Music festivals across the globe, like Lollapalooza in Chicago and Bonnaroo in Tennessee, VELD in Toronto, and Tomorrowland in Belgium, offer unique event activation opportunities.
Music festivals and concerts are top of the list when it comes to finding engaging venues where consumers are interested in interacting with brands. Tons of big-name global brands are tapping into the vibrant energy and large audiences at these events to create unique, immersive experiences.
Festivals like Coachella in California, which just wrapped up in April, gain lots of attention outside of their direct audience, attracting interest from the general public for their star-studded audiences.
Other festivals across the States, Canada, and Europe that are showcasing huge headliners in 2024 include:
- Glastonbury June 2024, Glastonbury, England, UK – featuring Coldplay, Dua Lipa, SZA, & Shania Twain.
- Primavera Sound May/June 2024, Barcelona, Spain – featuring Lana Del Rey, SZA, FKA Twigs, Charli XCX, and Vampire Weekend.
- FEQ July 2024, Quebec City, Quebec, CA – featuring 50 Cent, Nickelback, Arkells, and Jonas Brothers.
- Osheaga August 2024, Montreal, Quebec, CA – featuring Green Day, Noah Kahan, Hozier, Renne Rapp, and Skepta.
- BottleRock May 2024, Napa, California, USA – featuring Pearl Jam, Ed Sheeran, Stevie Nicks, and Megan the Stallion.
- When We Were Young October 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA – featuring Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Mayday Parade, and Peirce the Veil.
How brand activations and experiential marketing converge stage-side.
Brands activating at music festivals range from the more obvious choices like Smirnoff Ice and other alcohol brands to household products like Charmin and Febreze to car brands like Jaguar. This means almost any brand has an opportunity to utilize festivals, both large and small, to showcase their brand or service. There are also numerous types of music festivals featuring various genres of music, allowing brands to target different demographics.
Brands are leveraging technology, creativity, and social media to make lasting impressions on festivalgoers, which can offer great inspiration for future unique event activations. Adidas, Volkswagen, and Coca-Cola are just a few of the many brands creating immersive experiences that attendees won’t forget. They’re also extending the reach of their activations through social media and influencer partnerships. This approach amplifies the impact and ensures the activation continues to resonate beyond the festival.
At Coachella 2024, celebrities like Billie Eilish partied at the NYLON 
House event in Palm Springs, presented by Smirnoff ICE and featuring sponsors Kate Spade New York and Got2b. Shower and body care brand Method created an immersive ‘Shower Portal’ at the festival, featuring the brand’s new scents, free samples, and a hair salon. The activation also included an AI aura photo experience, where guests could be digitally transformed into a colorful print inspired by one of Method’s signature scents based on their responses to a brief questionnaire.
Jaguar Land Rover’s Defender activation at Dreamville Festival 2024 combined a luxury auto display with the love of the outdoors. The Defender space, produced by Live Nation, featured an on-site planting activity to support the Dix Park Conservancy and a nature-inspired display with the vehicle among artificial clouds. The Defender activation is also scheduled to feature at the Ohana Festival in Dana Point, California, and at the Gorge Amphitheatre in Quincy, Washington where they will enhance the experience by hosting a lounge, providing camping facilities, and offering Defender shuttles.
Successful activations often align with the culture or theme of the event. At SXSW, brands like Prime Video and Paramount created experiences that resonated with the festival’s tech and entertainment themes. Paramount+ hosted a three-floor venue where fans could take photos in front of backdrops from their favorite shows like Star Trek: Discovery, while Prime took over a parking lot to build a realistic Fallout immersive experience.
Check out some of the other experiential marketing campaigns from recent festivals.
At Lollapalooza 2023, Liquid Death transformed its space into a gruesomely themed “country club.” Featuring grim reaper statues at the entrance and a sign inviting guests to “Sell Your Soul to Join,” which got users to provide their contact info in exchange for some exclusive swag. The activation stood out with its unique, haunting vibe. Inside, the club offered airbrush tattoos, live music, and horoscope readings, all under the eerie glow of red uplighting at night, creating an immersive, spooky experience that echoed the brand’s edgy aesthetic.
The M&M’s Sweet Tour brings a vibrant and musical experience to various locations, including festivals like Bonnaroo and will be coming soon to Six Flags parks. This colorful tour features free M&Ms (of course), live music sessions, interactive experiences like the M&M’s Mixtape where guests can lay down their own tracks, and the M&M’s Sweet Suite, which offers a variety of engaging activities. M&Ms took music festival activations a step further by making it an ongoing tour, travelling to different events, and gaining traction along the way. Incorporating M&M’s playful spirit with the love of music and creating a fun environment for attendees to enjoy new music and tasty treats makes this activation a hit.
At the VELD Music Festival, in Toronto, SHEIN delivered an engaging pop-up experience designed to enhance the festival atmosphere for attendees. The pop-up offered a blend of fashion and practical comfort, including a rest station for guests to relax and cool off. Attendees could also explore the latest trends, get a touch of glam to add to their look and access exclusive giveaways of accessories and beauty products. This activation provided a space for festivalgoers to recharge and explore SHEIN’s newest looks – cementing them as a go-to source for future festival outfits.
Collaborate with kubik for your next experiential event.
At kubik, we specialize in crafting award-winning experiential marketing solutions that captivate and engage. With a proven trackrecord of working with global brands across the US, Canada, and Europe, we’re transforming creative visions into tangible experiences that connect with eventgoers on a meaningful level. Whether it’s integrating advanced technology, custom fabrication and design, or interactive digital landscapes – we harness the essence of a brand and magnify its presence at large-scale events. If you’re a brand seeking innovative activation marketing for 2024, kubik is your ideal partner. Let’s chat about how we can help you create unforgettable experiences at music festivals and beyond.