Closer to the Sun has always been more than a festival. It’s a floating universe where artists and fans exist on the same plane, where surprise sets happen in hallways, where strangers become family, and where moments you couldn’t plan if you tried end up defining the entire week. Year eleven leaned all the way into that magic. From emotional tributes to after-midnight chaos, from beachfront singalongs to balcony takeovers, these are the moments that made Closer to the Sun 2026 unforgettable. 
#11 – Last-Minute Additions Save the Week
Due to a medical emergency, Dirty Heads were forced to bow out just one day before the festival, while most fans were already en route.
But Closer to the Sun never lets fans down.
Almost immediately, Common Kings were added to the main stage and Collie Buddz was booked for a late-night set. Neither artist had originally been on the bill. Both were hustled in by a team that refuses to accept disappointment as an option. It’s why this destination festival sells out instantly every year. It’s why people save for it. It’s why this was year eleven.
#10 – The Poolside Surprise That Said, “You’re Home”
Closer to the Sun always finds a way to welcome you back, and this year it did it with a last-minute curveball. On the very first day, just as people were shaking off travel mode and settling into paradise, a new set quietly popped onto the schedule: a poolside jam. No buildup. Just a simple “be there.”
Kyle Smith, Brett Wilson, and Ethan Tucker took over the space, turning an ordinary afternoon into an instant moment. Guests gathered in towels and flip-flops, drinks in hand, realizing this wasn’t background music. This was Closer magic in motion.
Then the surprises stacked. Chali 2na stepped in, followed by George Spitz and Eric Swanson, and suddenly the poolside became a front-row experience. No barricades. No rush. Just music unfolding in real time, feet in the water, sun overhead, strangers smiling like they’d been let in on a secret. It wasn’t flashy. It was effortless. And that’s what made it perfect.
#9 – HIRIE’s Main Stage Return
Only recently back on the road after maternity leave, Trish of HIRIE stepped onto the main stage glowing with confidence and joy, and it felt like a true homecoming. Supported by the rich, full sound of her band, she moved across the stage in classic HIRIE fashion, equal parts grace and fire, reminding everyone why her presence has always felt so vital to this scene.
Her set wove together longtime favorites with beautiful new tracks from her brand-new album Phases, giving fans a glimpse of where she’s been and where she’s headed. One of the most powerful moments came during “All Is Ok,” featuring Josh from The Movement, a song rooted in finding strength, resilience, and independence when life tries to knock you down. It landed with quiet force, especially in a space filled with people who understand what it means to rebuild, to grow, and to keep showing up.
HIRIE’s return wasn’t just a performance. It was a statement. She’s back, she’s thriving, and she’s entering this next chapter with more depth, heart, and power than ever.
#8 – When the Music Came to Your Door
One of the things that sets Closer to the Sun apart from every other festival is how close everything feels. Not just the stages. Not just the artists. The people. The moments. And like every other year, that closeness showed up in the most unforgettable way inside fans’ own rooms.
A rooftop suite became an instant venue when Aaron Wolf and Kyle Smith showed up with guitars, the ocean stretching out behind them as people gathered under the open sky. Across the resort, word spread quickly like a shared secret you had to chase in real time. You could wander past a door and hear something magical unfolding inside.
Among the artists who took part in these in-room moments were Elovaters, Dan Kelly, Ethan Tucker, Joe Samba, Little Stranger, Logan Rex, with more names popping up as the week unfolded. You could be invited in by someone you met an hour earlier. No stage lights. No monitors. Just music in its purest form.
Those in-room sets are why Closer to the Sun feels less like a festival and more like a family reunion. They turn strangers into friends and remind you that this whole experience is built on community.
#7 – Jarv Takes Over
One of the most unforgettable through-lines of the week belonged to Jarv. Part of the magic Closer to the Sun pulls every year is attracting artists who aren’t even on the bill, people who pay their own way just to be part of it because the festival really is that special. And because reggae is built on community and collaboration, those artists almost always find their way into the music anyway. This year, that artist was Jarv.
It began when he hopped onstage with his boys in Little Stranger during their first late-night set, instantly becoming part of the fabric of the week. From there, he was everywhere. He slid into Logan Rex’s poolside set, returned for Little Stranger’s second late-night run with the Z-Trip mashup, joined The Elovaters on the beach, capped it off during The Movement’s late-night stage set, and somewhere in between pulled off a now-legendary balcony set, an unplanned forty-minute performance that existed purely because of hustle, heart, and the relentless work of Jarv and his manager Paul Haley.
For someone who wasn’t even on the lineup, Jarv became one of the most visible, talked-about presences of the entire week, a perfect example of how Closer to the Sun turns artists into family and moments into legend.
#6 – Pepper Keeps the Night Wild
There are a handful of artists who feel inseparable from Closer to the Sun, and Pepper sits right at the top of that list. As Kaleo told us, he’s only missed one year. They’ve been part of this festival almost as long as Slightly Stoopid themselves, and in many ways, they helped build the foundation of this entire scene. Pepper isn’t just a band that plays Closer. They are Closer.
Their late-night set proved exactly why. Instead of leaning on the obvious crowd-pleasers alone, Pepper dug deep, treating longtime fans to a run of songs that felt like a love letter to everyone who’s been riding with them since the early days. “Never Ending Summer” stretched into a dreamy opener, setting the tone before rolling into cuts like “Back Home,” “Point and Shoot,” “Zicky’s Song,” “Linoleum,” and “Freeze.”
The set flowed like a greatest-hits-meets-deep-cuts celebration, weaving through “Green Hell,” “Love Affair,” “Davey Jones Locker,” “The Invite,” and a playful “YMCA/Stand and Fall” moment that had the entire crowd locked in. By the time they closed with “Things That You Love,” “Like Your Style,” “Start You Up,” and “Nice Time,” it felt less like a concert and more like a reunion between a band and a community that has grown up together.
Pepper’s Closer sets always feel different. They’re looser, deeper, and more intimate, shaped by years of shared history with this crowd. Watching them tear through a late-night set packed with rare gems was a reminder that Closer to the Sun isn’t just about who’s playing. It’s about who belongs. And Pepper will always belong here.
#5 – Damian & Stephen Marley Turn “Traffic Jam” Into a Moment
There are sets that entertain, and then there are sets that mean something. Damian and Stephen Marley’s “Traffic Jam” performance on the main stage fell squarely into the second category. From the moment “10,000 Chariots” rolled out, the energy shifted. This wasn’t just another show on the schedule. It felt like a gathering. A reminder of where this music comes from and why it still matters.
Hearing “So Much Trouble,” “It Was Written,” and “Jah Army” in Mexico, surrounded by thousands of people who traveled from all over the world for this one shared experience, carried a weight that’s hard to put into words. When “Road to Zion” hit, the crowd moved as one. And when “Jamrock” dropped, the courtyard erupted in that unmistakable Closer to the Sun way, part celebration, part release. The back half of the set leaned fully into legacy, weaving Bob Marley’s spirit through “Exodus” and closing with “Could You Be Loved,” turning the moment into something that felt more like a ceremony than a concert.
It was generational, grounding, and powerful all at once. In a week full of surprises and high-energy chaos, Damian and Stephen delivered something deeper. A pause in the rush. A reminder of the roots. A moment that anchored the entire festival in history, heart, and purpose.
#4 – Little Stranger x Z-Trip: The Set That Wouldn’t End
Little Stranger always knows how to keep the vibes high, but their second late-night set took things into another dimension. What started as their own midnight run slowly melted into a full-blown mashup with Z-Trip, stretching into what felt like the Little Stranger set that never ended.
For nearly half of Z-Trip’s time onstage, the lines blurred as the two worlds collided, beats flipping, verses flying, and the crowd realizing in real time that something special was happening. It was pure, magical chaos, the exact kind of energy you need to keep a beach full of sunburned, blissed-out fans wide awake at 2:30 a.m. after a full day in the sun.
Closer to the Sun has always thrived on moments you can’t plan, and this was one of those lightning-strike collaborations that becomes instant legend.
#3 – Slightly Stoopid’s Main Stage Set After the Storm
Just when it felt like the night might slip away, the sky opened up. A sudden, torrential downpour sent people scrambling for cover, ponchos, towels, anything to wait it out. But nobody left. Nobody even considered it. Everyone just looked at each other like, we’re really doing this, huh?
When the rain finally eased and Slightly Stoopid took the main stage, the energy felt amplified by everything that came before it. The set opened with “Niceness” and rolled through a career-spanning run that felt both celebratory and deeply personal. “Officer,” “Del Roy,” “Good Life,” “If You See Me Smiling,” “Cool & Collected,” “Top of the World,” “The Upside Down,” “Closer to the Sun,” “Young Wild & Free” — it was the kind of setlist that reminded you how much history lives in this band.
Midway through, the tone shifted in a way that hushed the entire courtyard. Slightly Stoopid honored Cocoa, the beloved tour dog who had just passed, by playing Stick Figure’s “Choice Is Yours” as images of Cocoa filled the video screens. It was tender and unexpected, the kind of tribute that lands straight in your chest. At the same time, love was sent out to the Stick Figure crew, a reminder of how deeply intertwined this community really is. You can catch the full video on Instagram @thepierorg
Guests appeared throughout the night — Chali 2na, Kaleo Wassman, Rome, Gabriel McNair, Jackson Wetherbee, Brett Wilson, Little Stranger, Tye Zamora — turning the set into a living collage of the scene Slightly Stoopid helped build. By the time “Young Wild & Free” closed it out, the rain-soaked crowd was glowing.
It wasn’t just a headlining set. It was a statement. Even after the storm, especially after the storm, this music still brings everyone back together.
#2 – DENM’s Beach Acoustic Set
The DENM beach acoustic set felt like a gift dropped straight into the heart of the week. DENM and Benny Ranks sat down with guitars while the rest of the band stood nearby, and people floated in the lagoon or gathered barefoot in the sand.
They opened with “I’ll Be Gone” featuring Kyle from Slightly Stoopid, then flowed through “Lovely Day,” “Life’s 2 Short,” “Wandering Soul,” “Badfish,” “Wind Cries Mary,” “My Wave,” and “Wild Trip.” Benny debuted his new single “Sounds Nice,” and the whole set felt warm, personal, and unfiltered.
Speaking about the moment, DENM told us:
“What a lovely day. Thankful for Slightly Stoopid putting on an incredible festival and for all the people who make this thing a reality. Thanks for feeling the music.”
It wasn’t loud. It wasn’t flashy. It was perfect.
#1 – The Movement’s Late-Night Set That Refused to Fade
The final night of Closer to the Sun has a special kind of weight to it. Everyone knows it’s the last stretch, the last chance to squeeze every drop out of the week. So when The Movement took over the late-night stage, well past midnight, the energy should have been fading. Instead, it felt like day one all over again.
The set pushed past 2:30 a.m., yet the crowd showed no signs of slowing down. If anything, they were more locked in than ever. The band leaned into that momentum, pulling out deep cuts like “Livest Shit” that sent longtime fans into full eruption. It was one of those rare moments where you could feel the entire audience moving as one, feeding off the band and giving it right back.
Josh’s presence onstage made it even more powerful. Between songs, he shared how Closer to the Sun’s rotating schedule often means The Movement has to skip a year, and how much it hurts every time they’re not there. He thanked Slightly Stoopid for welcoming them back and for creating a festival that feels more like a family than a lineup. It was heartfelt in a way that cut straight through the noise, the kind of sincerity that hits you right in the chest.
Then came the finale. A Beastie Boys “Sabotage” cover exploded into a “Jump Around” mashup, sending the late-night crowd into absolute chaos. After days of sun, sand, and sound, The Movement closed their Closer to the Sun run with pure fire, proving that even at the very end, this festival still had one more unforgettable moment left in it.
Before I close this out, I want to acknowledge something many of you probably noticed all week: me rolling around on a scooter with a busted elbow and knee. Because of those injuries, I physically couldn’t be everywhere or chase every spontaneous moment the way I normally would. That means some of your standout memories may not be listed here—not because they didn’t matter, but because I simply didn’t have the body for everything this year. And honestly, that’s part of what makes Closer to the Sun so special. Even limited, even hurting, I was still able to be there. The magic of this place doesn’t disappear when life gets hard—it adapts. It meets you where you are.
That’s the heart of Closer to the Sun. It’s not built on headliners or hype—it’s built on relationships, shared history, and the kind of moments you can’t manufacture. It’s a place where music blurs the line between stage and crowd, and where everyone becomes part of the story. Congratulations to every band who made this year unforgettable, and to Slightly Stoopid for achieving something truly extraordinary: eleven years of a destination festival that still feels intimate, still feels personal, and still feels like home.
Written by Kelly Graham
Photos by Zach Smith and Keith Zacharski
