Our Story
2017-2019
Umbrella Weekend 1-3
The first Umbrella Weekend was a 40 person reunion for our festival friend group, nestled in the boulders of Apple Valley. We threw some DJ decks on a fold up table and hung a sailboat sail for shade - as barebones as could be! More friends heard about it so we threw it a second and third time, each doubling both in size and in the and number of umbrellas. ☂️
2019
Umbrella Nights
Camping festivals were a lot of work -- so we decided to ride the momentum of what we created and kick things into gear inside the city for the first time. Umbrella Nights was a monthly series at the beloved Kava Lounge bar, where we truly learned event operations and promotion, and began building our community. This is where we began to make our mark on San Diego.
2020
"The Last Party on Earth"
The fourth Umbrella Weekend took place in the Mojave, where we soaked in our last time seeing all our friends before returning to a changed world, as the global lockdown began on that very weekend. This 350 person festival was a huge step for us, being the first to feature round-the-clock music, and the introduction of art + wellness to add to our homegrown stage production.
2020-2021
The Covid Era: Live Streams and Umbrella Days
As the pandemic stretched on longer than expected, we did our best to keep the flame of our community alive by hosting frequent DJ live streams on Twitch. The hard stop on the momentum of our live events was difficult, but it channeled our creativity in the direction of VJing, graphic design, and live content production. It also gave our talent reasons to keep digging and staying sharp on the decks!
2022
Umbrella Weekend in Yucaipa
The fifth Umbrella Weekend was a two stage festival for 1300 attendees, located in the grassy hills of Yucaipa. No longer a renegade, we managed to acquire permits for the first time. Uniting 20 different collectives and artist collaborators, we showcased a plethora of art installations, theme camps, and the debut of our curated wellness program, Umbrellavation.
2023
Umbrella Weekend in Jacumba
The most recent Umbrella Weekend was a beautiful culmination of our years of experience and community building. With five stages, over 100 artists, and even more art than the last, we dialed in our production, our operations, and programming to execute our most ambitiously organized and cohesive event yet.
2023-2024
Freakuency, Condition, and Disrupt
This year, we took a much needed break from the the intense planning that goes into throwing our festival. But the show must go on! Outgrowing many of the smaller venues in San Diego, we focused on large 3-4 stage warehouse parties for 1300-1700 people, pulling in international talent and collaborating with some of the best organizers in San Diego to create some unforgettable experiences spanning multiple genres of music.
Now
What's Next?
After many years, we finally got rid of the "the". With our new and improved, significantly shorter name, we're beyond excited for what the future holds. Want to be a part of it? Get Involved with us! https://afternoonumbrellafriends.com/get-involved