The Sweet Auburn Music Festival in Atlanta, GA
On September 24, I spent my Saturday in downtown Atlanta volunteering at the annual Sweet Auburn Music Fest. The festival is an enjoyable weekend of live performances, animated crowds, local business, and great food. Local artists sign up to perform while food trucks and other booths for local businesses line the street. After arriving in College Park around 10 AM, I spent a few hours unloading cargo vehicles, and moving concessions and toys to different booths. During this time, I was not only helping set up for the event, but also building anticipation for lunch with various scents of potential meals (I was hungry—cardio mixed with a lack of breakfast gave me quite the appetite).
A crowd started accumulating around noon, and I began to sell some of the bubble sticks I had set out from the cargo truck. After about an hour, I took a fifteen-minute break to grab lunch, and it was only at this moment I realized how, many family business were in attendance of the festival, the street I had initially seen to be full was followed by a much longer street behind it, and not an inch was left vacant. I bought some of the greatest chicken wings I can remember having in my life, and got back to work once I ate. After about another two hours of selling bubble toys, Democratic Nominee for Governor of Georgia Stacey Abrams made a surprise visit to campaign for the upcoming election. She first stopped for some pictures with volunteers, then gave a speech to festival attendance encouraging them to vote. Once she finished her speech and departed from the festival, I said goodbye to those helping me at my booth, and I left to go home.
As a musician myself, I was excited to be involved in a music festival, and I found it interesting how my first ever interaction with a music festival was on this side of the event—as a volunteer instead of as an audience member, producer, or performer. Volunteering was a great decision as I got to learn about music festivals from the perspective of somebody involved in the process of bringing forward the event, instead of merely somebody enjoying the fruits of the music. I appreciated my time at the Sweet Auburn Music Fest and I look forward to doing it again next year!
