The Oceans Calling music festival is a unique new event that we can’t wait to experience this weekend in Ocean City, MD! Get excited about the power of your favorite music with the thrill of being in our favorite beach town, right next to the ocean. We’re anticipating huge crowds approximating 50,000 music enthusiasts from all over and those who love the idea of listening to live music in a coastal setting.

Oceans Calling is offering more than just an incredible music lineup! The collaboration between the festival and the town of Ocean City is something to look forward to as boardwalk businesses are included within the event grounds. Beyond the music, you can enjoy shopping for OCMD souvenirs, dining at your favorite downtown restaurants, and even adventure to the attractions at Jolly Roger Amusement Park!

At Explore OC, we’re always here to bring you the inside scoop from a local’s perspective. While that will still be provided, we are also excited to bring you the perspective of some of the festival’s performers! This is one Explore Experience you won’t want to miss! Check back after the event for professional concert photos AND interviews from Oceans Calling musicians!

Make sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for more from Oceans Calling and check out the Oceans Calling lineup!

Explore Experience - Artist Interviews

Peach Pit

Neil, Chris, Mike, Pete

Q: What is it like to play for festivals versus tour shows/others that you play?

Neil: It can be different. All the time it's like a mixed bag of people that come to the set at a festival so today, it seems like there was some people that would be normal, maybe demographic for us, and then back ways, mom and dad were back there a little bit. 

Q: How do you guys feel about Oceans Calling in particular? The setup, location, production, etc.

Chris: [Being] right on the water is such a special thing, to be able to look at the ocean and play.

Neil: We don't really have any kind of, beach boardwalk like this in Canada. So for us, coming here is super cool and different.

Q: What's different about this festival compared to other festivals that you've played before?

Neil: We get to have crab! We don’t get crab at other festivals! I genuinely just love being in Ocean City. Our hotels down the way, we got a really sweet hotel room with a view of the water—it's kind of different than regular festivals because we're so close. We're kind of in town, and we're kind of vibing with people we’re around.

Q: What's your favorite song to perform?

Neil: We have a new-ish song that came out last year or something called Give Up Baby Go. It's fun to play because it's kind of like a country sort-of-a tune. And then we do a Hotel California Guitar solo at the end.

Q: When you go on vacation, what are you looking for?

Chris: Food culture is like number one on vacation for me, and yeah I got great food here obviously as we’ve talked about.

Mike, Neil, Chris, and Pete

Joe P

Q: What is it like to play for festivals versus tour shows/others that play?

Joe P: I would say festivals, an outdoor thing… as soon as you're outside, it's totally different game—totally changes everything. And just that amount of people, like my tours aren't that many people in that big of a thing.

Q: How do you guys feel about Oceans Calling in particular? The setup, location, production, etc.

Joe P: Great! I mean, we literally got here today, pulled in, got set up, and kind of played. It all happened really quickly, I would say. But it was great. It was super smooth. The weather's great, everyone was super nice and helpful. It sounded good because that's the biggest thing when you're jumping onto the stage and playing quickly. It might not sound good… But they killed it. They got it all up and running in seconds.

Q: If you had to suggest only one of your songs for someone to listen to, what would it be?

Joe P: Realistically, it's not out yet, it’s coming but, the one that's out there, I would say, listen to the acoustic version of Off My Mind… Because it's just super raw. And honestly, that feels the closest to a live show. It's not acoustic or anything like that live, but at least the mistakes and the rawness of it all is definitely there in that recording. And that's like what I think the next batch of stuff will have in it.

Joe P

Virginia Coalition

Jarrett & Fred

Q: What is it like to play for festivals versus tour shows/others that you play?

Jarrett: We've done so much touring over the history of our band… and festivals as well. But obviously, there's a quantitative difference of, [on] tour you plan 30 shows in a row, whereas a festival is always different. And you know, it's cool. I like the festival energy because it's so many creative people in one place… [it] has a different kind of buzz level than that.

Q: How do you guys feel about Oceans Calling in particular? The setup, location, production, etc.

Jarrett: Nothing bad to say at all. Everything from the production to the caterer… it's been shockingly easy, especially for people that are doing this essentially, for the first time. I know last year was supposed to be the first time. If I had been involved in this, and the hurricane happened last year, I'd be like, ‘Alright, nice try never trying that again.’ The fact that they came back and even bigger… I think that's really awesome.

Q: What's different about this festival compared to other festivals that you've played before?

Jarrett: Well, the beach. I don't think we've seen dolphins during a set ever. 

Q: So you guys grew up nearby in Virginia. Have you ever been to Ocean City before? 

Jarrett: We played the green turtle, we have played secrets. Yeah, but again, a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.

Q: If you weren't performing what would you guys want to experience in town?

Jarrett: [Fred’s] been throwing down the putt putt gauntlet.

Fred: Oh I did bring a kite, kite flying is a fun beach activity.

Q: When you go on vacation, what are you looking for?

Fred: I like to be able to relax. When I'm on vacation. I like to be able to go like, find a nice place for dinner. Big fan. Live entertainment. 

Jarrett: Sounds like you want to be here.

Q: If you had to suggest only one of your songs for someone to listen to, what would it be?

Fred: Well, we featured Home This Year on the set today, I think that song gives sort of a taste, but there are so many different directions that Virginia Coalition goes songwriting-wise.

Jarrett & Fred

Calder Allen

Q: What is it like to play for festivals versus tour shows/others that you play?

Calder: So you have to think about it, it's not a festival is almost like a highlight reel of what you think you can get across to people in my mind. And then a real show is like, that's where you really get a chance to do the artistic side of you. But festivals, it's always hard. Because a lot of times, at the level of my career, you're not getting like full sound checks, it's very throw-and-go. So you kind of just want to make it as easy as possible with the songs you feel comfortable with and execute this.

Q: How do you guys feel about Oceans Calling in particular? The setup, location, production, etc.

Calder: A lot of times, [festivals are] in a city and it's very chaotic. This is very nice because it's kind of the pace of how my mind works. I like listening to the ocean while I’m playing... you can't really complain.

Q: What do you think is the best thing about festivals as an artist?

Calder: [The] best thing is obviously, just getting a bunch of people exposed to different types of music in one day.

Q: What's your favorite song to perform? 

Calder: I always like playing Skipping Stones. As far as a festival set, probably Ripple Through [my] new song that came out.

Q: Have you had a chance to explore the town yet?

Calder: We always roam around any city that we go to that’s new, always take a lap around town. Looking forward to that. 

Calder Allen

Festival Overview

It was a long weekend full of incredible performances, different kinds of weather, 50,000 people of all ages, and lots of walking. Boardwalk establishments within the gates of the festival had consistent patrons even while artists played throughout the day. Jolly Roger on the Pier was a big hit, especially for enjoying the views from the Giant Wheel. While this is all good news for the town, the long lines and transportation issues (mainly on the first day) proved a bit of a learning curve and room for improvement, but not nearly inconvenient enough to ruin the event.

Getting into the festival was quick and easy with an efficient security check and wristband scan. The many food vendors provided fantastic options for all appetites although unsurprisingly, were a bit pricey, just like the drinks. Many performers seemed to comment on stage about their surprise at seeing such a large crowd before them. There were tight crowds trying to get close to the front of the stage, many people sitting on blankets or standing around on the beach, and always about a thousand stragglers filling in the space farther back. In short—they pulled it off! The festival was a huge success for C3, the town, and the local businesses. 

Day 1: Friday started off strong with some festival-goers lined up right as gates opened, and even more flooding in later in the day even with the cloudy and misty weather. The first performers included Calder Allen, Peach Pit, and Michigander. The Sea Bright beach was filled by the time Alanis Morissette took the stage with her iconic (or ironic) hits. Jack Johnson closed out night one bringing up special guests that were Better Together and clearly having a fantastic time on stage. 

Day 2: Saturday brought the most rain but people embraced it, especially when they could enjoy a concert from artists like Matt & Kim—which included a few NSFW moments—under the Carousel stage tent. The crowd on day 2 seemed significantly larger than Friday once it got later in the afternoon as people prepared for Sheryl Crow, Noah Kahan, Jimmy Eat World, Incubus, and of course—John Mayer.  Festival goers seemed to have a better lay of the land than Friday, becoming more familiar with places to view each stage, and leaving sets early to get a better spot for the next performer. Once it was time for the headliners, the beach before Sea Bright stage filled with people, and the VIP section bleachers were packed. John Mayer started out with a joke about Ripley’s Believe it or Not claiming he’s going in and will “believe it all!”... Good one John…

Day 3: The weather came through for the last day of the festival with warm temperatures and no rain! Festival goers were on a new wave of energy because of it and made the most of the last day. The Sunday performers did not disappoint with fun crowd interaction from Driver Era (with many Teen Beach Movie fans finding out that Ross Lynch is in a band), Fitz & The Tantrums, and Dirty Heads. O.A.R. and Friends was a huge hit with special quests like Run-D.M.C. Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Grace Potter, and Weezer kept crowds dancing through the night until The Lumineers took the stage to close out the festival with a bang. 

Let’s do it again next year Ocean City!