The Nicest Thing a Stranger Ever Did for Me at a Rave Was…

Whether it’s as simple as getting someone a water bottle or giving them a place to stay when their car breaks down, each of the strangers mentioned in these stories has made an impact on their fellow festival attendees. Here, nine Headliners share the random acts of kindness that have stuck with them through the years. Read on to have your faith in humanity restored.

Even though it didn’t, Krewella (my favorite DJs) were up, and I was determined to make their set. I walked to kineticFIELD, where they were playing, and sat up against the chain fence with my head between my knees, feeling extremely sick. Suddenly, someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I looked up. It was a guy totally decked out in a kandi belt with the most intricate bracelets ever. He asked if he could sit down and if I was feeling okay. I explained my situation, and he traded one of his big kandi pieces with me. I told him I had nothing exciting to trade, and he smiled and said, “Don’t worry about it. This bracelet is just for you. I just wanted to sit and make sure you were having a good time.” I thanked him, and he sat down with me for half of Krewella’s set. Then he gave me a hug and left. Because of him, I can say PLUR lives on!

Katie
EDC Las Vegas 2014

I came to EDC Las Vegas excited and pumped but ended up getting sick with a stomach bug on my plane ride. I almost threw up on the bus to the Speedway on Saturday and ended up lying on the grass in cosmicMEADOW, hoping that the feeling would go away.

Even though it didn’t, Krewella (my favorite DJs) were up, and I was determined to make their set. I walked to kineticFIELD, where they were playing, and sat up against the chain fence with my head between my knees, feeling extremely sick. Suddenly, someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I looked up. It was a guy totally decked out in a kandi belt with the most intricate bracelets ever. He asked if he could sit down and if I was feeling okay. I explained my situation, and he traded one of his big kandi pieces with me. I told him I had nothing exciting to trade, and he smiled and said, “Don’t worry about it. This bracelet is just for you. I just wanted to sit and make sure you were having a good time.” I thanked him, and he sat down with me for half of Krewella’s set. Then he gave me a hug and left. Because of him, I can say PLUR lives on!

Jeff
Pemberton Music Festival 2014 

I bought tickets off Craigslist for Pemberton Music Festival. When I went to scan them, I got declined because the girl I bought them from claimed them as stolen so she could get her money back. Right when the staff told me I was not allowed to go inside, a random stranger who overheard what was going on gave me his ticket. I tried not to take it and told him he should enjoy the festival, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer. I never again talked to the person who gave me his $400 weekend pass, but I can say without a doubt it was the most impacting event to happen to me to this day.

Lauren
Summer Camp 2013

The last night of the festival, there was a thunderstorm and it rained for two hours straight. I’m talking massive flooding, with four feet of standing water in some major walkways. The music shut down an hour early, and everyone basically had to make sure they made it through the night okay. Even though I was having a great time running around in the rain, I didn’t have a poncho or fresh socks to wear. Luckily, this nice guy and his friends notice me in my tent, shaking uncontrollably from being wet and cold. He walked me to his SUV, sat with me in his truck, and let it run for hours with the heat on so that I could get dry and stay warm. He even helped me get my car out of the parking lot in the mud the next morning. If it weren’t for him, I would have been completely by myself. That guy made Summer Camp a truly amazing experience, and I am forever grateful for him.

Jessica
Nocturnal Wonderland 2013

My friend and I were at Carnage’s set when I went to check the time on my phone and my heart dropped into my stomach. My phone was gone, and it was too late to try and find it. I told my friends to just keep moving, because when you lose your phone with your ID in it at a rave, it’s game over, right? We checked just in case, and after about five minutes of searching the floor, three people walked up to me and asked what I was looking for. I said, “My phone.” One girl pulled out my phone and asked if I was Jessica! I was so happy I started crying. They said it was their first rave, so I gave them all my kandi and ended up taking care of them the whole night. It’s amazing how even first-time ravers can come to a rave with the PLUR mentality!

Melanie
Burning Man 2014

I was on my way to Burning Man this year with a girl I picked up in Portland, when my car engine blew up. We got towed to Reno (which is over 100 miles away from Burning Man) and posted a distressed call on Craigslist asking other Burners for help. A man named Haggy (who is very well known in the Burner community and runs the Black Rock City Hostel at Burning Man) contacted us and said he was going to rescue us. He picked us up from our hotel, helped get all our stuff out of my car, and brought us to his home. Haggy let us skinny dip, eat, drink and fire-spin in his backyard. He even found us an RV to get all our stuff out to our camps and sent us on our way, asking nothing in return. It was the most generous, sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me in my life. Without him, Burning Man would have never happened. He is the gift that keeps on giving! If you go to Burning Man, stop in Sparks, Nevada, at the International Burner Hostel and show your love; it’s a connection well worth keeping through all your Burner days. Thank you, Haggy!

Tara
EDC New York 2014

I walked in on day one fully confident that my friends and I were going to have one of the most memorable nights of our lives. Seeing that I always have problems with feeling faint at shows—especially when my anxiety levels are high and the sun is at full blast—I made sure to keep refilling my water bottle. We were standing in line for one of the rides when I felt things start to go black. Hoping not to cause a scene, I tried to walk out of the line and to a wall nearby to sit down. I ended up fainting just as I was sitting down. I was looking to see if any of my friends had followed me so they could get me water, but they hadn’t. I tried to text them, but I was having a hard time doing so. I looked over and saw a girl motioning me to my right. She asked if I was okay, sat down next to me, and started talking to me about the show. She also brought me a drink and stayed with me until my friends came to find me. Once my friends came over, she gave me a hug and told me to come back to her if I felt sick again and told me that it was going be an amazing night and not to let anything hold me back. That stranger could have easily looked past me as being some irresponsible kid if she wanted to, but she didn’t even know who I was and rushed over to make sure I was okay. I’m definitely going to be returning for EDC New York 2015.

Angela
EDC Las Vegas 2014

Trying to see your favorite DJ up close involves a lot of waiting and potential dehydration. At EDC Las Vegas 2014, my friend and I tried leaving from one of the stages to get water, but it was tough trying to navigate through the crowd. All of a sudden, four guys with CamelBaks refilled our water bottles. This was the first time I really believed in PLUR, and now I try my best to treat everyone the same way they did us.

Kirra
EDC Orlando 2013

I ended up getting separated from my friends and decided to sit on the grassy area that overlooked kineticFIELD and neonGARDEN while I was waiting for them. I was staring at kineticFIELD, trying to calm my anxiety down, when the next thing I know, this guy is rudely standing in my way. I kindly asked him to scoot over an inch or two, and though he could’ve been rude or mean about it, he ended up sitting next to me and kept me company. He introduced me to his rave family and even offered to help me find my friends, even though it meant separating from his family. I eventually found my friends and separated from him, but we met up during Tritonal because we both went alone without our groups. After Tritonal, he randomly bought me an EDC hat—having no idea that I had always wanted one. This is somebody that I had known for less than three hours, and he was already doing everything he could to make my experience as amazing as possible. It is PLUR people like this—people that care so deeply about others they have just met—that makes the people at festivals so great.

If you have a story you’d like to share, email [email protected]. 

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