Though days one and two of Tortuga Fest were dampened by rain, day three made up for it in a huge way, rolling in with blue skies, wispy clouds, and warm weather. The day began with Old Southern Moonshine Revival, LanCo, and Walker County, providing a stellar range of energy-raising uptempos and introspective ballads.
The beach vibes continued with Chase Bryant, whose set included covers like Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin'” and current Top 5 “Little Bit Of You.” Native Run took their stellar vocal pairing to the Sunset Stage, sampling from their debut EP and covering TLC’s “Waterfalls.” Elle King played hero for the evening, fully clad in a Superwoman cape, while Michael Franti perfectly captured the beachy vibe with his reggae-infused great-feeling jams.
One of the most packed shows of the day belong to Thomas Rhett, whose country-pop stylings and Hawaiin t-shirt were a hit of the evening. Rhett led his set with “Anthem,” then slid into “South Side,” “Make Me Wanna,” “Tangled Up,” and current single “T-Shirt” from his most recent LP. “Make Me Wanna” and “Tangled Up” even received pop mash-up treatment, the former mixing with Justin Timberlake’s “Suit and Tie” and the latter pairing with DNCE’s “Cake By The Ocean.” “Yo, this is insane,” Rhett said, succinctly capturing the bikini-clad mass’ fervor.
Billy Currington was the penultimate act of the evening, for one of the most connective sets of the festival. The beachy crooner sounded flawless and at ease as he serenaded the audience with summer jams like “Don’t It” and “We Are Tonight” and classic hits like “Let Me Down Easy” and his first #1 hit, “Must Be Doin’ Somethin’ Right.” He also drew from his most recent release, Summer Forever, upping the beach vibes with songs like “Wake Me Up” and “It Don’t Hurt Like It Used to.”
Blake Shelton closed out the evening, letting his wit and dynamic repertoire take center stage. Through the three days of ocean-front festivities, conservation efforts, and stellar music, Tortuga Festival’s fourth year was a (mostly) sun-filled success. For those attending vicariously, put Ft. Lauderdale’s Tortuga Festival at the top of your list for next year.