosh pit after mosh pit, we decided we had to move to the back before our body parts started to break. Yet, people wouldn’t let us out from the front, so we had to take extreme measures. I threw myself on Juliette, pretending to pass out, and people immediately let us through. From the back, we had a great time, dancing around as we pleased, and we were still able to see the stage.

A little while later, Travis Scott finally came out. His entire set blew my mind. He had hurt his knee not too long before ASTROWORLD Festival, and turned his entire introduction into a fun joke around it. He came on stage in an ambulance, and started singing after being lifted up like Frankenstein. He spent about half of his show lifted up over the crowd, and actually dropped his microphone into the crowd. Scott kept the crowd excited, even when he was singing his less “hype” music, and kept everyone on their toes. 

Scott didn’t only sing his own songs, but he also brought out special guests. His biggest surprise was bringing out Kanye West, which caused an uproar in the crowd. People had predicted that he would bring out either West or Drake, and to see their prediction come true caused a lot of excitement. 

Scott ended the festival with an incredible fireworks show, which made everyone feel a sense of satisfaction. The festival ended with a bang, just as it had started when everyone busted through the gates, and people left with a smile on their face, happy with what they had experienced throughout the day, even though there was some unorganization involved. Everyone had forgotten about the start of the day and reflected on how much fun they had the rest of the time and what a memorable experience it was. People had stood in line for hours just to get T-Shirts, missing acts. People had seen people they never thought they would have the opportunity to see anywhere else. Everyone left with a smile on their face. And I left happy, and asleep in the car. It was truly a fantastic, once in a lifetime experience, but I think personally, I would leave it at that. An experience that I don’t want to experience more than once. Scott put on another impressive festival, and while people started off upset and angry, everyone left happy that they had seen what it was all about.

Written by: Auva SaghafiPhoto courtesy of Pitchfork