BUENA ONDA | WAYUU MOCHILAS

HANDMADE - FAIRTRADE - ONE OF A KIND

Music Festivals

Kaaboo Festival...Dark Horse Collaboration

Gregg Mooney2 Comments
Kaaboo.jpg

Buena Onda had the great privilege of partnering up with Dark Horse Wine at Kaaboo Festival in Del Mar, California. It was the best way to end a great festival season and to bring awareness to the Wayuu people of Colombia through a partnership with Dark Horse Wine. The hand made bracelets were selling so well, we had to re-stock multiple times. In the last three festivals, the crowed at Kaaboo and their receptiveness toward Buena Onda was the best. 

Day-N-Night...Our First Hip Hop Festival!

Gregg MooneyComment
Day-N-Night 2.jpg

On the West Coast Festival Tour, Buena Onda had the opportunity to set up venue at the Day-N-Night Festival in Anaheim, California at Angel Stadium. This was a Hip Hop Festival and the first one of its kind that Buena Onda has done. The colorful Mochilas and Moroccan Bags definitely stood out amongst the majority of vendors at Day-N-Night. The Buena Onda Lifestyle Brand was accepted very well at this festival . Not to mention we did a bag give away for the attendees that followed Buena Onda on Instagram (and we just picked a winner!).   

Buena Onda is in the Spotlight

Music FestivalsKevin KennedyComment

Kevin Kennedy iii just released his fourth music video single, Heat of Alabama, from my debut album Umami. The song was recorded in at the Brewery Recording Studio in Brooklyn, NY.  Heat of Alabama is a beachy mix of country story telling and hip hop beats which lyrically take place at the Gulf Shore. 

The music video was shot at the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, AL during the 2015 and 2016 events. I am also an advocate for the Buena Onda company (www.thebuenaonda.com) which uses social enterprise to bring love, community ties, and empowerment to the Wayuu People of Colombia. In the video you can see a large assortment of Wayuu products, plus you get a sneak peek on what it takes to run a merchandise booth at a festival. Buena Onda actually sold at over 9 major music festivals across the USA this year so this video was a perfect opportunity to spotlight the brand.   

Shaky Knees Festival

Buena OndaKevin KennedyComment
Downtown Atlanta

Downtown Atlanta

Shaky Knees Festival was an awesome experience this year.  The Buena Onda crew had such a wonderful time sharing the Wayuu story, making new friends, and listening to some awesome music!!!

Kevin Kennedy iii playing a quick set a the Buena Onda booth.

Kevin Kennedy iii playing a quick set a the Buena Onda booth.

Kevin Kennedy iii even stopped by to play a few songs off his new album "Umami."  You can check out his album at www.kevinkennedyiii.com.  

We've been everywhere, man (Festival Life)

Brett WaggonerComment

"I've been everywhere, man. I've been everywhere, man. Crossed the desert's bare, man. I've breathed the mountain air, man..."

Over the past few months, Buena Onda has been living a Johnny Cash song, criss-crossing the country showcasing the amazing Wayuu mochilas at a myriad of music festivals. Alabama, Arkansas, Washington, Michigan…I’ve been everywhere, man.  

On our journey, while sharing a slice of Wayuu culture with the western world, I received a crash-course in festival culture.

As a “Festie Virgin” I was greeted in open arms by savvy veterans, who were as eager to enlighten me about festival culture as they were to tell me about how bitchin’ that Phish set was at Bonaroo ’09 or about “that one time” at Burning Man…for the fifth time. 

Shaky Knees, Hangout, Sasquatch, Wakarusa, and Electric Forest: great music, better people -- people of all shapes and sizes, races and religions. Short, tall, strange and awesome, at these festivals, people are uninhibited by the constraints of reality. It’s both beautiful and shocking to a newcomer (I’ve seen some stuff, man - the type of stuff you can’t un-see *feverishly rips a cigarette*).  But here’s the thing: everyone is your friend, everyone looks out for one another, and everyone shares the collective goal of having as much fun as humanly possible. Moods are high and vibes are great. Everyone es buena onda, if you will…nudge nudge, wink wink. 

Using mochilas as our medium, we were able to impart a piece of Wayuu culture to curious concertgoers. This "mochila-medium" as I've been calling it since right now (better trademark that), allows us to share the plight of the Wayuu People. And our message did not fall on deaf ears, in fact, it resonated -- an amazing feat, really, given that many of our patrons were fresh off a face-melting dose of acid 120 decibels of Bassnectar.

At the end of the day, we made a lot of great friends, witnessed some incredible performances (Charles Bradley is the G.O.A.T.), and were able to connect the Wayuu with the western world. One mochila at a time.

Of travel (and porta-potties) I’ve had my share, man. I’ve been everywhere. 

 

Wakarusa Waterfall at Mulberry Mountain Arkansas
Wayuu Wakarusa Friends
Well, it's the verbal Herman Munster a.k.a. Chali 2na performing at Wakarusa. 

Well, it's the verbal Herman Munster a.k.a. Chali 2na performing at Wakarusa.