Coca-Cola SZIN Festival promotes phone-free concert experience
Pioneering among Hungarian festivals, Coca-Cola SZIN is launching a movement with the motto 'Légy jelen!' (ENG: Be Present!) to promote the experience of conscious presence at the festival, as announced by the organizers in a press release today.
Participation is not mandatory – the initiative's goal is to highlight that a phone-free concert can provide a more complete experience for fans. The festival's initiative is joined by hip-hop artist Pogány Induló, whose first concert was in a small basement in Szeged, where no one had a phone in their hand and the atmosphere was fantastic, reads the press release.
In recent years, mindfulness, and the need for conscious presence have been increasingly present in the world. There is a growing desire for people to connect in real life and to engage in live communication with each other, and this desire is likely to grow stronger as technology develops alarmingly fast.
Accordingly, there is a growing demand for full attention and experience at concerts and festivals, already confirmed by international examples. Several international stars, including Bruno Mars, Guns N' Roses, and Adele, are advocating a phone-free policy at their concerts to offer fans a more immersive and fulfilling experience.
"We believe that the role of a festival goes beyond entertainment, and also aims to provide as full an experience as possible. Our initiative aims to draw attention to an important social phenomenon, the spread of "digital loneliness", and to bring about its resolution and the fulfillment of the festival experience" - says Erika Kolonics, the chief organizer of Coca-Cola SZIN, who emphasized that the phone-free festival experience makes the experience more profound, it enhances a sense of community, phones are not a distraction, real moments become more personal and precious, not to mention that when we let go of our phones, we have the opportunity to relax, recharge and reduce the stress of everyday life.
Szeged-born Marcell Szirmai, aka Pogány Induló, one of the most influential rap stars in Hungary, also believes that parties should be experienced live – at his first concert there were no phones in the audience. He also encourages everyone to live in the moment. "I performed here for the first time in my life, in a small basement in Szeged, and there was no phone, everyone was having a great time. We're trying to encourage everyone now that – even though you have to do a story or two – a concert is much more enjoyable if you don't have your phone with you and you're just going to go for it and concentrate on having a good time live, not afterward," says Pogány Induló.
Source: Coca-Cola SZIN Festival
