Q: This question came to us via email: Is the Gathering of the Juggalos a safe place to bring a 14-year-old and a 10-year-old? My boys are fans and we are fans. We want to know if it's appropriate for fans of that age.
A: That's kind of a tricky one. Honestly, I believe it's up to the discretion of the parents. Obviously, the Gathering is kind of a no-rules type of thing. That's kind of why the Gathering is the Gathering, because it's kind of your getaway to not worry about stuff. There are adult, over-18 things that go on at Gathering just like at any music festival, really. I see sometimes that people bring kids during the day and then at night you don't really see them. At night seems to be when it gets kind of wilder. But I think it's really up to the discretion of the parents. Fourteen, probably, but 10 might be a little too young. It's just like any other music festival. There are adult things that go on there. It's really up to you. They have a lot of stuff for kids. During the day, they have carnival rides and lots of things that go on that children can participate in. It's just kind of the stuff that's around you can be a little R-rated. So it's up to the discretion of the parents if you want your kids to see that type of stuff.
Q: Is the Juggalo scene an international scene?
A: It's absolutely international. It's pretty amazing how international it is. It's funny, I run a Facebook page and we have people literally from all over the world. It's really cool. The Gathering is when you meet people from all over the world because people actually travel in for it. We have some really good friends that we met from Poland a few years ago that we ended up camping next to, and they were great friends of ours; we talk all the time and mail things back and forth to each other. I've met Juggalos from Australia and Japan. They're literally all over the place. It's pretty awesome. I think that the Internet and technology has helped a lot of that. Everyone has access now, unlike back in the day where you had to buy cassette tapes in Detroit to hear it. There are some friends from Australia that we know. So yeah, they're all over the place. It's absolutely international.
Danielle Keen, aka Dani 2 Dope, is a 36-year-old Juggalette. She has been an ICP fan for 20 years and lives in Fowlerville, a small town "surrounded by cornfields" between Lansing and Detroit.
