People in John Mayer t-shirts swarmed The Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, Tennessee, as day two of the Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival kicked into gear for a long day of entertainment Sunday.
This year’s sunny days and chilly nights couldn’t have been more perfect for festivalgoers compared to last year’s muddy mess. Performances from bluegrass to rock and soul filled the second day of the festival.
Sunday’s highlight was the headline performance from Grammy-winning singer and guitarist John Mayer, who has been captivating crowds since the early 2000s. Mayer playfully bantered with fans between bluesy guitar tunes and even fulfilled the wishes of some, playing songs requested by hand-made signs held high in the air over the heads of other festivalgoers.
Earlier in the day, the Sam Grisman Project played a string of prominent bluegrass tunes, including “Red Rocking Chair” and “Grateful Dog,” a song penned by Jerry Garcia and Grisman’s father, David, to a lively crowd earlier in the afternoon.
Fans lounged on blankets, took in the various acts and browsed local vendors for one-of-a-kind souvenirs, such as custom cowboy hats and boots, while they waited in anticipation between their favorite acts.
Grace Potter, backed by her four-piece live band, took the Midnight Sun Stage at 4 p.m., ready to rock. She pumped energy into a crowd still recovering from yesterday’s festivities as the sun reflected off her short, glittery dress.
Potter bantered back and forth with the crowd, putting on a vest and a jacket that had been taken off and thrown to her by fans. She teased the crowd with a bit of Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got to Do with It” and donned her best Bob Dylan impersonation for a snippet of “Lay Lady Lay.”
She used her tambourine as a makeshift steering wheel when she performed the title track to her 2023 album, “Mother Road,” and got the whole crowd up and dancing for “Something That I Want” from Disney’s “Tangled.” Potter then welcomed special guest Brittany Spencer, who co-wrote “Little Hitchhiker,” also from “Mother Road.”
“Feel free to smell bad, sing out of tune and spill everything out of your purse onto the ground,” Potter said. “Because it only goes up from here.”
Later in the evening, the Midnight Sun Stage came alive with nostalgia as it lit up. Black and white graphics displayed Young the Giant as they weaved through radio hits and deeper cuts, taking fans on a journey throughout their set.
Lead singer Sameer Gadhia introduced the hit “Cough Syrup” as “the single that introduced us to the world,” the stage lights turned purple, and passersby danced across the grass with flower crowns atop their heads, taking in the well-known tune.
“This next song is dedicated to all those dreams, the ideas in our mind,” Gadhia said, asking the crowd to get lighters and phone lights in the air during the last chorus of “Firelight” as a reminder of “intention to keep living each day.”
Hands reached into the air when the group struck the intro chords to “Mind Over Matter,” and fans sang back the lyrics of the group’s popular anthem. Just as the group’s set seemed to come to an end, the stage lights turned red and on came Grace Potter. She returned as a special guest to sing “My Body” and end Young the Giant’s set, just in time for fans to catch Sam Fender on the other side of the Park.
Sam Fender took over the Gold Record Road stage just as the sun went down. The British artist addressed the crowd and expressed his admiration for the state of Tennessee.
“This is our first time in Tennessee,” he said. “What a beautiful state it is.”
After a summer of show cancellations and various setbacks, Fender put on a lively act complete with saxophone riffs, audience participation and a surprise guest performance by a guitar-playing fan.
Fender led the crowd in singing along to his most popular song, “Seventeen Going Under,” which gained traction on TikTok last year. Fans hummed along and continued after the song was over.
The crowd scattered around 8 p.m., then crossed back through the Park to secure spots to watch the weekend’s last headliner, John Mayer.
Mayer attracted the weekend’s largest crowd. A sea of chairs and blankets covered the lawn, and standing fans filled the grass in front of the stage.
Mayer opened with “Last Train Home,” the first track on his most recent album, “Sob Rock.”
He entertained the crowd with hits like “Waiting On the World to Change” and danced along with fans to “New Light,” fitting a guitar solo into every number possible.
“These songs, they’re not just about where I was when I wrote them, they’re about where you are now,” Mayer added before playing “Neon.”
After teasing a few songs that didn’t make it on the set list, Mayer said goodnight and left the stage with his band. As the crowd began to trek back to their cars, he returned to the stage to perform “Gravity” as an encore.
“You guys have been unbelievable,” Mayer said. “Thank you for such a fun night.”
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