Woodstock 99

Woodstock 1999, held July 23-25, 1999 was the second large-scale music festival (after Woodstock '94) that attempted to emulate the success of the original Woodstock Festival of 1969. Like the previous concerts with the same name, it was held in upstate New York, this time in Rome, New York. Approximately 200,000 people attended the festival.Cable network MTV covered the concert extensively and live coverage of the entire weekend was available on pay-per-view. Excerpts from the performances were later released on compact disc and DVD.
Woodstock '99 is best remembered for reports of violence, rape, fires, and an abrupt closing down of the show.

The festival featured a diverse lineup of acts and early reviews for many of the acts were positive; critics particularly praised performances by George Clinton, Jamiroquai, James Brown, Sheryl Crow, and Rage Against the Machine. However, critical and public attention quickly turned to the deteriorating environment and crowd behavior.

Some crowd violence and looting was reported during the Saturday night performance by Limp Bizkit, including a rendition of the song "Break Stuff". Reviewers of the concert criticized Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst as "irresponsible" for encouraging the crowd to destructive behavior.

Violence escalated the following night in the final hours of the concert as Red Hot Chili Peppers performed. A group of peace promoters led by an independent group called Pax had distributed candles to those stopping at their booth during the day, intending them for a candlelight vigil to be held during the Red Hot Chili Peppers' performance of the song "Under the Bridge". During the band's set, the crowd began to light the candles, some also using them to start bonfires. The hundreds of empty plastic water bottles that littered the lawn/dance area were used as fuel for the fires.

After the Red Hot Chili Peppers were finished with their main set, the audience was informed about "a bit of a problem." An audio tower caught fire, and the fire department was called in to extinguish it.


Limp Bizkit performs Break Stuff in Woodstock. (PG Advice)