Each year I leave the Seattle Hempfest thinking 'this year is going to be hard to beat' but my expectations were again exceeded by the first two-day hempfest in it's 10-year history.

Executive Director and the burning torch of Seattle Hempfest, Vivian McPeak, along with founder and President of the Seattle Hemp Coalition, Dominic Holden, fought and won many hard-earned battles with the City of Seattle legislature to overturn restrictions on large gatherings that were put in place because of the WTO and Mardi Gras riots over the last two years. Eleventh-hour victories allowed the largest hempfest in the world to take place, drawing more than 150,000 people over the two-day event.

Seattle Hempfest has grown into the largest drug-reform rally in the United States, and this year's focus was the incarceration of all non-violent drug offenders. Seattle Hempfest advocates that adults who use marijuana responsibly should not be treated like criminals and that non-violent drug offenders should receive alternatives to incarceration. There were also scores of vendors promoting and/or selling all kinds of hemp-related products, including food, fuel, paper, cloth and even an automobile that is powered 100% by hemp-fuel.

Some of the notable speakers that were at Hempfest included Woody Harrelson (Cheers), Keith Stroup (NORML Founder & executive director), Nick Licatta (Seattle City Councilman), and Will Foster (drug prisoner pardoned by Bill Clinton). Woody Harrelson summed up the sentiment of the afternoon when he said he had decided to quit smoking pot, until he realized that 'he wasn't a quitter'.

Seattle Hempfest is also the largest two-day music event in the Northwest, drawing over 50 of the top bands in the country to speak out and make their stand for the cause. This year I shot film rather than stills of the show because HotBands former featured artists Carolyn Wonderland and Melissa Reaves were both performers at the event while they are touring the Northwest together. It allowed a different perspective of the show, but I missed the flexibility of being able to move from stage to stage more freely.

At Saturday's performance Carolyn's show was followed by a high-energy performance by guitarist and singer Michael Williams and an explosive performance by Seattle vocalist/songwriter, Loni Rose. Hempfest mainstay and top Seattle funk band, Phat Sidy Smokehouse were at the Seeley Stage at the same time as Loni Rose on the main stage, but I caught the tail end of an electrifying performance and an electrified audience dancing their asses off.

Day two of the hempfest was a cloudless Seattle day with temperatures in the 80s and an even bigger crowd than the day before. Melissa Reaves played her set under the largest all hemp tent in the world. The tent and the dozens of throw rugs gave the stage a very middle-eastern feel and added to the ambiance of an amazing performance from Melissa. At the main stage, some of the featured bands included Playland, Fat James, Clinton Fearon, and at bringing in the magic hour of 4:20 for the 10th year in a row was founders of Seattle Hempfest, The Herbivores played another flawless performance for over 30,000 people in front of the main stage.

Vivian, Dominic, Neal (Northern Stars), The Herbivores, and the over 1000 volunteers that made this years Hempfest happen are not only the voice of millions of people that are demanding reform to prohibition and the end to the drug-war, but they are one of the main supporters of the independent music movement on a national basis. Thanks again to another incredible year of music and awareness!

For more information on The Seattle Hempfest, CLICK HERE

Top of Page