Ep. 45 BottleRock 2026 Lineup Reaction

We’re diving into our first reactions to the BottleRock 2026 lineup. We go day by day through the artists, call out the surprises, and talk about who we’re most excited to see. If you’re planning your weekend in Napa, this is your quick, hype-filled lineup rundown!

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Chapters

• 0:00 Cold Open And Festies Welcome
• 0:57 Eric Hutchinson Story And Community Lesson
• 3:06 Headliners Revealed For Each Day
• 4:01 Friday Highlights Beyond Headliners
• 4:23 Saturday Standouts And Surprises
• 5:01 Sunday Artists And Guitar Legends
• 5:46 Dates, Location, And Media Hopes
• 6:03 Life Update: Moving And Money Realities
• 7:06 Festival Vibes: Wine, Food, And Memories
• 8:32 Final Thoughts And Listener Callouts

Transcript

Cold Open And Festies Welcome

Sunny 0:00

Hey Vanessa.

Vanessa 0:01

Yeah, Sunny?

Sunny 0:02

What do you call two best friends that love music festivals?

Vanessa 0:06

Hmm. I guess you would call them Festies

Sunny 0:41

Welcome to Festies, Everybody. Okay, Vanessa, I have a story. Do you remember Eric Hutchinson?

Vanessa 0:48

Yes.

Sunny 0:48

He performed at the guild around the corner.

Vanessa 0:50

You tell me it was he was coming.

Sunny 0:52

Yes. My mom and I ended up going.

Vanessa 0:54

Oh nice. When was that?

Sunny 0:55

It's a couple days ago.

Eric Hutchinson Story And Community Lesson

Vanessa 0:56

A couple days ago, yeah, cool.

Sunny 0:57

It was a solo show, just him, piano, guitar, and a stomp box acting as a kick drum. You know that thing that I have where I kick stomp it?

Vanessa 1:05

Bop it.

Sunny 1:07

Twist it. It basically provides a kick drum effect, right?

Vanessa 1:10

Yeah, yeah.

Sunny 1:12

His sounded so good. And I'm sitting there like, dang, I need to know what kind of stomp box that is. my plan was I was going to run up to the stage after the show, take a sneaky photo of the stomp box, and then Google it later. But midway through the show, he started talking about how he really wants to focus on community this year. He gave an example like, if you're out somewhere and you see someone wearing a purple hat you like, instead of secretly trying to figure it out later by Googling it, just walk up to them and say, Hey, where did you get that hat? And I'm sitting there like, oh no, he just called me out in real time. Then at the end of the show, he announced that he'll be hanging around after if you want to meet him and say hi. And I'm thinking, well, shoot, I guess I have to go ask him about the stomp box. Yeah. I muster up the courage to get in line and I did it. I asked him where he got the stomp box. And he told you? Yes, he did tell me. he was like, I'm not telling you.

Vanessa 2:16

Imagine if he was like, that's his industry secret or whatever.

Sunny 2:20

That's an industry secret. Part of me was worried that he wouldn't know, but then I thought, how could he not know?

Vanessa 2:26

He just goes, I don't know, it was a gift.

Sunny 2:29

or I guess I was more so thinking he's reached a high enough level that he doesn't have to worry about his gear anymore. As if his response would have been like, I don't know, they just plug it in for me. But obviously he knows what equipment he's using. Anyway, that's my Eric Hutchinson story.

Vanessa 2:46

Cool. Also, I love that he said purple hat because we love that song.

Sunny 2:50

As I was telling the story, I was like, was it Purple Hat? But oh he was very nice. I took a picture with him.

Vanessa 2:58

Oh, nice.

Headliners Revealed For Each Day

Sunny 2:59

But enough about Eric because we have an incredible lineup to talk about. Today we're going to be talking about the 2026 Bottle Rock lineup.

Vanessa 3:09

Oh my gosh.

Sunny 3:10

Because the lineup slapped us in the face.

Vanessa 3:14

It's been over 10 years since we've been to, or it's been 10 years since the last time we went to Bottle Rock.

Sunny 3:19

Shut up. Were you holding on to that? Waiting for it.

Vanessa 3:22

I just thought about it because I was like, when was the last time we went? Oh my god, 10 years ago.

Sunny 3:26

Shut up. Can you start us off with the headliners?

Vanessa 3:31

Yes. there's three big names listed for every day. Each day. Oh yeah. Friday, there's it's Lorde, Teddy Swims, and Lil Wayne. Saturday, it's Foo Fighters, L C D Sound System, and Zedd. Sunday, it's Backstreet Boys. Is it Sombr?

Sunny 3:49

I think so.

Vanessa 3:50

And Ludacris. Which is this lineup is incredible.

Friday Highlights Beyond Headliners

Sunny 3:56

Yeah. The headliners alone, but let's also go on to the other artists. Friday, we have Papa Roach, Jon Bellion, Chaka Khan, Tasha Sultana, Men at Work, Natasha Bedingfield, Rev Run from Run DMC. you know anyone else on this day, Vanessa?

Vanessa 4:16

Meredith Marks. She's a housewife that's a DJ now. It's so funny. Oh, that's fun.

Sunny 4:23

Then Saturday, AJR, Busta Rhymes, Joan Jett, and the Blackhearts, Bush, Flip Turn. Yes.

Vanessa 4:32

Midnight Generation.

Sunny 4:34

Arrested Development, Almost Monday, Paris Jackson. Wow. That is Michael Jackson's daughter.

Vanessa 4:41

DJ Pauly D.

Sunny 4:42

DJ Pauly T. At the Silent Disco. We had so much fun at Bottle Rock Silent Disco. Yeah, that's right. And then Sunday, you go for it.

Sunday Artists And Guitar Legends

Vanessa 4:51

Mt. Joy, slightly stoopid, big X tha plug, kool and the gang. Like what? Yes. let's see who else. California Honey Drops, Matt Mason, Good Neighbors, Paco Versailles, Sunny. Can Redeem Yourself?

Sunny 5:07

Yes.

Vanessa 5:08

Girl Tones. Gosh.

Sunny 5:11

There's also Tom Morello, who's a guitar player. he was in Rage Against the Machine. Oh, Audio Slave. I always confuse, and they're not at all alike. I always confuse Sound Garden and Audio Slave for some reason.

Vanessa 5:26

No, indeed. That's Oh, they're all in the same family.

Clark 5:28

It's fine to confuse them cause Chris Cornell is the lead singer of both of those bands

Sunny 5:32

Oh, oh, oh, okay. but yeah, you know Rage Against the Machine, yeah? Yeah. okay, cool. that's that's dope. I think that's all. The Napa Valley Youth Symphony?

Vanessa 5:44

I know I was gonna say that too at the very end.

Dates, Location, And Media Hopes

Sunny 5:46

No, that's awesome. It's May 22nd to the 24th in Napa Valley, California.

Vanessa 5:53

Right in our backyard. Yeah.

Life Update: Moving And Money Realities

Sunny 5:56

We applied for media last year and they very politely said no. But that won't stop us from applying again. Please, please let us into your festival. Do you think you will still be in the Bay Area?

Vanessa 6:11

No. No, you'll be gone by then. We'll be gone.

Sunny 6:13

Good.

Vanessa 6:13

But did you say good?

Sunny 6:15

Y eah. No, because I know you want to do this, that's why

Vanessa 6:18

I know I'm getting more sad as it gets closer, but and I don't even want to think about actually moving because that's a nightmare in itself.

Sunny 6:26

But for anyone who hasn't heard, Vanessa is moving to Iowa.

Vanessa 6:31

I just keep telling myself that when I first moved back to California, all I wanted to do was move back because I missed my life there and how easy it felt and just how easier my life was, but still, all my family's here,

Sunny 6:46

And your friends, and my friends, obviously. And festies, you guys are your festies.

Vanessa 6:50

You guys are my family. But I am really excited. I'm happy for Ed too. I love California and I will always have love for the Bay Area and rep the Bay Area. But I just wish I could afford to live here and have the life I want.

Festival Vibes: Wine, Food, And Memories

Sunny 7:05

Yeah. Going back, going back to Eric Hutchinson. His new single is called The King of Philadelphia, and it's basically about how New York is too fucking expensive, and he's a nobody in New York, but when he goes to Philadelphia, he's the king of Philadelphia. Well, you're out for Bottle Rock? It's okay.

Vanessa 7:25

I'm out unless we get tickets. it's not like I don't have a place to come stay at.

Sunny 7:31

You always have a place to stay. Yeah. Oh, wait, is there anything else we want to say about Bottle Rock?

Vanessa 7:35

Oh. Make sure you make sure you go to Bottle Rock. No, Bottle Rock is a cool festival because not only do they have great music always, but they've got great food. They're in the middle of wine country, they have great wine. Yeah. And it is a nice little festival to check out. It's not little, it's a nice festival. It's a nice big festival to check out. if you're in the area.

Sunny 8:01

It's a little big festival, I would say. Because it is still sizable, but I always look back at that memory of you and I running around to all the three stages. Yeah. between Passion Pit. Why do I always forget this guy's name? Who's the

Vanessa 8:18

Lettuce

Final Thoughts And Listener Callouts

Sunny 8:19

Lettuce and Robert? I always forget this guy. Robert Plant. I always forget his name. And Robert Plant. Because we were at Robert Plant, then we ran away, and then we were like, we should be at Robert Plant. We ran back. Oh yeah. So yeah, Bottle Rock is a good one. We uh recommend it. Especially if you like the wine. It's a good place for some nice wine tasting. All right, Festies, that's a wrap on our first reaction to the Bottle Rock 2026 lineup. We want to know what you think. Who are you most excited about? Who surprised you? DM us on Instagram and tell us your thoughts. You can find more Festies content on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube at Festies Podcast. And if you have a minute, leaving a rating or review really helps more Festies find the show. Thanks for hanging out with us.

Vanessa 9:09

Bye.

Sunny 9:10

Bye.