Rosalia Thrills Hometown Crowd, Halsey Brings the Hits at Primavera Sound Barcelona
Shirley Halperin Executive Editor, Music Spain’s Primavera Sound may be the ultimate FOMO-fest. The 22-year-old music extravaganza kicked off Europe’s festival season with its four-night bow in Barcelona this past weekend. Featuring multiple headliners – Blur, Halsey, Kendrick Lamar, Depeche Mode, New Order, Calvin Harris and Rosalia — on side-by-side interchanging stages, some 70,000 revelers attended daily, taking in the grounds of the city’s Parc del Forum and its myriad entertainment, activity and food options (including a full Primavera Pro conference track for industry attendees). While at a map’s glance, it seemed as if acts on the smaller stages would drown each other out, the organizers choreographed the schedule so expertly that any conflicts didn’t feel insurmountable. It also helped that there were 317 acts to choose from, spread out over 10 stages and as many acres lining the city’s port. According to the fest, 193,000 attended Primavera’s three main days, with the largest crowd gathering for the final night where the main draw was Spain’s own Rosalia — evident from the scores of fans wearing red and black, the colors of her latest project, “Motomami.”