I wish someone had told me: ‘Superbalist is Rocking the Daisies’ really rocks!

“I wish someone had told me” is a series of posts that feed into our inquisitive nature at CN&CO. Each week we hear from someone in our network about something interesting or surprising that’s recently happened or occurred to them. These blogs are a way to pay it forward and form part of CN&CO’s belief that the world can be a better place – and we all have a responsibility to make it so. This week’s post is by Emi Adriano.

fullsizerender-4The hip hop beats began early Friday morning as we set off on the most highly anticipated road trip ever. Four girls, one car and eight suitcases later, the adventure to what seemed like the middle of nowhere began. On arrival we were greeted by the typical Cape Town ‘breeze’ which gave a new meaning to the term ‘wind swept’. Having been assisted by locals carrying wheelbarrows that were by no means big enough to fit our oversized luggage, Joburg had finally arrived at Daisies. After enduring the struggle of trying to drag our luggage to a ‘decent’ camp site, the task of pitching our tent became top of our priorities list as sleeping under the stars wasn’t an option. Having offered each other emotional and moral support after enduring endless banter, bickering and complaining about sore arms and stiff backs our tent was finally standing thanks to the support of surrounding trees, rocks and the boys from the neighbouring camp site.

 Our Friday began with an exploration of the venue surrounded by a lot of irritatingly good-looking people. There were unreal structures and decorations that covered the venue and massive dance floor set ups. With an incredibly exciting music line-up we were ready to brave the idea of camping for what promised to be the most incredible weekend of our social calendar. Main stage showcased the likes of Jimmy Nevis and AKA and the ‘The Divine Feminine” Mac Miller closed the evening off with killer performance proving why he is a world-renowned rapper. Then there was Hip Hop floor, which quickly became ‘home’ for the next few days as we channeled our inner gangsta. Electro Dome played host to insane sets by Das Kapital and my all time favourite Pop Art (Live) and we ended our night off with a phenomenal set by Australian electro dance music duo Knife Party. 

img_4585Running on minimal sleep and having experienced by far the coldest night I could possibly have imagined, Saturday morning dawned on us quicker (and colder) than expected as we were awoken by the sound of ratty campers that were highly disappointed that the skies were grey and rain clouds were gathering quickly. Regardless of the rather nippy weather forecast, everyone seemed to put their best fashion foot forward and it seemed as though campers had brought the runways of fashion weeks to the planes of Cloof Wine Estate. Most of the day was spent at Beach Bar enjoying the soundscapes of deep house tunes and not even rain itself was going to rain on our party parade. The afternoon line up was filled with the likes of Goodluck and international sensation Eats Everything and in the evening we found ourselves lost in a state of trance with local phenomenon Trancemicsoul while later popping bottles with Milkshake and Da Les along with some of other great Hip Hop fundi’s.

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Another 4am bedtime and overcoming what seemed to feel like hypothermia, Sunday arrived and the end of our Daisies adventure was sadly near. Looking hellishly sleep deprived we wasted no time getting ready for our final Daisies day before returning back to Cape Town for a Café Caprice Sunday. We spent the day getting lost in the music at beach bar as the sun had finally decided to make a long awaited appearance while Luke Redford ensured that our Rocking the Daisies experience ended on a highest note possible. After taking three long hours to pitch our tent, the missions to take it down seemed to be outweighed by our desire to get back to civilization in order to have a decent shower and get rid of the dust that seemed to be in every corner of our bags and bodies. After seemingly devastating goodbyes, our Rocking the Daisies adventure had come to an end. 

Rocking the Daisies is by far one of the most unforgettable experiences to date. Not very often do we get to spend a weekend out of our comfort zones, surrounded by carefree, diverse people with so little yet SO MUCH in common. Regardless of whether you were camping in the comfort of Heartbreak Hotel or roughing it in the general camping area, every person was there with one common purpose: to make the most of the experience and have an utterly unforgettable time. Over the period of the weekend we connected with so many different types of people through so many different mediums, making Rocking the Daisies so much more than just a music festival. Rocking the Daisies 2016 went over and above my wildest expectations and is most definitely an experience that I will reminisce about for years to come. I cannot wait for our next ‘Girls on Tour’ adventure and hopefully many more Rocking the Daisies missions.

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