May 3-5, 2024 – West Palm Beach, FL
West Palm Beach, Florida was the place to be during the first weekend in May because SunFest pulled out all the stops!
SunFest is an annual music and art festival held in West Palm Beach, Florida during the first week of May. Founded in 1982, it has become Florida’s largest waterfront music festival, attracting more than 85,000 visitors each year. The festival features an exciting lineup of top-tier musical acts, vibrant art installations, and delicious food options.
This year was my third year providing photo coverage of the festival, and it was amazing!
The staff and volunteers at SunFest really know what they’re doing, and everything is really organized. From the ticketing and check-in process to the scheduling and logistics, SunFest makes it smooth.
As a concert and special event photographer, covering SunFest is a dream. Three days packed with local performers from Florida and surrounding areas and major national headliners provides great opportunities for coverage.
This year, the festival added back a third stage which featured some amazing up-and-coming talent. Dubbed “The Sandbar Stage,” it was sponsored by F-150 Lighting and featured Disbarred, Shaw Davis & The Black Ties, Vern Daysel & The Burning Breeze, the Roosevelt Middle School Band, New Phi Thang Drumline, School of Rock South Palm Beach House Band, I’m Dru!, DJ Immortal, Brett Staska & The Souvenirs, Hello Sister, Nightbreakers, the West Boca High School Jazz Band, John I. Leonard Jazz Band, Ben Krieger, Buko Boys, The Floridians, and Jutt Huffman.
Located in between the two bigger stages, the Sandbar Stage was the perfect place for more intimate performances, and after witnessing some of the talent, there’s no doubt they’ll be playing on main stages in no time.
Everyone was amazing, but a few standout performances for me were from I’m Dru!, a 20 year old rapper from Long Beach, New York, Hello Sister, a pop rock trio of sisters from Orlando Florida, and Ben Krieger, a singer/songwriter and actor from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Each of their performances resonated with the crowd and left a lasting impression.
The Ford Stage this year also featured some amazing performances by Kritikal, Leah Dibut, Shaggy, Nelly, Killbillies, The Aces, The Revivalists, Noah Hunton, Dylan Scott, Cole Swindell, Brothers Within, Seranation, Little Stranger, The Elovaters, Matisyahu, and Rebelution. These names alone could headline any music festival, but they were just half of the headliners!
The other half performed on the Ideal Nutrition Stage, and included awesome sets from Fox Maple Band, SloFunkPump, Quiet Riot, Billy Idol, The Lubben Brothers, Hailey Whitters, Elle King, Matt Corman, anees, Bryce Vine, Yung Gravy, Steven James, Cassadee Pope, Valley, Boys Like Girls, Dashboard Confessional, and Third Eye Blind.
Listening to these artists was worth the price of admission, but SunFest didn’t stop there!
The SunFest Electronic Barge gave SunFest goers a cool atmosphere, specialty drinks, and a place to dance with DJs mixing the hottest tracks! This “floating bar” featured guest DJ spots from Gabo & Nico, Falco, J Martinez & German Garcia, Patrick M, Sleepy & Boo, Stacey Pullen, James Simmons, Machina, Wizzy & Wiley, CRAZIBIZA, Harry Romero, Andreatens, COCODRILLS, MandyyBeck, Nick Mac, Chase Creighton, 2Nomads, Eran Hersh, Adam Lipson ft. Mister Trombone, and Rony Seikaly.
In addition to all the musical entertainment, SunFest had numerous food and drink trucks at every turn and also boasts an immersive arts experience designed to give guests the opportunity to interact with and purchase art from local and national artists.
I want to personally thank the media team at SunFest for allowing me to come back for the third year in a row.
SunFest 2024 was an absolute blast!
It brought together an eclectic mix of artists across genres and celebrated art and culture, but there was also a sense of camaraderie. Strangers became friends as they grooved together, shared stories, and created memories. It was a chance to connect with fellow music and art lovers from all walks of life.
Whether you were dancing barefoot on the grass or swaying back and forth with a drink in your hand, it was an unforgettable experience.
I can’t wait for SunFest 2025!
For full photo galleries of each set, please visit The Review Junkie Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/thereviewjunkie/photos_albums
