On Friday November 18, Day 1 of The Wonderfront Music and Arts Festival kicked off for an unbeatable weekend. Located in San Diego’s marina, the forefront of downtown welcomed the return of the multi-genre festival WonderFront, which hit the ground running with Joey Purp as his very first show in Southern California. Purp uplifted the crowd with gratitude for their support and pursuit in his music career. Joey gained attention in 2012 after his first mixtape release “The Purple Tape,” and jumpstarted the feel for the festival and anticipation for the rest of day one.
Darling Greatly a group composed of The Croome Brothers, drummer Brayden Tario and electric Guitarist David Mills. introducing classical rock into modern alternative. The band truly rocks on and their style says it all. David Mills performs with a cig in his mouth and all time classic aviators, as the Croome Brothers rock with a trippy button up and ruby red electric guitar. Paying their respect to the loyalty of the fans, Darling Greatly opened with top hit “Shine” as part of their first album released in 2016.
As the day progressed, Saint Motel, Lainey Wilson, Quinn XCII and Young The Giant enticed the crowd and fan appeal. Saint Motel lead with top hits “My Type” and “Cold Cold Man” as lead singer AJ Jackson ran onto stage wearing a bright red tail coat, knee high boots and a black homburg hat. AJ fascinates the fans with his style and Indie pop music genre.
Lainey Wilson, performing since a young age, brought her country groove to the festival. Singing her top hit “Things A Man Oughta Know”, Wilson engaged with fans and danced among band members. An enticing an interactive show, Lainey continues her funk and groove as a female country artist.
Rising Artist Quinn XCII gave a stunning show at the Coors Light Stage. Fans filming, singing, dancing and pulled up their flashes to light up the main stage. Beginning his career back in 2011, Quinn XCII is best known for top hits “Stacy,” “Flare Guns” and “Straightjacket.” Quinn stands for ‘Quit Unless Your Iinstincts are Never Neglected’ and XCII represents the Roman numeral of Mikael Temrowski birth year 1992.
Another top show from day one had to be Young The Giant and they gave a set to remember. The euphoric lighting, mic stands strung with flowers and erratic dancing were part of lead singer Sameer Gadhia and his unpredictability as he moved across the stage and screamed with fans who floored for intro song “Wake Up.” The strobe lights, euphoric blues and purples made for an outstanding set that concluded with a well remembered hit performance of “Mind Over Matter” released in 2014.
To represent the East Coast, New Jersey-based singer and songwriter Bea Miller led an impressive set at the Tustreams Community Stage located at Ruocco Park. Grasping her career at only the age of 13. Miller is best known for hit album Aurora released in 2018 and her fans were ecstatic to hear “Song Like You,” “Burning Bridges” and “Crash&Burn” live. Bea’s facial expressions and assurance to the loyalty of her fans says it all.
To conclude Day 1 of WonderFront Music and Arts Festival, headliners The Zac Brown Band and EARTHGANG closed the day out with a well-remembered performance at the main stage. The Zac Brown band is most known as an American Country Band based in Atlanta with a classic “Chicken Fried” that captivated the crowd as they sang along ‘Cold Beer on a Friday Night,’ on a Friday night.
Headliner EARTHGANG featured hip-hop duo Johnny Venus and Doctur Dot raised the bar as the duo synced up, fist pumping the air, jumping towards the crowd and engaging their fans. The fans showed their loyalty for EARTHGANG as the duo’s songs have a fascinating range of musical influence. Attempting the notion of the conscious and subconscious of their lyrics and musical output, their closing of Day 1 of The WonderFront Music and Arts Festival of 2022 set the tone for what’s to come on both Saturday and Sunday.
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