Dictionary.com defines a music festival as an entertainment event that is centered around a musical genre or theme performed by numerous bands or artists. They can range from one to three days at a time and usually happen once a year.

“I think festival goers are people who really appreciate music and find it as a great way to escape from their everyday lives,” said third-year government major Mia Alansalon. “It’s also a great way to bond with your friends who also go to music festivals, or even just bond with strangers that attend too.”

Many Sacramento State students enjoy attending music festivals. Festivals can range in price, but many offer ways in which goers can make it affordable.

“Payment plans are the best way to make it affordable, to be honest,” said third-year communications major Kari Truong. “They keep jacking up prices every year so it makes it harder to afford them now.”

Truong has attended festivals including Beyond Wonderland in the Bay Area and Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas.

“The farthest I’ve gone was probably EDC Vegas, and I drove there so it felt like forever,” said Truong. “My favorite thing about music festivals is the fact that there are different kinds of music you are exposed in one place, so you have so many you can choose from. You also meet hella people from everywhere and you’re there for the same reason.”

UNIQUE volunteers gain points when they attend meetings and volunteer for events.

“The top six volunteers with the most points get to go to Outside Lands in San Francisco,” said senior communications major Ronnie Escorpiso Jr. “UNIQUE pays for admission, lodging, transportation and I believe food as well.”

Sac State Police Department detective Greg Thompson believes public safety is a key element in successful events.

“Let’s say there was going to be like 27 bands in Sac State over a weekend. Great, it would be wonderful to have an event like that. However, there are a lot of issues that can come from that,” said Thompson. “From a police [and university] perspective, you’d be worrying about crowds being safe. The university will probably worry about if there are enough facilities to go to the bathroom, access to water, weather forecasts, traffic and garbage issues.”

Thompson aims for organizers to be able to plan well in advance and work with prospective entities and communities in order to make a safe event.

“In my [younger] experiences, promoters were sometimes more interested in making money than making sure events were safe … As long as issues are addressed and security is maintained, I think festivals could be a good thing,” said Thompson.

Psychology professor De-Laine Cyrenne mentioned Fyah on the Water during a lecture in her Drugs and Behavior class. It was a 2-day music festival that happened last weekend.

“People who attend music festivals are those that enjoy music. From the pictures that I’ve seen, characteristics of festival goers depend on the type of festival. I know some professors that teach here that have gone to some heavy metal festivals.”