Idyllic Mississippi spring weather, world-class food, award-winning musical talent and an estimated 75,000 attendees could be found on the Square this weekend, all coming together to celebrate the 27th annual Double Decker Arts Festival on April 26-27.
Kickstarting the weekend’s events on Friday, April 26, three musical acts — 17-year-old Grace Bowers, country vocalist Conner Smith and folk country band Flatland Cavalry — captivated audiences from the Nicholas Air Main Stage.
Piper Thomas, a junior mechanical engineering major from St. Augustine, Fla., was in the audience for Friday’s performances.
“This was my second Double Decker event I attended. The last one I went to was in 2022, and I was super excited for the concert. I didn’t know the artists super well this year, but I grew up going to concerts, so I was still excited to go,” Thomas said. “I’ve heard some of Conner Smith’s songs before, and I was really impressed with his performance. He was definitely my favorite artist at Double Decker, and I will be listening to even more of his music.”
On Saturday, early birds could participate in the annual Double Decker Spring Run which included a 5K at 7:30 a.m., a 10K at 7:45 a.m. and a Kids Fun Run at 9 a.m.
For those less inclined to run bright and early, the day’s events began at 10 a.m., with more than 100 food, art and craft vendors lining every street on the Square.
Among the tents, shoppers could purchase everything from jewelry made of reclaimed copper wiring to banjos made using empty cans of SPAM.
“I loved all of the art I saw at Double Decker,” Mia Quinn, a junior elementary education major from Memphis, said. “My favorite was one booth that created art with celebrities’ faces on it. There was Paris Hilton, Dolly Parton and others. It was so creative and so well done.”
Various artists showcased their talent, starting with blues guitarist and Mississippi local, Kenny Brown and ending with Alabama native and Grammy winner Brittany Howard.
Before Howard made her appearance, concert listeners were told there would be a surprise drone show. Despite the announcement, the drones did not make an appearance.
Audience members learned that the drone show would not be happening from a post on the Double Decker Instagram: “We had an amazing drone show planned, but due to circumstances beyond our control, it couldn’t happen.”
Junior elementary education major Laura Grace Brothers shared her disappointment over the missing drones.
“I think it is very unfortunate that the drone show was not able to happen because everyone was looking forward to the big surprise, and I know everyone would have loved seeing it,” Brothers said. “The drone shows are always fun to watch, so I am disappointed that we were not able to enjoy it.”
Jenna Roland, an Oxford local and junior at the University of Southern Mississippi, made a special trip home to enjoy the weekend.
Roland shared what brought her back and what the festival means to her.
“I came home because I have not been able to go to Double Decker ever since I was in middle school because I have always had a conflict that prevented me from going. I decided to come back for Double Decker because I knew it would be a fun time to hang out with some friends that I grew up with,” Roland said. “Double Decker in itself holds a lot of nostalgia for me since I went growing up and so I was so excited to find out that I was going to be able to go this year.”
For more, watch multimedia editor Watson Lee spend a day at Double Decker.
