SweetWater 420 Festival finds ‘good vibes’ at Shirley Clarke Franklin Park

“Good vibes,” said Taylor Brown of Midtown, who came with his girlfriend, Brittney Randall, and sat on the grass on a hill watching headliner Thievery Corporation. “This is a perfect, relaxing time.”

Credit: RODNEY HO/AJC

Credit: RODNEY HO/AJC

Weather Saturday evening was idyllic: clear skies, a light breeze, dry conditions and temperatures in the low 70s. The front of the stage was crowded but not intensely so, with more than enough room to dance.

A gentle hill allowed attendees to sprawl out on blankets. Young kids ran around. Sponsors provided hammocks and beanbags. Lines for food or drink were modest. First aid tents were inactive.

“We’re really happy with this park as our new home,” said Carrie Shafir, vice president of marketing for SweetWater owner Tilray Beverages. “We can’t wait to dig in and start planning for next year.”

Credit: RODNEY HO/AJC

Credit: RODNEY HO/AJC

Attendance was lighter than last year, when the festival was held at Pullman Yards in the Kirkwood neighborhood and attracted 5,000 to 6,000 concertgoers per night,

About 8,500 people attended over Friday and Saturday at the new location, Shafir said.

And the vastly larger space appeared to make for a more comfortable experience for attendees.

“Everything is accessible,” said Rafael Paoli of Cartersville, “Bathrooms were good. And they have an amazing lineup.”

He brought along his 7-year-old daughter, Aurora: “I’m trying to make her the coolest girl in class forever!’

After complaints about the cost of $80 one-day passes last year, SweetWater dropped the price to $40, hoping to draw more people. The lower attendance was possibly hindered by a new, unfamiliar location.

Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC

Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC

“We aren’t going to raise it back to $80,” Shafir said. “We just need to work on the messaging a bit more.”

The good news is SweetWater 420, the largest craft beer brand in Georgia, has never designed the festival to make a profit. “This has always been a brand-building event,” Shafir said. “It’s a community event for Atlanta. We have events for our other brands in other cities, but this one is the biggest and has the most heritage.”

SweetWater 420 ate up only a small portion of the 280-acre park. The rest of the park remained open to the public.

If the event does grow, Shafir said a second stage could be added in a lower area of the park, which is best known as a former quarry and features a scenic reservoir that is used as an emergency drinking water for city residents.

Credit: RODNEY

Credit: RODNEY

Complaints from attendees were modest, mostly centered around heat Friday and the quarter-mile trek up a hill from the parking lot to the entrance.

“I really like the venue, but it could have used more shade,” said Acworth resident Shane Regal, who noted that he was “getting cooked” Saturday afternoon when temperatures reached 90 degrees for the first time this year. “Still, I love the size after having come from Coachella.” (That massive festival draws at least 125,000 people a day in Indio, California.)

An attendee who identified himself as DJ Doublewide, festooned in tattoos, took a break from selling corn dogs to watch Montreal electro-funk duo Chromeo. “I hope more people come next year,” he said. “It sounds great. You can feel the bass. Staff is nice. Security is on point.”

Credit: RODNEY H

Credit: RODNEY H

The wink and nod to marijuana is inherent in the festival’s name. Though recreational pot is illegal in the state of Georgia, the festival turned a blind nose to the ubiquitous aroma of secondhand smoke.

When Chromeo singer David Macklovitch tried to get the crowd to clap along at one point, he found the response wanting. Then he rationalized why: “I was not satisfied with the clapping, but then I realized it’s hard to clap when you’re holding a joint!”

The city of Atlanta said the festival went smoothly with no notable disruptions to the adjoining neighborhoods of Grove Park and Bankhead. “Overall, the event was successful,” a city spokesperson said in a statement. The city and its Parks & Recreation department “appreciate the organizers’ coordination and are currently reviewing standard post-event follow-up items.”

Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC

Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC

The festival, which largely books bands in the genres of jam, rock, funk and Americana, has been in six locations over 21 iterations, starting in Oakhurst before moving for several years to Candler Park.

As its popularity grew, SweetWater 420 moved in 2014 to its largest venue to date: Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta. At its peak, the festival drew more than 30,000 attendees a day with headliners like Widespread Panic, Trey Anastasio Band, the Avett Brothers and Tedeschi Trucks Band.

But Centennial Olympic Park booted all major festivals, concerned with wear and tear.

Suddenly homeless, organizers scrambled, first hosting a tiny version of the festival at SweetWater Brewing Company headquarters at 195 Ottley Drive in 2023 before moving to Pullman Yards for two years to mixed reviews.

Credit: RODNEY HO

Credit: RODNEY HO

Shafir said organizers were instantly intrigued and excited by the prospect of Shirley Clarke Franklin Park, which opened as Westside Park in 2021 but changed its name last year in honor of the former Atlanta mayor.

“Pullman was too industrial,” said Misty Smith, who has been attending SweetWater 420 for many years going back to what she dubbed “mudfest” in 2015 with Snoop Dogg and 311 as headliners at Centennial Olympic Park. “This is peak. You get one stage and get to see every act. And this type of festival needs open air where you get to see trees in the night sky. It’s more earthy, more grassroots, which fits SweetWater.”

Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC

Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC

Vendors who spoke to the AJC said they preferred the tighter confines of Pullman Yards last year when they were able to get more walk-by traffic and sales.

“It’s too spread out for the size of the crowd,” said Melissa Pingus, who was selling jewelry at a booth. “I don’t even know if I made enough money to pay for my booth fee. If they do this venue again, I’m going to skip it.”

Shafir said she hopes word-of-mouth will boost attendance next year and said the layout will be adjusted to help boost traffic for both the food and art vendors.