The 2015 Mo Pop Festival was the first to be held at West Riverfront Park in Detroit, just west of Downtown, and also the first two-day festival.[1][3][9] Held on July 25–26, it was headlined by Modest Mouse and Passion Pit, and also featured performances by Atlas Genius, James Bay, Chromeo, Brandon Flowers, Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas, Iron & Wine, King Tuff, and Viet Cong.[8][9][10] West Riverfront Park is a 20-acre (8.1 ha) park on the Detroit River with views of the downtown skyline and the Ambassador Bridge, and it was created in 2014 by Detroit's Riverfront Conservancy on the site of a former Detroit Free Press printing facility.[4] Described as "free-spirited" and "whimsically themed", Mo Pop's 2015 iteration once again featured two stages aligned so that attendees could watch both without physically moving, and alternated time slots between so they would not have to choose between acts performing simultaneously.[7][8] In addition to music, the 2015 festival also included artisans and craft makers, visual artists, craft beer, food trucks, and even a Mo Tech village "showcasing work from local start-ups and inventors".[8][10] During the festival, heavy rainfall overwhelmed the park's drainage capabilities and formed a standing body of water nicknamed "Lake Mo Pop".[3][4] Mo Pop's 2015 total two-day attendance was estimated to be over 15,000.[11]
The 2017 Mo Pop Festival, held on July 29–30 at West Riverfront Park, was headlined by Alt-J, Foster the People, Run the Jewels, and Solange. Other acts included Vance Joy, Middle Kids, Grace Mitchell, Phantogram, PUP, PVRIS, Tyler, the Creator, and Wavves.[1][12][13][14][15] Both days of the festival started with back-to-back Michigan artists, including Stef Chura and Heaters.[3] In total, the 2017 iteration of Mo Pop featured over nine hours of music with musicians on two different stages.[1] It also included a dozen local food trucks and the Shipyard, a food and beverage court that was presented by Corktown's cocktail bar Sugar House and featured barbecue from Slows Bar BQ, hot dogs and tacos from Ferndale's Imperial restaurant, craft beers from Birmingham's Griffin Claw Brewing Company, and adult ciders from Blake's Hard Cider Company of Armada.[3][16]
