Bonnaroo Artist | The Dare
Bonnaroo History | Newbie
Stage & Time | Friday | This Tent | 1:30-2:45am
Like we’ve been doing for many years now, we’re making it our mission to help you get acquainted with many of our favorite acts from Bonnaroo‘s 2026 lineup. A pivotal year for the fest, this summer’s ‘Roo will see some significant changes after last year’s unfortunate rainout, including infrastructure improvements, a scaled-back capacity, and a smaller lineup (notably, cutting down Thursday’s programming the most). We’ll have to wait until we’re on the farm to feel the full extent of the changes and tweaks, but we’re cautiously optimistic that it will benefit the fest in the long-term, especially in helping make the site more resistant to weather. This will be Bonnaroo’s 23rd installment and 25th anniversary, and even with a more compact lineup, it packs a pretty stellar, eclectic slate of artists, per usual. Back once again in its dependable June 11-14 timeframe, we’re counting down the days until another great weekend on the farm.
As we dig through the entire schedule, we’ll highlight a spread of performers spanning across genres and stages, big and small, new and old, to bring you some of the most interesting, lesser-known, and most highly-recommended among this year’s crop of artists. And as our time at ‘Roo approaches, we’ll also be bringing you some special features and full list-style daily lineup guides, to help you plan your weekend ahead of the fest. While these previews won’t span every artist, and might omit some more obvious must-see acts, we hope they’ll serve as a way to help you navigate Bonnaroo’s gargantuan lineup, and to make the most of your busy weekend at the fest! Be sure to grab your tickets (available in weekend or single-day, with various upgrade levels and add-ons) and camping or parking pass (also available with a lot of flexible options and levels), and read on for our Bonnaroo Artist Spotlight!
LEARN
LA born, Seattle raised artist Harrison Patrick Smith is best known now as his musical alias The Dare– an electrifying and much-discussed dance-punk and electropop project which sprung to life with buzzy debut single “Girls” in 2022, and has attracted significantly more attention over the past couple of years thanks to his association with Charli XCX. But, before reinventing himself as something of a suit-clad, New York-based, Zillennial James Murphy, Smith previously made waves with his indie project Turtlenecked. Formed in 2014, while still in his teens and attending college in Portland, Turtlenecked had a prolific output throughout the later half of the 2010s, garnering acclaim from buzzy music media and earning Harrison an enthusiastic online following. Initially relocating to New York in 2017, just as Turtlenecked was gaining a lot of traction, Smith opted to switch gears during the pandemic lockdown a few years later, shedding the style he felt had become too serious and reinventing himself as The Dare, a more retro, witty, tongue-in-cheek, dance-primed project which has drawn comparisons to beloved artists like LCD Soundsystem, The Rapture, and Peaches. Post-pandemic, Harrison made ends meet by DJing around the city and substitute teaching, but upon releasing “Girls,” began instantly picking up traction as The Dare, earning a reputation as an integral fixture in the indie sleaze revival. After inking a major label deal he dropped The Sex EP in 2023, but it was his work with Charli XCX, both as a producer and supporting act, which helped him connect with a massive new audience in 2024, ahead of critically-acclaimed full-length debut What’s Wrong with New York? Still a relatively new project, The Dare only really began touring around the time of that LP, appearing at fests, international dates, and numerous major U.S. cities, a run which extended into last year (along with a new EP, Freakquencies: Volume 1) with further European dates, a buzzy set at Coachella, a sold out New York residency, and even an inaugural Nashville show last fall. Embarking on another big festival run this summer, he recently returned to Coachella, headed south for Lollapalooza Chilie and Argentina, and will soon play Governor’s Ball, ahead of his late night debut at the Farm!
WATCH | “Perfume” (Official Video)
LISTEN | “Girls”
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