Country on the Coast: Highlights from Sand in My Boots Festival 2025

After 15 years of the Hangout Music Festival, Morgan Wallen and Friends took over the popular music weekend in Gulf Shores. My top ten takeaways and fun facts from this year’s fest:

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1. REBRAND: After 15 years of hangin’ out, the festival named after the popular Gulf Shores restaurant and live music venue “The Hangout” was probably due for a rebrand and makeover to “Sand in My Boots” named for Morgan Wallen’s song of the same name.
2. ATTIRE: Anything goes with clothing! There were plenty of cowboy hats and boots, modified Western wear, bikinis, and athleisure. From the itsy bitsy to the covered-up, people are creative and fun with their themes and comfort.
3. FOOD: There are tons of food options and we picked up lobster rolls (closing in at $40) and coconut shrimp (approx. $18), which were surprisingly tasty and hit the spot after a long day in the sun. The food options were endless and around every corner.
4. HEADLINER: Not an inch of standing room was spared for Morgan Wallen, the festival’s closing act. And Wallen delivered a variety of old hits and new favorites, including his opener, “Broadway Girls,” “I’m The Problem,” “Love Somebody,” and “This Bar,” to name a few. In total, he sang 23 songs. His latest album, I’m The Problem fully dropped May 16 with 37 songs.
5. MUSIC: Bailey Zimmerman and ERNEST played just before Wallen and on the other side of the festival, Wiz Khalifa dominated with an electrifying performance. The rest of the festival was backed with stars including Post Malone, Brooks & Dunn, HARDY, The War on Drugs, T-Pain, Three 6 Mafia, Diplo, Riley Green, and more.
6. NUMBERS: 40,000 Fans showed up for the sold-out three-day event that ran from May 16-18.
7. CROWD: Maybe it’s anecdotal, but the crowd looked a little older than previous crowds. But there were also school-aged children hanging out for the duration of the fest. The playground was busy!
8. WORLDWIDE: While sitting in the media tent, I met the journalists for Country UK who’d hopped the pond for their first-ever trip to the US to cover the festival’s inaugural event.
9. FIRST RESPONDERS/ORGANIZATION: I had to leave a slot to shout out to the First Responders who were active all festival. Not necessarily due to much disorder, but rather to jump in for heat or medical events. It was relatively calm with praises for good behavior and civility.
10. 5 STARS: I’m giving this festival 5 stars for the lineup, organization, branding, merch, location, amenities, and more. Highly recommend!