The SATURDAY SIX Checks out Universal’s ROCK THE UNIVERSE Christian Music Festival

This week’s SATURDAY SIX heads over to Universal Studios Florida to check something off our Universal Orlando bucket list…

Rock the Universe is an annual Christian music festival at Universal Studios Florida. The event started back in 1998 following the success of Walt Disney World’s Christian music festival, Night of Joy. Both Rock the Universe and Night of Joy took place in early September for many years. In 2018, Disney stopped doing Night of Joy while Universal continued with Rock the Universe but moved the festival to the end of January.

Rock the Universe is a hard ticket event, which means you have to purchase a separate ticket to enter the park, and it is not included with any Annual Pass. Rock the Universe is held over the course of two separate nights, and there are a variety of ticket options available. You can purchase single tickets to either night of the event, a ticket that would include access to both nights, or packages that include tickets to Rock the Universe along with day passes to the Universal theme parks. I went with the top-of-the-line pass, which included Rock the Universe tickets for both nights, along with park-to-park access for all three Universal parks (including Volcano Bay). This ticket cost $203.99 before tax.

# 6 – Rock the Universe Park Experience

While Rock the Universe’s official hours were 7 PM -1 AM, any ticket to Rock the Universe allowed you to enter Universal Studios at 4 PM.

When entering through the main entrance to USF, each Rock the Universe guest was given a wristband. From 6 PM on, every area of the park had Team Members checking guests for wristbands, and if you didn’t have one, you needed to exit the park.

For those guests who were already enjoying a day inside the theme park, there were several wristband distribution areas, including one near Revenge of the Mummy and another by Animal Actors on Location.

As for Rock the Universe “theming” throughout the park, there really wasn’t any outside of some Rock the Universe projections on several buildings.

In many ways, Rock the Universe is the exact opposite of Halloween Horror Nights as a hard ticket event. There is no theming, no food kiosks in the walkways, and there is no alcohol at the festival*. That’s right; all bars (including Moe’s Tavern) are completely shut down for the entire night. This was a shocker for me at first because so many of Universal and Disney’s events are pretty much based around selling alcohol.

No paper park maps were available, but everything you needed to know for the event was easily accessible in the Universal Orlando Resort app.

# 5 – Merchandise & Mementos

There were two areas where guests could buy event merchandise. One pop up location was located right next to Transformers: The Ride – 3D and had a limited selection of shirts and hats.

I was a little surprised at how few actual “Rock the Universe” items there were. There was one t-shirt and one hoodie available. That’s it.

THAT SAID, it’s almost as if they designed this t-shirt specifically for me. It is straight up BONKERS, and I am here for it. The design features a gigantic robot rocking out.

The shirt features all the main acts that performed at this year’s Rock the Universe event. It makes absolutely no sense why they went with this design, but I love it! 

The second merchandise location at the park was at the end of the New York area.

Soundstage 33 was the home of both the merchandise area, but also the “autograph” area (we’ll get into that shortly). There were three separate lines. The far left line was for merchandise only, and it was pretty much walk straight in. The middle line was the autograph line for the main act that day. In the picture below it was for Brandon Lake. There were people in this line who started waiting at 4 PM, despite Brandon Lake’s “autograph signing” not taking place until 8 PM. The far right line was for guests wanting to see all the other artists throughout the course of the night.

When you walked into the merchandise room, it was a complete cluster on the first night. The situation was not helped by both Matthew West and Brandon Lake’s merchandise tables not being ready by the time the doors opened for guests. When I say “not being ready,” I mean they hadn’t even started getting ready, and guests had to wait as they hung up all their t-shirts and prices. All the other vendors were fully set up and ready to go, so who knows what was going on there, but it caused a huge backup in the room because Matthew West and Brandon Lake were the two biggest stars of the night.

Again, I was disappointed that there wasn’t any specific items featuring Rock the Universe from any of the artists, but I understand that might be a challenge. I ended up getting a couple of other items, including a t-shirt that paid homage to Star Wars and a Bethel Music hat (because there wasn’t a Rock the Universe hat.)

If a company does something “Star Wars,” I’m gonna buy it, that’s my policy.

Okay, one of the other items that I bought was a small poster with the idea that I was going to go to several autograph signings and have them sign it. I thought that would be a pretty fun keepsake. Here is the list of performers, and as you can see it is almost all the big names from the event.

For the “autograph sessions” you needed to get a ticket in order to get in line. The tickets were free, but they were capped because each artist’s session was only so long. I got a ticket for Rend Collective because – in my mind – I was getting more bang for the buck and could have multiple people sign my poster instead of just one artist.

I made the assumption that these “autograph sessions” would be similar to things I have done at Comic Cons or other conventions over the years and artists are sitting at tables with a variety of Sharpie pens to sign whatever you have along with a quick meet-and-greet. Imagine my surprise when I walked into the room and saw this…

There were several switchbacks inside the large room.

Each guest got to meet the band and I have to say, the Rend Collective band members were really great.

The person taking photos used the guest’s phone to take plenty of pics. During the time I was there, I didn’t see a single guest getting an autograph, and it would be kind of awkward to even ask for one because no one had a marker and there was nothing to write on except for some small tables off camera. I’m glad I went to the session, because the Rend Collective were really cool guys, but I realized right then I didn’t need to go to any more “autograph sessions” and put my poster with the other merchandise into a locker at the front of the park that I had rented earlier in the day.

Now, if you are looking for an artist meet-and-greet, which I imagine most people are, then this “autograph session” is perfect for you. Here are some meet-and-greet photos that I received from members of a Rock the Universe Facebook group I am a part of. 

# 4 – The Rides

Outside of the bars, Universal Studios Florida remains a fully functioning theme park during Rock the Universe, with all the rides and attractions open. They were selling Universal Express during the event, and if you were staying onsite at a Premier hotel (Royal Pacific, Hard Rock Hotel, and Portofino Bay), your room key Unlimited Universal Express privileges did not work during Rock the Universe. Here’s a look at some wait times taken at 8 PM, an hour after the event officially started.

Here’s a look at wait times at 10:30 PM. You’ll notice two outliers. Rip Ride Rockit had large waits throughout the course of the entire Rock the Universe festival. Why? Well, I wrote an entire article about that. The 90-minute wait for Race Through New York starring Jimmy Fallon seems out of whack until you realize that the attraction is located directly next to the main concert stage, and this picture was taken during the time between performances of Matthew West and Brandon Lake.

Next up is a couple pics from Diagon Alley, one from around 8 PM…

…and this one from around 10:30PM.

DreamWorks Land was open for guests to walk through.

Many attractions became walk-ons throughout the course of the night.

With The Simpsons Ride being a walk-on, I decided to do something I always wanted to do but never really could during a regular day at the park…watch the entire video that plays in the outdoor queue and see all the scenes that were created just for this ride. This included a segment with Cletus the slack jawed yokel (and family) giving tips on how to save money when eating at the parks…

…and Krusty the Clown talking about his vision of bringing the attraction to life.

There are so many great new segments mixed in with classic moments from The Simpsons when they visited theme parks. Maybe the greatest queue video in theme park history?

There is also the incredible segment that references Back to the Future – The Ride, which was the attraction The Simpsons Ride replaced. You read more about that segment, and other references at USF to extinct attractions, by CLICKING HERE.

# 3 – FanZone

There were three different areas in Universal Studios Florida with musical acts performing. The FanZone area was located in the New York section of the park on Delancey Street (where the Blues Brothers play.) Throughout the entire weekend, this was the area where it was the easiest to walk in whenever you wanted and get pretty much as close as you wanted to the stage.

# 2 – Hollywood Stage

The Hollywood Stage was a larger stage than the FanZone one and located at the end of Hollywood Blvd., directly across from both Mel’s Diner and Cafe la Bamba.

On Friday night, I was easily able to walk up and see the first performer of the night, Tasha Layton.

However, when the second act of the night was playing – KB – the entire area was PACKED.

It was a madhouse. To quote the late, great Gorilla Monsoon, “fans are literally hanging from the rafters.”

UFC hands out bonuses for “fight of the night” on their PPVs. KB would have gotten the bonus for “set of the night” if Rock the Universe was giving them. He had the crowd going crazy. It was really fun to be around.

Rend Collective, the band who I had met earlier in the night, was the last performer of the night at the Hollywood Stage. Here’s the biggest thing I learned about Rock the Universe, though: YOU CAN’T DO IT ALL. There’s always something going on, and if you have a bunch of favorites, most likely, you’re going to have to skip one to catch the others.

Saturday’s crowds, at least at the Hollywood Stage, were busier much earlier than they were on Friday. I would imagine part of that is that Friday was a work day. I couldn’t get anywhere close to the first act, Caleb Gordon.

The large screens allowed everyone in the area to get a good view of the performer.

Josiah Queen, who had sang “Can’t Steal My Joy” with Brandon Lake the night before on the main stage, drew a large crowd.

# 1 – Music Plaza Stage

The main event stars of the weekend played at the Music Plaza Stage, with Rip Ride Rockit – the Grand Dame of USF – in all its glory in the background. Let me tell you, it is something else watching a nighttime concert with Rip Ride Rockit blazing by in the background.

Katy Nicole was the first performer of the night, and was fantastic.

I was outside the Music Plaza Stage, but they had two large screens set up to watch the concert.

All the main acts had good interplay with the audience, with Katy even talking about going on VelociCoaster.

Matthew West was very strong when it came to interacting with the audience and had a lot of terrific stories throughout his set. In one story, he talked about his struggle to rise up in the industry, starting out writing songs for other people to perform until finally getting his big break.

At one point, Matthew West came off the stage and personally interacted with people in the crowd. Look at all those phones filming him in the picture below! At one point, he had everyone singing Happy Birthday to a young guest in the crowd.

The big star of the night – BY FAR – was Brandon Lake.

Lake’s set was absolutely amazing.

As mentioned earlier, Josiah Queen joined Lake for “Can’t Steal My Joy.”

This was pretty much as close as I could get to watching Brandon Lake. It was a sea of people, but unlike many large masses of humanity stuck in one area – ::cough Magic Kingdom fireworks cough:: – everyone was on their best behavior. People actually said “excuse me” and “sorry” if they bumped into you. Maybe this is what it is like going to the theme parks in Japan.

Night Two brought some heavy hitters as well, starting off with Elevation Worship. Elevation is a huge network of churches on the East Coast (Charlotte, NC) who are responsible for a lot of music that you hear in churches across the United States. Here’s an example of their impact. Below is a shot of the Music Plaza Stage with the band performing one of their bigger hits, Trust In God.

I was outside the Music Plaza Stage, but the guests in this area were also loving this song and singing along.

Here is a photo from my church in Florida, with the congregation singing the exact same song.

Its special being around this many people with the same interests enjoying something. For me personally, it was like going to the opening weekend of Deadpool and Wolverine. That movie was filled with references and in-jokes directly made for the people who have been enjoying comic book films for the last 20 years. An average person off the street would watch the movie and think, “this doesn’t make any sense,” but for those of us in the theater that opening weekend, it was one of the greatest movie going experiences of our lives.

For me, that is the overall experience of Rock the Universe. It doesn’t matter that the average radio station doesn’t play Brandon Lake. It doesn’t matter that your co-workers have never heard of Elevation Worship. Everyone at the concert has, and they share that love and enthusiasm with you.

Anyway, back to the concerts. Bethel Music is an off-shoot of Bethel Church, a large congregation based out of Redding, CA that Millions watch online. Like Elevation, Bethel has written many of the songs that churches across the states sing every Sunday during service.

Forrest Frank was the headliner for night two and was FANTASTIC.

Forrest Frank had a great segment where he talked about God not just being there for people’s best days, He is there for them rain or shine. Frank applied that to how all of us should be treating others in this world, whether they be going through an addiction or otherwise. We’re all in this together and working towards a common goal… one  that isn’t helped with things like being judgmental or holding grudges.

Both Forrest Frank and Brandon Lake had the most amount of stage production of all the acts. It was pretty dang cool to see.

OVERALL THOUGHTS AND PRO TIPS: Rock the Universe was a complete blast. I had been to Night of Joy at Disney in years past, but held off on going to Rock the Universe because I had listened to Rumors and Innuendo about the entire event being overrun with kids. Yes, there are a lot of youth groups at Rock the Universe. A LOT. However, these were the most well-behaved kids I have ever encountered in a theme park setting, and I would guess that at least half the guests at the event came without kids. If you are a fan of Christian music, Rock the Universe is the place to be because you also get to go on theme park rides before, during, and after the concerts! Where else can you be around a group of like-minded people in a setting like this? A no-brainer.

One thing that is completely BONKERS at Rock the Universe is the lack of available food and drink. The regular quick service and kiosks are open, but there are no additional carts like you see everywhere during events like Mardi Gras and HHN. This means that the lines for any place selling food or drink were completely bonkers. Scratch that, I did see one solitary extra cart selling turkey legs outside Transformers and it also had a ridiculously long line. For turkey legs!

Below is a line from Starbucks that is extending out to the street, and then having to curve around the side of the building. It was crazy! Also, because all the concert areas are in the front “half” of the park, there wasn’t much to draw the crowds to the back of the park. I have to imagine there is a reason why Universal isn’t using the Fear Factor Live! stage, but it would be a good idea to do something out there to draw some of the guests away from the front of the park.

Florida’s weather in January and February can be hit or miss. Most of the time, the weather is perfect. However there is the odd chance that we could be hit by a cold snap, and one of those came during the weekend of this year’s Rock the Universe. Temperatures went below 40 degrees by the end of the night, so if you are considering coming down for future events, pack for pool weather, but don’t forget to bring along some warmer clothes as well just in case.

My biggest pro tip if coming to Rock the Universe? Book a room at the Hard Rock Hotel. Why? Well, here’s a look at the crowd exiting Rock the Universe after a night of concerts. Everyone making the long trek back through CityWalk and up to the parking garages.

The Hard Rock Hotel is located directly next to Universal Studios Florida, and is DOG FRIENDLY, so you can even bring your pets with you.

We timed our walk back to the Hard Rock Hotel, starting the timer just outside the main arch of USF. Keep in mind, this walk was done under the worst conditions possible: we were tired from a long day at the parks and it was absolutely freezing (at least by Floridian standards.) We made it back to the Hard Rock Hotel in under 7 minutes, and I’m not sure anyone else got their car in the parking garage in under that time.

Since we were staying at the Hard Rock Hotel, we did another one of my Theme Park Blogger Pro Tips: EAT AT THE KITCHEN. One of the other events offered at Rock the Universe was a Sunday prayer service. However, you need to register for it online and it can hit capacity pretty fast. We weren’t able to get into the service, so Sunday morning we went to The Kitchen for breakfast.

The Kitchen has one of the best breakfast buffets at Universal or Disney in my book, thanks in large part to the Must Get Elvis French Toast.

Don’t forget, one of the Best Kept Secrets at Universal Orlando is that anyone staying at the Hard Rock Hotel has the opportunity to convert their room key into a guitar pick at the end of their stay. Just take your room key to the front check-in desk…

…and they will do the honors. This is one of the best and coolest souvenirs I can think of for any on-site hotel and it’s basically free. Even better when the stay is during a music festival! Also, because we stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel and bought the Rock the Universe ticket package that included access to Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida during the day, we got Unlimited Universal Express until Rock the Universe started. Nothing better than that, period.

So there you have it: The SATURDAY SIX Rocks the Universe! See you next weekend for the latest installment of the SATURDAY SIX, where we’ll look at something fun from the world of Disney and Universal. If you enjoyed yourself, be sure to check out the THEME PARK ENJOYMENT INDEX, giving a monthly recap of all the theme park news you need to know (and a lot more you don’t need to know, but we’re gonna tell you anyway). You can also follow Your Humble Author on BlueSky (@derekburgan).

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Special Thanks to The Elite Brandon Glover, Digital Maestro Scott Walker, the bio-est of all reconstructs @bioreconstruct, Captain Cruiseline Scott Sanders of the world famous Disney Cruise Line Blog, my personal protege Hunter “Elvey” Underwood, artist @SonderQuest, the mighty maven of merchandise Hedgehog’s Corner, the SAT SIX Fun Squad of Parkscope Joe and “the Dadalorian” Nick, hot shot Michael Carelli, charter member of the Universal Four @Nitro230, the permit princess Alicia Stella, master cartographer Tommy Hawkins, and Hermione Granger’s tutor Megan Stump for their invaluable assistance with this article. Absolutely no help was added by SeaWorld Influencer @SuperWeenieHtJr. The SAT SIX is inspired each week by goofballs Aengus Mackenzie and LitemAndHyde and you Potterheads will  enjoy Meg’s other blog work over at the Central Florida Slug Club.