Story by Kerstie Wolaver
Photos by Skyler Wendell
Some years, Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival often ends with rowdy crowds ready to party for one more night, drunk with excitement from the past weekend.
This year, rather than raving or moshing, the crowd belted heartfelt songs with thick Southern accents as Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit closed out the Which Stage.
Isbell, a 45-year-old Americana singer-songwriter from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, kicked off Sunday at 8:30 p.m., after a brief rain delay, with his backing band, the 400 Unit. With the sun setting behind the crowd and the hot air becoming cooler, Isbell took the Bonnaroo stage dressed in all black and showing a bright smile.
He greeted a bellowing crowd with a guitar riff and kicked off his set with “King of Oklahoma,” a song from his 2023 album, “Weathervanes.”
“Bonnaroo, My hometown people, it’s so good to see you again,” Isbell said between songs.
He introduced his band after playing “Flying Over Water,” a song from his solo album “Southeastern,” which debuted 11 years ago this week.
The singer’s banter did not go unnoticed, receiving cheerful replies after telling the
audience that he had been enjoying the festival all weekend, including Renee Rapp, who played a set Saturday, and Chappell Roan, who played only hours before Isbell took the same stage.
“I grew up in North Alabama, it looks like here except without all the rock bands and
rappers and pop singers and the Ferris wheel, but otherwise it’s identical to this spot, about the same size,” he said, introducing his song “Alabama Pines” to the crowd.
Moving freely around the stage as he played various guitars, Isbell and his tight-knit band had what felt like the time of their lives, ripping into guitar solos and cutting up with the crowd as blue and purple lights flashed over the heads of onlookers.
“I love you, thank you,” he said.
Isbell’s songs paint the pictures of his own life, along with the lives of many others in the crowd. In songs like “Cast Iron Skillet” and “24 Frames,” he took The Farm with him on a journey exploring issues the artist has faced during his life in the South.
Isbell’s poetic songwriting often brings fans together by communicating feelings that can’t always be expressed outside of song. After waiting in the heat and pushing through a thunderstorm delay, a crowd covered in dried sweat sang and danced as the singer put his talent on display.
Ending the show with his solo hit “Cover Me Up,” Isbell’s heartfelt voice left a tearful crowd chanting “One more song,” as he and his band exited the stage, wrapping up the weekend for many attendees.
Kerstie Wolaver is a Staff Reporter for MTSU Sidelines
To contact the Lifestyles Editor, email [email protected].
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