If you’ve ever wanted to be part of organising a music festival and add your own special touch, here’s your chance.
Bushweek is a festival unlike any other in that it gives everyone the opportunity to come together and be part of a community working toward the combined goal of organising an arts and music festival. “It’s a concept I came up with one of my mates and now there’s a number of us involved in it,” explains organiser and originator, Billy Dread.
“It was our tilt on a festival, thinking that most festivals are about people rocking up on a Friday and getting munted for the weekend, having a good time then leaving on the Monday and just being there for the party.”
Instead, Billy envisioned an event where anyone who wanted to be part of its conception could come and contribute in a free and open space, then kick back and enjoy their efforts. “So a number of us had been involved with doing festivals whether it was décor or setting up sound systems or various activities and knowing that some of our greatest enjoyment out of doing those festivals was actually the setup and pack down, actually being involved in seeing this awesome thing evolve.
“Going to an empty spot the week before and building and co-creating with other awesome people and watching this thing grow and then enjoying the party obviously on the weekend as much as the creation as the celebration itself.”
Billy says the philosophy behind Bushweek is the joy derived from enjoying the fruits of one’s labour, seeing something magnificent come together from the conglomeration of people’s creativity and hard work. “The whole thing is that you do enjoy it through that involvement, you almost enjoy it more.”
Located near Billy’s home in far-north Queensland, Bushweek is set in the picturesque rainforest surrounds of World Heritage listed Home Rule, which Billy says is an ideal place for such a festival. “With Bushweek, luckily we have it in such a beautiful spot that it’s definitely somewhere you go camp and hang out anyway, but it’s sort of nourishing. A lot of the time when you go to outdoor parties or bush parties and you’re working at them and it’s hot and dusty, it’s almost draining.
“Whereas you can go to home rule where bush week is held and spend a week there and actually feel regenerated and rejuvenated from the experience of just being there: there’s beautiful swimming and beautiful waterfalls and all that sort of stuff on-site, so it’s easy enough to host something like that there, the site takes care of all those finer details, it’s got hot showers and as I said beautiful swimming, shady camping and grassy lawns. So depending on how much involvement you want, it’s easy enough to work all day and not feel as if you’re working… not that it’s ever work.”
Participation in assisting with the festival’s setup and design is completely voluntary, but Billy says getting involved is easy and offers the chance to do something you’ve never done before. “We get there a couple of days or a week before but then the week of the festival, Monday to Friday is anybody who’s there who wants to be involved, but doesn’t necessarily have to be involved, can do workshops, you know, learning how to weave palm fronds or building with bamboo.
“It all culminates in building an installation for the main stage, which is the main focus but then there’s heaps of other workshops, whether it be lantern building or whatever it is and people can find their niche, do it and then it all comes together for the weekend when we actually have our interstate and international DJs and bands, having the party.”
Once setup, the festivities begin on the Friday with a feast, and an opening ceremony to kick-off celebrations that continue throughout the weekend. “On the Friday night we have a free feast so that everyone who’s there is welcome and we have an opening ceremony and everybody gets to come together and eat before the festivities begin. So you get a bit of nourishment and nurturing then get to have a good time after that.”
