“Do what moves you,” is Bacardi’s fun and bold slogan! Casa Bacardi was the go-to spot to get the party started and dance the day away! The entrance to the rum paradise had arched doors, with festive and bright colors, and even featured tropical plants! Their slogan was turned into huge 3D letters that were a perfect photo-op moment, just in time for Gov Ball. Another huge photo-op featured a one-yard-long can of its rum punch and even released bubbles. Inside were cool graffiti artists that gave all the Y2K feels with fun spray painting for guests. Bacardi brought the beats too, with their lively DJ sets when you’re not heading to the stages!
And, of course, Bacardi served up delicious specialty drinks – Mojito Mo Problems with Bacardi Superior Rum, Gov Ball Punch with Bacardi Coconut Rum, That Mango Fuego with Bacardi Mango Chili, and more! I went with the wonderful Gov Ball Punch, and it was extremely refreshing on a hot day and transported me to a tropical concert. Bacardi had its own stage that had festive red balloons lined up in the sky. Thanks to Bacardi, we had V.I.P. wrist bands that made the long day very comfortable. The V.I.P. section offers lounge couches with comfy pillows, snacks, water, wifi, and sunscreen, and tents that provide shade. There were also plenty food options for purchase as well. Between sets we we either relaxing on cozy couches or doing brand activations with Dunkin, Coca-Cola, and M&Ms. The Coca-Cola activations invited you to take a musical survey and gave you a CD with a number, which would be used to create a fun video of you performing on stage.
On Saturday, the Bacardi stage featured Flipturn, Evan Giia, Syd, Koffee, Kenny Beats, and Lauv! Kenny Beats’ set drew in the crowd literally – he had young guests from the audience join him onstage during his DJ set. The energy was high as the spontaneous new dancers behind him sang along to every word, and bopped their heads along to songs by Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Ferg and more! The set was extremely fun, as people danced, moshed, and aggressively sang along while bopping to the rhythm. At the end, Kenny Beats asked “who here makes music?” Guests raised their hands. He continued, “I used to be like you in the audience and now I’m on stage!” He continued to emphasize hard work and belief in yourself. That encouragement grew into a huge cheer, for the full-circle story.
On the other stages, we saw Suki Waterhouse, Finneas, Aespa, Lil Baby and Odesza. Suki Waterhouse’s set had a bold costume change into red lingerie with a red cowboy hat, and comedic skits between songs about how she has to “do more” so that her audience “likes her set.” Finneas started off on the piano and then in-front of the crowd with his guitar, and ended the set by jumping off of the top of the piano after belting out an impressive note. Aespa’s set drew in a huge K-pop crowd as fans came in with posters of them and glow-up sticks that were Sailor Moon-esque, from previous concerts. The set was dynamic and fun – the outfits, the makeup, the choreography, and the energy all gave an amazing show. Their discography is very dynamic as well being, that they offer a shift between pop-y songs to rock songs with the vocals to match. Despite being one member down out of four, the group easy adapted like true professionals and brought it! They won me over and after the show, I found myself listening to “Welcome to my World” and “Spicy.”
Lil Baby’s set was an absolute blast and definitely my personal highlight. His catalog has so many songs and features, and the hour long set hyped up the whole crowd. His energetic catalog covered “Drip To Hard,” “Yes Indeed,” “Close Friends,” and “Heyy,” where he comedically waved to the crowd each time he said “hey.” The set featured energetic dancers and fire that went off for the most hype songs. The background shifted between colors of red, blue and yellow, as the artist gracefully went from left to right sides. We were practically front row and while singing along I couldn’t help but be mesmerized by his “dancing diamonds” on his necklace in the lights, and his great style that featured a white tee, jeans and yellow accents such as smiley faces and the names of the coasts. After that we headed to the Odesza set and it was the perfect way to end the magical night. The set was futuristic with huge lit-up geometric shapes on stage and the members on leveled up smaller stages. The genre was techno and it made everyone dance fully. The final song ignited fireworks above the stage which was the perfect way to end the successful and fun day!
According to the Bacardi’s previous press release: “This summer, BACARDÍ® Rum wants you to dance like everyone is watching. The world’s most awarded rum brand is launching a series of unique activations under its ‘Do What Moves You’ platform to encourage people to embrace community and enjoy the freedom of self-expression.” And that is exactly what we did at NY’s Gov Ball 2023, thanks to Bacardi’s wonderful hosting!
