Leave it to Chance the Rapper to show up unannounced to one of the biggest music festivals on the planet and upstage everyone, including the headliners. Chance's impromptu, weekend-long Bonnaroo appearance was a hand-down highlight of this year's fest, mostly because it was so laid back. He showed up everywhere from Death Cab for Cutie's set (he asked them to play "I Will Follow You Into the Dark," so they did) to his own dance party (more on that below), all while taking in the sights (and the sets) like a true 'roo lifer. Below, we recount Chance's multiple drop-ins, alongside all the other highlights from our weekend on the Farm.
1. GETTING TO KNOW MAREN MORRIS
Whoever booked Maren Morris on Bonnaroo's Who? Stage has a great sense of humor, because the country singer's is about to be a household name. Morris is indisputably one of the most compelling talents out of Nashville, and her single "My Church" inspired a whole lot of hallelujahs from the Bonnaroo crowd, who withstood some serious 100-degree heat to watch her play. Morris' full-length debut Hero dropped on June 3, so Bonnaroo doubled as a massive debut for songs like "Church," "Drunk Girls Don't Cry," and "Sugar.".
2. THE HEALING POWER OF CHARLES BRADLEY
After the horrific massacre that took place in Orlando on Saturday night, Charles Bradley and his gospel of love was a welcome and downright necessary sound on the last day of the festival. Bradley didn't preach much, but his music, which updates the brassy, bass-laden swells of soul in a very present way, offered a fleeting moment of comfort in the dark wake of tragedy.
3. SHAMIR'S VOGUE-OFF
Thursday's mellow vibes had totally vanished by the time Shamir appeared in the Other Tent. Over the course of his hour-long dance party, the Las Vegas experimental pop guru coaxed a thousands-strong crowd to bust out their fiercest moved with "On the Regular" and "In For the Kill."
4. THE TWISTED WORLD OF CLAYPOOL LENNON DELIRIUM
Les Claypool and Sean Lennon's trippy project was an exercise in surrealism from start to finish. Bathed in green lights and standing before a Dadaist backdrop, the guitarists traded banter and dizzying solos that sounded like the would-be soundtrack for Tim Burton's next film. In fact, the Claypool Lennon Delirium may as well be on contract as Burton's studio band—minus the pre-show "Primus Sucks" chants.
5. LEON BRIDGES'S UNEXPECTED GINUWINE COVER
Covering Ginuwine's "Pony" is a tall order, but a challenge that Leon Bridges and his band eagerly accomplished. The Texan soul singer didn't just roll through "Smooth Sailin," "Coming Home" and the rest of his vintage-leaning catalog—he dressed up the R&B standard for a jaw-drop-worthy cover for after-hours romantics. If any babies were conceived at Bonnaroo, it was likely right after Bridges' set.
6. TAME IMPALA'S CONFETTI DROP
When LCD Soundsystem tells you to go see a band, you listen. That's exactly what happened during their Friday night show, during which they instructed some 40,000 people to go catch Aussies Tame Impala later that night. Needless to say, Tame appeared onstage to a field full of rapt people. (The shower of confetti that rained down on them before "Let It Happen" didn't hurt the growing euphoria, either.) It's been nearly a year since the band's third LP Currents was released, but its songs are clearly still striking a chord and moving the masses, one heady downbeat at a time.
7. ANDRA DAY CHANNELING HER INNER BOB MARLEY
The "Rise Up" singer absolutely soared when she delivered her career-making hit at Bonnaroo, but she was also endearing as ever on the covers she brought to the table. Introducing her take on Kendrick Lamar's "No Makeup," Day got real with her listeners by explaining her connection to the song and how she feels certain "identity issues" tied up in appearances and expectations. A spirited take on Bob Marley's "Is This Love" and "Could You Be Loved" followed, and while Day can sing the hell out of anything, the shine of her own music didn't dim in the light of these more recognizable tracks.
8. CHRIS STAPLETON KEEPING IT ALL IN THE FAMILY
The country crooner drew a sizeable crowd for his mid-day set on Saturday, where he and wife Morgane Stapleton sang harmonies that rang out with the kind of confidence that can only come from years of hard work in a merciless business. There was a rumor circulating that Justin Timberlake would be joining Stapleton to reprise their duet from the 2015 CMA Awards, but the spectre of Timberlake never materialized. Probably a good thing, too, as he would've been shown up by the man of the hour before he could finish singing "sweet as strawberry wine."
9. PEARL JAM TAKING A STAND
Eddie Vedder's been doing this whole grunge thing for over two decades now, and the Pearl Jam frontman only seems to be getting better—and louder—with age. The band's hit-filled set at Bonnaroo was enough to engage unfamiliar listeners and thrill tried-and-true fans, but the highlights came when the music quieted and Vedder had a chance to speak. Like him or not, Vedder's one hell of an orator, and listening to him go in on Trump was one of the more invigorating moments of the weekend.
10. VINCE STAPLES' FESTIVAL ADVICE
Long Beach's rap wonderkid is one of the sharpest MCs currently making music, and he drew a mighty crowd on TK, when he worked his way through tracks off last year's Summertime '06. "Loc" in particular got the crowd riled way up. It wasn't all fun and games, though: Staples also made sure to warn his fans about the dangers of partying too hard, exclaiming, "Drugs are bad for your body!"
11. THAT THIRD EYE BLIND FAN AND HER POOL TOY
Stephen Jenkins and his band of '90s-nostalgia champions may have satiated their fans with "Jumper," "Never Let You Go," and the set closing "Semi-Charmed Life," but the real highlight of their Bonnaroo set was the girl who crowdsurfed atop an inflatable orca, all the way to the front of the stage. If YOLO is still a thing, she'd be the photo alongside its Urban Dictionary definition.
12. BAND OF HORSES' FRESH CUTS
Fresh off the June 10 release of their fifth full-length Why Are You OK, Band of Horses galloped into a huge-sounding set that reached fever pitch with "In a Drawer" and "Casual Party," two of the harder-rocking singles off the album. Frontman Ben Bridwell looked like pure joy when he played the new stuff, but the elation translated to the old hits, too—especially "No One's Gonna Love You."
