Simply put, Mulberry Mountain in Arkansas, as the site of the Wakaan Music Festival is something extraordinary. Once again, for the third iteration from September 27th-30th, 2023, vibrant collectives fostered environments of creativity to encourage and influence one another. Through engaging characteristics of talent and uniqueness, entertainment poured through. Inspiration, delicious. Within this framework, you see tremendous growth. The idea is to learn through experience, and boy, let me tell ya, there was a plethora of entertainment to endeavor. From the pre-party through to the final day, the crowd played witness to spectacular one-of-a-kind sets. Performers both on stage, and in the crowd, came fully prepared to impress through thoughtful actions and skilled movements to create a sensational atmosphere.
One of the things that makes Wakaan so special, is the man at the center of it all, Liquid Stranger. Personally, I like to call him Martin. I hope he doesn’t mind, it’s what his mother named him. Every time he touches the microphone, I can feel her love pouring through. Martin is a pleasure to listen to. Whether he’s dropping bombs from his deep and varied catalogue of tracks, or sending polite messages of wholesome motivation, you can count on this guy to get the job done. Someone should give him his own brand of bottled water. Liquid Stranger Essence, straight from Varberg, Sweden.
It was a special weekend; you could call it a family affair. Liquid Stranger’s brand is well represented through his homies. The other half of TRUTH, Andre, flew his matriarch into the festival from New Zealand to witness his performing. I deduce that’s probably a twenty-three-hour flight. Mothers are the best, Happy Birthday to all you mothers out there. A mother’s love is irreplaceable. When we are young, our parents sculpt us through their influences, for better and worse. They impress upon us traits and talents, nurturing and nudging our growth. When one finds a discipline one excels at, share the love with mom. That’s what TRUTH’s set suggested to this reporter. There was even a marriage proposal, and I’m certain it was a success. A new family is formed, at Wakaan.
Then there’s Opiuo, who followed the existential dread cast by EPROM with a phenomenal performance of boundless joy. He played a previously unheard version of “Life” that rescued my tattered mind and got me back to bouncing. His track “Sneakers” continued my giddiness, and me and my homies resumed our frolicking demeanors. Opiuo confided in us that his daughter is interested to know what he does, and thus, we appreciate the youngling’s interest. I don’t mean to insinuate, but we may have been given insight into a budding new artist on the way.
There were unique curations the entire week from the likes of The Widdler, Mersiv, Barclay Crenshaw aka Claude VonStroke, Rusko, Tvboo, Tape B, Ravenscoon, LSDream b2b Inzo, Griz, Peekaboo, Jantsen, Yheti, Tripp St., Jade Cicada, Eazybaked, Dr. Fresch, Khiva, Canabliss, Late Night Radio, Parkbreezy, and so many more. Who had the best set is entirely up to personal interpretation. For me? Liquid Stranger and Opiuo are definitely my cup of tea, but I also fux with the likes of Claude VonStroke, real name Barclay Crenshaw, hard. This guy has two of the greatest names ever known to mankind. Scintillating. Thanks Mrs. Crenshaw, we appreciate you immensely.
Every performer came with a mission in mind, and squared up with the crowd delivering sensational song selections that encouraged their audience to groove their moves. This reporter was awestruck on many occasions, not only from what was coming from the stage, but from within the audience as well. Live painters peppered throughout the main stage at Aura exemplified their craft alongside flow artists for multitudes of explorers to discover. Don’t sleep on the vendors, either. I witnessed a spectacular gallery that took three years of innovation to perfect, from the incredibly talented minds of Colorimetry Lights. Artwork that moves under reflective lighting. It was wildly cerebral, and kind of unbelievable. Originally, I thought it was the ink, but in the end, I saw the light. That was just the tip of the iceberg, as places like Tiger Lily Boutique, and others, offered safe, sweet-smelling spaces for patrons to shop for art, jewelry, mementos and clothing.
The downside of Wakaan? It’s hot, and for four consecutive days, not a cloud in sight to bless us with coverage. Barely a breeze. Weak. Whatever, it’s cool, kind of. When you festival, you bring a different kind of family, and with the help of friends and neighbors, we keep each other cool through practical means. Try a cold shower. Do you find your tent overheating within a few hours of daylight? Consider investing in cooling, space age thermal coverings. Word is, it reflects the heat, and keeps things near a pleasant sixty degrees. That’s delightful to hear for us cold weather folk. Some might complain about the abundance of chairs and inflatables, but you can take a walk, that’s one of my favorite parts of Wakaan. However, let’s agree to keep e’m in the middle and back, and let the dancers and ravers rip it up front. Together, we can keep this amazing experience elite. At the end of the day, we all need to maintain peace between each other. It’s easy to do when you bring your best attitude for self-improvement; that’s what Wakaan’s all about. We get better when we work together, every single day.
Be well, be successful. Bear Swiftly.
–Electro Scribe–
