As the first rays of spring sunshine touched the grass of Brown Field, Willamette students used to tune their instruments, set up tables, pray for the rain to stay away, and carry picnic blankets and camp chairs towards the grass. For 20 years, from 1998 to 2018, Wulapalooza was a music festival Willamette was known for, a unique aspect of the university. But just like The Naked Run, it has faded into history and memories.
Willamette alumni fondly remember Wulapalooza as a day when students let loose after weeks of gloomy Oregon winter. An entirely student-run music and art festival, Wulapalooza was a place where both student and professional bands performed live on stage. Students performed in 15-minute increments for the entire day; once evening arrived, a couple of professional artists would perform to close out the event. The main stage was set up on Brown Field with a secondary stage at Jackson Plaza, where student a cappella groups performed.
Wulapalooza served as a creative outlet for students as well. Clubs set up booths, the Bistro brought out furniture for students to paint, the Poi Club performed on the balcony, and students displayed their artwork. Since the festival was an all-day event, it made it easy for students and visitors to arrive or leave at any point of the day and be able to listen to music and enjoy the activities. Zach Kambour (’14) remembers how he and his friends would leave “to go to Best Little Roadhouse and play a round of mini golf, come back, and then watch some more music that was still going on.”
Emma Jonas (’15) was co-president of the Wulapalooza club during her last two years at Willamette. The club would spend the entire year planning for the big event, selecting the bands and organizing the budget received from ASWU. Jonas reflected on how Wulapalooza was “unique to Willamette, and although it took a lot of work, dedication, and a lot of emailing, logistics, and organization, it was all worth it.”
Lisa Holliday, associate dean of students and director of Student Engagement and Leadership, was the club advisor and warmly watched over Wulapalooza as the club members felt “a sense of accomplishment” when they were able to have bands they were fans of come to perform.
As the years went on, Wulapalooza became more and more known among students as the day to go wild.
Jonas remembers how there was “a lot of drug use and drinking, and people not understanding their own limits and overdoing it.” It took place near the end of the year, and it seemed that a lot of students used the event to let loose before finals. Drinking and drug use at Wulapalooza were so extreme that at times, medical assistance needed to be called. Holliday explained that students were also vandalizing and making messes. It was “a huge burden on the staff to pick up the pieces after the event was over,” and they would have to patrol campus throughout the day to stop people if they were being unsafe, according to Holliday.
Jonas and the Wulapalooza team tried to control the situation by creating Wulapalooza guidelines that informed students “where the medical tents are, to stay hydrated, and that they don’t have to drink or do drugs too much to have a good time.” Unfortunately, the issue had grown to a point where guidelines were not stopping people from making dangerous decisions. According to Holliday, the student organizers wanted to “plan the event but not have responsibility on the day of the event.” However, she added,“Staff can’t be responsible for running an event that is student-led and run.”
One year, fencing was put up around Brown Field due to safety concerns. There was a dedicated entrance and exit through the UC building, and bag checks were implemented to try to control the entrance of alcohol and drugs. The fencing and “implemented wristband system made people upset because it felt antithetical to the spirit of Wulapalooza and it stopped people from outside the Willamette community from coming to the event,” Jonas explained.
The conflicts, safety concerns, and disagreements escalated to the point that it became difficult for students to freely organize and control the event, forcing Wulapalooza to shut down.
Lisa Holliday believes that “there’s definitely potential for some type of music event if students want to put the work in and do what’s needed to put on a safe event.” If some students want to bring it back, Jonas stated that she and other alumni would be more than willing to help and there are lots of resources from past events available. In the meantime, Willamette students have still been able to offer a variety of musical events, including 2022’s Musicália and regular house shows.
Even without Wulapalooza, alum Jerome Sader (’15) believes, “People are still finding ways to enjoy music, play in bands and go see their friends play music. …While it's not exactly the same as Wulapalooza, those are also special in their own way.”