Welcome To Rockville 2016

I’ve been doing band and festival reviews for over three years, and want the try something different this time and bring you a different and unique point of view. This festival Welcome To Rockville we brought a young musician with us to help his dad with media interviews running the video camera. His name is Jayson Williams but we all know him as Jazz. We caught a brake from the media tent and took in all the festival atmosphere going to all four stages, checking out The Music Experience, which I had to drag him out of, then went to check out all the food and vendors. Then went to all the VIP areas after returning to the media tent I asked him what he thought of the whole experience. Then it hit me, maybe other people would like the read his opinion. Being a young musician, the bands and festival is totally he generation. So in his own words hears is Jayson Erik Williams review of Welcome To Rockville.

Hello everyone. My name is Jayson Erik Williams and I am a sixteen-year-old musician who found the love and passion for music at a young age. From the time I had the ability to talk, music was a part of my life. This year at Welcome to Rockville 2016 I was given an opportunity that changed my life forever. Through the help of Charlotte Rock Review, media access was granted to me to not only experience all the amazing shows but the overall outstanding festival. I was able to see every breathtaking piece that made up this year's Welcome to a Rockville from the top deck of a wooden cabana overlooking the river and fair grounds as a camera operator.
     During the two-day extravaganza dozens of national touring artists and very well-known groups appeared in our media tent. On Saturday April 30th with sweaty palms and extreme anticipation we kicked off the day with talented punk rock band straight "Big Jesus" straight out of Atlanta, Georgia. This group of guys gave our first interview the kicked back and relaxing vibe I personally needed. As the day continued bands such as Enter Shikari, Red Sun Rising, and even legendary Candlebox dropped by to chat. Imagine the excitement not only in my mind but on my face as some of my biggest heroes in music such as Trivium, Filter, 3 Doors Down and Bullet For My Valentine walked in and sat down only ten feet from where I stood talking with us.

On Day 2 of Welcome to Rockville we kick off with a killer metal core band from the state of Ohio named "Beartooth". These guys bring their "A game" as far performance and talent. Their vocals are powerful and aggressive alongside with their heavy set instrumentals. They were a great transition into the following bands such Texas Hippie Coalition, Avatar, and my personal favorites of Sevendust and The Glorious Sons. The interviews that were planned was just the tip of the iceberg should I say due to the fact that there were surprise guests that were not planned and it gave a whole new exciting twist to the day. Amazing artists such as Lacey Sturm who was a spontaneous suggestion for a guest, along with the band Sick Puppies who was the perfect ending guest to our thrilling Rockville interviews.

   Through my perspective meeting every band and being able to see each artist I've looked up to for many years was a life changing thrill. The interactions were like a dream come true. As I have grown and seen my heroes shine and become extremely successful, it’s nice to see the down to earth side of everyone. Many artists allow success and fortune to go to their head, but not a single guest of ours were anything less than kind and humble if not more.

    At this year's Welcome to Rockville the entertainment, the experience, and the people were amazing. However, the layout of the park was a little crowded and bottle-necked. There were four stages in total for this year’s event. The two main stages were located on the far end of the stadium from the main entrance side by side while the next largest stage was located on the opposite end of the main stages with the smallest stage stuck in between the three. In order for the audience to be able to merge from stage to stage they were forced to walk nearly a mile in total through large crowded paths. Now yes, the festival this year was a record breaking high of over fifty-thousand in attendance. The overall layout though was causing large traffic jams and left the non-VIP audience to walk extra distance to the opposite side

   At this year's Welcome to Rockville the entertainment, the experience, and the people were amazing. However, the layout of the park was a little crowded and bottle-necked. There were four stages in total for this year’s event. The two main stages were located on the far end of the stadium from the main entrance side by side while the next largest stage was located on the opposite end of the main stages with the smallest stage stuck in between the three. In order for the audience to be able to merge from stage to stage they were forced to walk nearly a mile in total through large crowded paths. Now yes, the festival this year was a record breaking high of over fifty-thousand in attendance. The overall layout though was causing large traffic jams and left the non-VIP audience to walk extra distance to the opposite side

     In the end though this entire experience has been not only life changing but life defining. My life as a person and a musician is forever different and will never be the same. These past few days have been the best I've ever had and if I were to go back and do it again I would do it the same. I give huge thanks to Charlotte Rock Review and my father Jason Taylor for giving me the opportunity to experience this amazing festival. I love the Welcome to Rockville festival for its amazing band selection and complete experience for everyone from musicians young and old and just straight up anyone that loves metal and rock-n-roll.

   Well I hope everyone enjoy a fresh, new point of view. Charlotte Rock Review definitely enjoyed The Welcome To Rockville Festival hope to see ya'll next year. We would definitely love to hear feedback of what you think.

Welcome to Rockville