Unpacking the magic of music festivals

1A/NPR (2024). Some of music’s most legendary moments didn’t happen in our nation’s storied venues or theaters, but outside, in front of the roaring crowds at music festivals. And festivals have brought the fire for decades. Jimi Hendrix famously performed the Star Spangled Banner in front of 20o,000 people at Woodstock in 1969. Half a century later, music festivals big and small attract millions of Americans each year. What keeps people coming back and how do organizers keep so many music fans safe?