In the heart of New York, the lively atmosphere of a music festival pulses with the rhythm of muffled percussion and audience cheers echoing across the grounds. These events are dotted with numerous brand activations, temporary bars, and restaurant pop-ups, creating natural pathways for throngs of festival-goers moving from one stage to another. Nestled among these features is a line of nonprofit booths addressing significant causes such as hunger, housing, and voter registration.
Amid this typical festival scene, a new initiative has emerged: This Must Be the Place. This innovative Ohio-based nonprofit provides attendees with free opioid overdose reversal treatment and concise training on its usage, all completed in under two minutes. A few years ago, the very presence of such services at music festivals would have seemed unlikely due to unclear regulations and minimal public knowledge on harm reduction.
Advocates highlight that drug use is a common aspect of music festivals, positioning them as ideal venues for harm reduction efforts. Although several festivals are now embracing this approach, advocates continue to advocate for broader implementation as some events proceed with caution.
Harm reduction efforts vary across different festivals in the U.S.
Founded by William Perry and Ingela Travers-Hayward in 2022, This Must Be The Place has distributed approximately $4.5 million worth of naloxone, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses, at festivals and smaller community gatherings. Initially, with an unproven concept, Perry recalls the challenges they faced in forming partnerships with music festivals. Their breakthrough came when a few midwestern festivals collaborated with them, eventually opening the doors for their involvement in Bonnaroo 2022. This major U.S. festival, organized by C3 Presents—a leading global concert promoter—marked a significant milestone for them. Currently, their presence spans 35 prominent U.S. festivals, including Lollapalooza, Governors Ball, and Besame Mucho, working in collaboration with C3 and its security teams.
The nonprofit’s expansion aligns with the progressive evolution of federal regulations. Naloxone distribution, previously governed by state laws, transformed in 2023 with the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the first over-the-counter nasal spray. Daliah Heller, the global public health nonprofit Vital Strategies’ vice president in charge of overdose prevention, compares obtaining naloxone now to purchasing over-the-counter items like aspirin.
In the prior year, This Must Be The Place distributed 46,146 Narcan units—a popular naloxone brand—through their outreach efforts at festivals nationwide. Emmett Beliveau, C3 Presents’ chief operating officer, notes that partnering with This Must Be The Place marked C3’s inaugural public-facing harm reduction strategy initiative, augmenting the promoter’s existing medical programs. Integrating this nonprofit into C3’s festivals was not a response to any specific incident but a proactive measure against the “number of fatalities happening in our communities,” as Beliveau explains.
Festival attendees themselves are increasingly taking initiative
Numerous activists believe harm reduction education is most impactful when delivered by peers rather than authority figures. For the past three years, Team Awareness Combating Overdose (TACO), a nonprofit focused on preventing accidental drug overdoses among young adults, has distributed fentanyl test strips and Narcan at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. According to former TACO CEO Kameran Mody, music festivals, given their association with drug use, serve as ideal venues for such educational and distribution efforts.
TACO operates through what Mody describes as “guerrilla-style marketing,” employing volunteers, training them in naloxone use, and equipping them with Narcan and test strips to distribute at festivals, without involving the organizers. Notably, representatives for Coachella did not respond to requests for comment on this initiative. A significant success during TACO’s involvement occurred in 2023 when a volunteer effectively administered Narcan to an unresponsive Coachella attendee, leading to the attendee’s revival.
Hurdles posed by local laws and criminalization risks
In 2019, the tragic death of a 27-year-old attendee at Bonnaroo highlighted the risks related to limited harm reduction measures. Harm reduction activists had previously protested this Tennessee-based festival’s lack of drug testing facilities. Following this incident, authorities found ecstasy and fentanyl in the deceased’s system. At that time, Tennessee’s state laws classified test strips as illegal paraphernalia; however, these laws changed in 2022 when the state decriminalized fentanyl test strips. By the close of 2023, 44 other states including D.C. followed suit.
Nonetheless, in some regions, drug paraphernalia laws remain ambiguously defined, with persistent criminalization and social stigmas. Perry notes that their organization often sought approval from top health authorities in unclear jurisdictions, allowing for smoother operation despite legal uncertainties. However, some festivals hesitate to incorporate drug test strips due to fears of acknowledging drug use. In some cases, naloxone has even been barred. Perry stated that although their organization distributes fentanyl test strips in Ohio, C3 does not, and has no plans to initiate such distribution, voicing concerns over their effectiveness and potential encouragement of drug use.
Promising harm reduction initiatives beyond U.S. borders
Earlier this year in Mexico City, an electronic music festival offered free, anonymous drug testing through the initiative “Checa tu Sustancia” (Check Your Substance), led by Instituto RIA—a drug policy research nonprofit. This initiative provided users with detailed information on detected unknown substances, including risks, interactions, and dosage advice, enabling informed decision-making. Perry acknowledges that while similar drug-checking operations exist in the United States, they primarily function discreetly to avoid legal repercussions.
Perry envisions the establishment of dedicated harm reduction areas at future music festivals—spaces where individuals under the influence can be monitored for safety rather than penalized. Heller notes that multiple organizations are striving to destigmatize drugs, advocate for decriminalization, and promote drug checking. Expanding these efforts to music festivals, she argues, logically builds on existing urban drug-checking programs, although concerns around liability remain. Legislative protection for festivals might be necessary to shield them from potential legal challenges.