My name is Vito Valentinettti and I’m the photographer and writer behind 100 Nights of Summer. I went to 15 festivals in 15 weekends in 15 different countries for this website. I took photos, I wrote a few thoughts, and I met thousands of people. A lot of you had surprisingly similar questions.
Is this really your job?
Yes. I co-founded Music Festival Wizard in 2009 and we have been working (mostly) hard on it ever since. In 2015, I quit all my side gigs to focus solely on music festivals. I’ve been writing about European festivals for years and wanted to dive into the foreign festival scene.
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What’s your actual title?
Editor In Chief Vagabond
Where are you from?
The great state of Vermont! Oh, you’ve never heard of it? It’s in the northeast between New York City and Montreal. No, it’s not part of Canada. Definitely one of the fifty state. Still have no idea what I’m talking about? Have you ever heard of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream? Okay, that’s where I’m from.
Are you sure Vermont isn’t in Canada?
Yes. I am sure.
You go to music festivals by yourself?
Yes and I recommend it to just about anybody. It’s a great way to get out of your comfort zone and it’s a festival — you will meet hundreds, or in my case, thousands of of some of the friendliest people on the planet.
You must be exhausted. How do you do it?
In a previous life, I used to manage mobile marketing tours for massive promotions around the United States. I’ve worked two Super Bowls, the Winter X-Games, the Sturgis Rally, three seasons of NASCAR, and music tours with Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Sheryl Crow. Along the way I learned how to drive a bus, a tractor trailer, and a bread van without air conditioning (twice). I also managed an occasionally unruly crew of ornery truck drivers, promotional models, and a hard-partying permanent traveling staff of 3-10 roadies at over 1,000 event days.
That job exhausted me. Just hanging out alone at music festivals having to only manage myself? This is my dream job.
Why 100 Nights of Summer?
I like round numbers. And I was inspired by another ridiculous tour I made up in 2010 called 100 Days of Winter when I traveled to 50 ski areas in 100 days in 1 RV.
You kept all your wristbands on – how gross is your wrist?
Not that bad. Turns out if you just work a little shampoo in there, you can keep those wristbands smelling fresh. The main issue is that some of the wristbands continue to tighten until they cut of circulation.
What type of music you like?
I typically say indie rock, but at a festival it’s just about anything that just gets the crowd fired up (which it turn fires me up). If you can make a crowd go wild, count me in.
What’s your favorite festival from 100NOS?
I actually loved all of them — but if I had to pick, the festival that lined up for me with the experience, the people, the venue, the music, and the camping would be the Positivus Festival in Latvia along with Electric Picnic in Ireland, Maifeld Derby in Germany, Electric Castle in Romania, and Pohoda Festival in Slovakia rounding out my top five favorites.
Having said that, different festivals exist for different people. Just because I don’t love fist bumping to Hardwell at five in the morning in an ancient Serbian fortress doesn’t mean that’s not your personal festival fantasy — and at the very least, I got to lick the sweaty bald head of a Serbian dude.
Can I work for you?
Soon. We’re working on some fun things for the future and we’re going to need people to bring on board. Details to follow.
How do I get your life?
Six years ago, this job didn’t exist. I just invented it — or rather I pretended it was a real job until it was one. The whole do-what-you-love thing and the rest will follow blah blah blah — turns out it can work. Get a camera. Get a notebook. Get to a festival.
