All Photos © Steve Galli + Story by : Chloe Catajan
Gwen Stefani
Huntsville, Alabama, known as Rocket City, is home base for all things outer space. Here, NASA planted its roots in 1960 with the Marshall Space Center, and Saturn V took off for the Apollo Moon missions. The area stays committed to its stellar history as a hub for aerospace companies, as well as otherworldly experiences from space camps to a quaint arts and nightlife scene. Most recently, Rocket City partnered with iconic event production gurus C3 Presents to launch South Star Music Festival—a place where (rock)stars align and music fans of any genre can find cloud 9.
For its inaugural year, South Star set up shop at John Hunt Park with two stages that pay homage to local history. The Supersonic stage’s name of course relates to aerodynamics, while the Camellia stage is in reference to Alabama’s state flower. The surrounding spaces had food stalls and a craft market featuring local vendors, as well as a large hall for SEC football fans to tune into games a la sports bar style. Every corner had something for Alabamian attendees to feel at home, and for traveling guests to get a taste of local flavors.
South Star was scheduled for the last weekend of September, but due to Hurricane Helene’s impact on the festival grounds, day two was ultimately canceled. Still, the fest and its goers made the most of a wet and wild day one—relishing in the mud, music, and memories made.
Headlining South Star, Gwen Stefani gave a performance of pure popstar caliber. She came equipped with backup dancers, outfit changes, and a setlist that mixed her solo material and No Doubt throwbacks.
Gwen Stefani
About halfway through her set, Stefani changed into a pink harness and skirt set with silver hardware and continued to deliver the hits. Songs like “Don’t Speak” and “Spiderwebs” featured smooth trumpet solos from Stephen Bradley. The latter No Doubt cut also had the crowd in a high, dancing and jumping in sync with Stefani’s high energy. Stefani ended her set with her 2004 hit from Love. Angel. Music. Baby., “Hollaback Girl.”
Gwen Stefani
Stefani took the Supersonic stage sporting a colorful look, her first outfit of the night Americana-inspired and complete with tassels, chaps, and star-shaped details. She danced as she opened with “The Sweet Escape,” whipping around her blonde hair, which seemed newly dip-dyed black. Her vocals were in fine form, nailing the belted parts in “Sunday Morning” and perfectly delivering the cheeky punch of “Hey Baby.” Her dancers and live band matched that energy on the latter song, giving a feisty performance of their own.
Gwen Stefani
An hour before, Shinedown took the Camellia stage kicking off their hard rock set with a literal bang. Shots of pyro erupted onstage as the band emerged from the dark and opened with “Devil” from 2018’s Attention Attention. The special effects continued into the next song, “Diamond Eyes,” punctuating each member’s movements. Lead vocalist Brent Smith roared as he captivated the crowd from all ends of the stage. Guitarist Zach Myers and multi-instrumentalist Eric Bass sliced through their riffs with a sharp edge, as drummer Barry Kerch provided hard-hitting beats.
Brent Smith of Shinedown
The Floridian four-piece went on to perform 13 songs from across nearly all of their albums. On top of fan favorites like “Second Chances” and “Cut the Cord,” the band’s cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man” (also heard on Shinedown’s Leave a Whisper album) made the setlist.
Brent Smith of Shinedown
Nineties babies and R&B fans alike were in for a treat with TLC’s set at the Supersonic stage. Led by original members Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas and Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, the iconic group delivered a crazy, sexy, and cool performance stacked with classics. From “No Scrubs” to “Waterfalls” to “Diggin’ On You,” Chilli and T-Boz sounded smooth. Their live band added stunning embellishments to the original arrangements people love and know. The group’s backup dancers also made the scene feel straight out of a music video with their choreography.
TLC easily got the South Star people into the groove with their setlist, but the duo also took the time to interact with the crowd in between songs. Before “No Scrubs,” Chilli gave shoutouts to the young kids in the crowd, the fellas, and of course, the ladies.
“Fellas, if you’re here tonight, that means you are not this type of guy,” Chilli said in reference to the lyrics of “No Scrubs.” “Now all the way in the back, and all the way to the front, [let me hear the] LADIES,” she continued before diving into the song.
Chilli of TLC
Sets from Tom Morello and Gin Blossoms got things started at the Supersonic stage that day.
Tom Morello delivered a set loaded with riffs, rage, and everything in between. He performed a mix of material from The Atlas Underground, The Atlas Underground Fire, and Comandante, and also included medleys of Rage Against The Machine cuts and a few select covers. The Rage guitarist rocked his signature red bandana around his neck and a blue work shirt with his name custom embroidered on it. He’d switch between a collection of strats and a tele, ripping through songs like “Soldier in the Army of Love” and “Vigilante Nocturno.”
Tom Morello
“We learned this one special for today—it’s a whole Alabama folk song, ok?” Morello said before jumping into the second-to-last song. “You probably learned it in school, so I’m gonna let you guys sing this one.”
That folk song was “Killing in the Name,” and the crowd performed their due diligence.
Tom Morello
Gin Blossoms kept things light and breezy with their alt rock and jangle pop stylings, even as heavy rain poured. Lead singer Robin Wilson took the mic looking cool and collected in sunglasses and in all black, with a tambourine in hand. The band, consisting of Bill Leen, Jesse Valenzuela,Scott Johnson, and Scott Hessel, created a dreamy soundscape with their rhythms. “Found Out About You” and “Hey Jealousy” had fans showing extra love, raising their hands in the air to clap along, and shouting along to the iconic lyrics.
Robin Wilson of Gin Blossoms
Over at the Camellia stage, performances from Ludacris, Juvenile & the 400 Degreez Band, and Candlebox were a silver lining for hip-hop and rock fans on a gloomy day.
With support from Lil Fate and DJ Infamous, Ludacris got the South Star party started with a set full of nonstop bangers. Opening with “Rollout (My Business)” and “What’s Your Fantasy,” he jumped to popular collaborations, like Usher’s “Yeah!” and Justin Bieber’s “Baby.” Both his solo material and features pumped up the crowd with no hesitation.
While performing Usher’s “Yeah!” he switched the lyrics that normally roll called Usher and Lil Jon, and instead gave shout outs to his onstage crew.
Ludacris
It almost felt like the rain stopped with how immersed Juvenile & The 400 Degreez Band had the early crowd. On “U Understand,” he had everyone grooving with their hands up, doing a call-and-response on the titular lines. The 400 Degreez Band were smooth with their melodies, doing the cleanest transitions in between songs like “U Understand” and “Rodeo.” Juvenile kept a flawless flow and did not shy away from the front of the stage, serenading fans under the incessant showers.
Juvenile & the 400 Degree Band
Opening a festival was no challenge for Candlebox, who took the stage ready to rock the South Star crowd. Guitarists Brian Quinn and Island Styles and bassist Adam Kury laid on the fuzz and distortions on opening song “Arrow,” as BJ Kerwin kept things tight with his drumming. Lead vocalist Kevin Martin dove straight into his piercing vocals, unleashing an incredible scream during that first cut. He also took some time to ad lib and greet the crowd during an interlude.
“Fuck you rain, stay away,” Martin said—as if to say aloud what everyone in attendance was thinking.
Kevin Martin of Candlebox
Due to the severe storms, opening sets from Winona Fighter and Dexter and the Moonrocks were cut from the schedule.
Stay tuned for the 2025 dates of South Star Music Festival by C3 Presents.
All Photos © Steve Galli + Story by : Chloe Catajan
https://www.southstarfestival.com
