Murphy’s Law: MTSU Bonnaroo crew packs up after rainout

MANCHESTER, Tenn. — The almost 50 Middle Tennessee State University students crewing at the 2025 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival learned another lesson Friday night, June 13, about the unpredictability of live event production.

After heavy rains forced festival organizers to cancel the remainder of the four-day festival, students and faculty began disconnecting gear, drying off video and audio gear and winding down their work at the farm in Manchester.

Bob Gordon, chair, Media Arts — Bob Gordon

“One of the earliest lessons I teach my students is that Murphy’s Law always rules,” said Robert Gordon, chair of MTSU’s Department of Media Arts and long-time faculty mentor of the university’s video production team. “If it can go wrong, it will.”

What went wrong Friday was strong and steady rains, including lightning and strong wind that festival organizers said showed little signs of ceasing over the remainder of the run. By late afternoon, the grounds quickly turned into a mix of pooled water and muddy fields.

“We are beyond gutted, but we must make the safest decision and cancel the remainder of Bonnaroo,” the festival said in a social media post.

Around 50 Middle Tennessee State University College of Media and Entertainment students were set to crew the four-day 2025 Bonnaroo Music and Arts in Manchester, Tenn., before festival organizers cancelled the event Friday night, June 13 due to severe weather and additional forecasted rain through the weekend. (MTSU photo by Mike Forbes)

A student from Middle Tennessee State University’s College of Media and Entertainment works a cameras Thursday, June 12, at the 2025 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn. A team of about 50 students gained experience filming concerts, directing livestreams, creating social media content for university channels and writing stories before the four-day festival was cancelled Friday night, June 13, due to rain and additional weather concerns. (MTSU photo by James Cessna)

MTSU students deployed to Bonnaroo as early as Wednesday as part of a years-long tradition of providing real-world experience in video and audio production at the festival and generating story and photo coverage for Tennessee media outlets.

Beverly Keel, dean, College of Media and Entertainment — Beverly Keel

Nevertheless, the MTSU contingent still produced content of Bonnaroo during Thursday’s lineups and filed stories for multiple media outlets, including Hulu, WKRN News 2 in Nashville, the Nashville Scene and newspapers in the Tennessee Press Association.

“While we are certainly heartbroken that Bonnaroo has to be canceled, it remains a great learning opportunity for our students,” said Media and Entertainment Dean Beverly Keel. “They were able to see up close how real-time decisions are made and what should be prioritized.”

“While the mud will wash away, their memories will last a lifetime.”

— Andrew Oppmann (Andrew.Oppmann@mtsu.edu)