“It was right out there that I caught my first wave, I was just a grom, 12 years old,” said Eddie Vedder, pointing proudly to the surf at Doheny State Beach. In addition to being a prime surf spot, it’s also the sentimental site for Ohana Festival, Vedder’s annual weekend full of music, storytelling, and environmental activism in Dana Point.
This year’s three-day festival (Sept. 26-28) was a feel-good feast of multiple genres of music, set amongst the crash of the waves — with swells good enough to attract a number of surfers catching waves behind the bleachers. Can they hear the music in the water, I wondered. I’m not really sure, but the “sand people” (as Vedder affectionately refers to the crowds of locals who set up chairs and listen to the shows just beyond the fenced area of paying customers) definitely can hear the incredible variety of bands Vedder curates year after year.
Launched in 2016 with a vision of bringing together the music world and the environmental community, the festival was an immediate hit, with early lineups that included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Strokes, and Vedder's surfing buddy, Jack Johnson , and proceeds benefitting the Doheny State Beach Foundation and the San Onofre Park Foundation. In addition to Vedder’s band Pearl Jam and Vedder himself, over the years headliners have included Sting (a highlight for me last year), Jack White, Pink, Elvis Costello, Stevie Nicks, and the Foo Fighters, amongst others.