Before the pandemic, Firefly Music Festival fans looked forward to the longstanding tradition of partying in The Woodlands of Dover in June. (The festival moved to September last year.)
Yet a special group of music lovers, including Joanna Schnurman, experienced that one unique year in the festival’s history when it was held in July.
That date was July 20, 2012, the year Firefly was born. Wednesday marks the festival’s birthday, as the glowing bundle of joy turns 10.
Taken as a group, these Firefly fans have experienced all 10 years of the festival’s history. And they have a lot of memories to share about Delaware’s favorite music fest, from witnessing Paul McCartney deliver a juggernaut set in Dover to the birth of the legend of Sober Bear.
Firefly returns for its milestone anniversary Sept. 22 to 25 at Woodlands of Dover International Speedway. Headliners are Halsey, My Chemical Romance, Green Day and Dua Lipa.
Seeing Paul McCartney with Mom
Schnurman, 33, of Lexington, Kentucky, was there to see Firefly take its first baby steps.
The inaugural event was only three days (Friday through Sunday) and attracted around 30,000 people, making it roughly three times smaller than the festival was at its height of 90,000-plus fans in 2015.
Headlining that first year were the Killers, The Black Keys and Jack White.
Schnurman, who works as a voice teacher and medical program coordinator, remembers year one like it was yesterday.
“It was magical. I had never been to a music festival before, so the whole experience was new to me,” she recalled. “Jack White playing in the rain was a highlight. The crowd sang the hook to ‘Seven Nation Army’ for the rest of the weekend.”
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Schnurma attended every Firefly except in 2019. Her No. 1 highlight was the year a Beatles legend headlined.
“My absolute, hands down favorite moment was watching Paul McCartney’s incredible set in 2015 with my mom. She raised me on his music and always told me stories about how she had a huge crush on him growing up,” Schnurman said. “She later passed away, so I think about that moment a lot. It’s one of my favorite memories.”
Foo Fighters and ‘Grotto’s Pizza’
Bob Warburton, of Wilmington, has attended every Firefly to date. He would have attended in 2020, but Firefly — and all large music festivals — was cancelled due to the pandemic.
One of the Delaware resident’s favorite Firefly moments was in 2014, when the Foo Fighters paid homage to a popular restaurant in the state. “Dave Grohl started the show by referencing his time in Rehoboth and eating Grotto’s Pizza,” said Warburton, who works in real estate.
“For the encore, Dave and drummer Taylor Hawkins did a backstage skit on camera where they pretended to argue about how many songs they would perform for the encore. They then came out on stage and said they were a gin-soaked bar cover band, and performed a bunch of classic hits by other bands before closing with ‘Everlong.’ It was the best Firefly performance of all time, and a little bittersweet with the recent passing of Taylor.”
‘Sober Bear’ saves the day
Firefly has birthed a number of legends. But not all of them are musical acts.
One of them was the huggable Sober Bear.
Joe Meier, 33, of Philadelphia, is the guy who carries the Sober Bear totem, a cartoony sign of a bear’s face. To newcomers, the bear might be a cute random sign. But to those who know, the Sober Bear is a beacon of light like the Bat Signal.
Meier has been to every Firefly since 2014. That year was a low point for him.
“I was severely overweight, depressed and struggling with addiction. The energy Firefly brought into my life inspired me to get healthy and clean so that I could do it again.”
Meier said he’s now sober and has lost 160 pounds over the years.
His favorite memory is from 2019, the third year carrying his Sober Bear totem, and the year someone at Firefly lifted his phone from his pocket on Day One, he said.
“It put me in such a bad mental space that I considered leaving. But for the entire rest of the weekend I had people coming up to me and my totem and telling me how glad they were to see it there,” the software engineer explained. “A lot had heard about my phone being stolen and offered condolences. Those people really saved my whole weekend.”
Meier is popular on the Firefly Music Festival Fan Page group on Facebook and he’s made it known people can reach out to him if they’re struggling with addiction and need a friend; if they’re dehydrated and need water; are scared of being at the fest for their first time, or have other concerns.
He lets folks know he’ll show up to their rescue with the Sober Bear. Usually five people a day reach out to him in The Woodlands, he said.
Some Firefly fans consider him the hero they need, but don’t deserve.
“I think the most common thing that happens is sober folks find me and tell me they feel more secure in staying sober,” he said. “I get a lot of younger individuals who had a parent tell them to find me if they needed help or something of that nature. Mostly, I just get people saying thanks for being available and telling me they like my sign.”
Silent disco birthday gift
Ariel Mears, 24, of Livingston Manor, New York, has been jamming in The Woodlands from 2016 to 2021, with the exception of 2017.
Her first Firefly, in 2016, was right after she graduated high school. She decided to celebrate with a friend “where we thoroughly lived in the moment every moment we were there,” she said.
Mears’ top moment from Firefly came the year before the pandemic.
“I brought my best friend with me for her first festival as a birthday celebration and we danced the night away in the silent disco to Emo Night,” said the mental-health services worker. “The way we were so carefree and alive was cathartic, and was one of the best trips we decided to take together.”
She’ll ‘never forget’ the Killers
Katie Vitez, 24, of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, finally grew her Firefly wings last year. She had butterflies going to the festival because she had never been to a camping music fest.
“I ended up having the time of my life. I met so many interesting people and shared a lot of amazing memories with virtual strangers,” the registered nurse remembered.
At the same time, the folks at Firefly didn’t feel alien to her.
“Everyone is a stranger, yet it’s so easy to approach anyone and strike up a conversation or make a friend. Everyone’s there to hang out and listen to good music together. I remember thinking it felt like a playground built for adults.”
Vitez’s highlight last year was dancing and singing to “Mr. Brightside” by the Killers.
“That song has been played at every party, social gathering, wedding, etc., for the last 15 years. I will never forget the feeling of singing it with [thousands of] other people and just feeling like we were all connected in that moment.”
‘Blown away’ by Twenty One Pilots
Christine Smith, 58, of Middletown, attended the first Firefly and been to nearly each one except for one or two, she said.
She described the first as the best one because “the lineup was amazing, the crowd was manageable, the food was wonderful and the vibe was laid back.”
That was back when the festival’s demographic attracted a different crowd with more middle-aged folks and fewer high school students, the opposite of today. It began as an alternative rock/indie festival, with fewer rappers, EDM or pop acts on the bill.Smith can’t get over her first time seeing Twenty One Pilots, which made its Firefly debut in 2013. The band wasn’t touring arenas back then, and its name was near the bottom on the flyer of the festival’s lineup.“I was blown away the first time I saw Twenty One Pilots. I hadn’t heard of them until Firefly and I just happened upon the stage because I was waiting for the next band to come on. They were fantastic, so much energy. I was an instant fan,” said Smith, who is a registered nurse.
With the 10th-anniversary festival right around the corner, Smith is stoked to see one band she’s had on her Firefly bucket list for a long time.
“This year, I’m really looking forward to Green Day. I’ve been begging for them since the first year, so I’m really excited they got them.”
For the full daily schedule of the Firefly lineup, and for more info, visit fireflyfestival.com.
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