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CRACKING TIME
Wild Gathering of the Juggalos festival sees $6 face slaps, insane ‘queen of cheeks’ contest and a lot of G-Strings
One couple decided to get married during the festivities
THOUSANDS of scantily clad, horror-obsessed fans have come together for the 24th annual Gathering of the Juggalos Festival which has something for everyone from wet T-shirt contests to a Freakshow.
The festival takes over Thornville, Ohio — 37 miles east of Columbus — for four days every year, with the event happening this year from August 14 to 17.
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The rap duo Insane Clown Posse has amassed a rabid fanbase of followers who are referred to as Juggalos.
ICP's members are Violent J, real name Joseph Bruce, and Shaggy 2 Dope, real name Joseph Utsler.
They are known to wear clown faces and outfits for their shows which inspired fans to match their icons.
"Juggalos" reportedly stems from the 1992 ICP song entitled The Juggla.
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The infamous, rowdy event takes place in Legend Valley, Ohio, which has more than 130 acres of grounds for the show and additional space for camping.
Every year, the theme changes, and this year the theme is horror.
In the past, the festival has been intergalactic and the Gathering of Dreams.
Juggalos and Jugallettes have dressed to the nines to embrace the theme this year, adorned with the classic face paint, tattoos, terrifying masks, and barely-there clothing.
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The U.S. Sun also captured many of the festival-goers soaking each other in Faygo soda which is a Gathering tradition.
$6 FACE SLAP
Just about anything is welcome at the event.
Inside Gathering of the Juggalos' bizarre Miss Juggs contest where women swallow swords and hammer nails up their noses
One woman, named LouLou, was walking around barefoot in a green leotard and a green mico-skirt.
She held a green sign that read $6 face slaps, along with other offers.
You never know what to expect when you turn the corner.
Others were seen holding phallic-shaped objects while others openly embraced the clothes optional policy.
While concerts blared through the venue, people crowded the barricades as confetti flew in the area.
Fans were climbing in and out of the crowds as Faygo was being sprayed everywhere.
Some people were crowd surfing and stage diving into the big crowd.
Women were also seen covered in water and Faygo during a wet T-shirt contest.
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'SOUNDTRACK TO MY LIFE'
Attendees Toni and Krissii got married at the festival.
They were dosed with Faygo after saying "I do."
Toni spoke with The U.S. Sun about her experience as a Juggalo.
"I've been attending gatherings since 2011. I first found Insane Clown Posse as a teen. A friend knew I liked rock and metal music so he thought I'd like ICP and I was obsessed from the first CD I picked up," she told The U.S. Sun.
"I immediately dove into ICP lure and history. I'm still just as into it now at 33 as I was when I found this music at 15. It has formed the soundtrack to my life."
She added, "It's more than music to me. Being a Juggalo is a way of life. It's deciding to be totally and completely yourself no matter what anyone thinks of that.
"Being authentic is hard to do in a society that demands we all conform. To me, juggalo is part of my identity that makes me an individual. Every juggalo is special in that way, they are themselves and they are all interesting and unique. There are so many reasons I love this carnival."
The excited festivalgoer also detailed her wedding saying it was "a dream come true."
"I introduced my wife Krissii to ICP and she loved it too. ICP's music speaks to people who have been through some rough times in life. And it spoke to her just like it did to me.
"Being married at the place I call my home in front of all the Juggalo family was just so indescribably magical. That crowd was filled with the faces of homies old and new, some I had known for over half my life, some I just met.
"Every one of them in that crowd was genuinely happy for me and my wife. Considering we are a lesbian couple you can imagine without me telling you the gory details that both our families refuse to be a part of our love story and our happiness.
"So the Juggalos stepped up for me in a time when I needed most, my wedding day. Then it turned into the biggest party on earth and the greatest show on earth the insane clown posse."
The newlywed also shared her favorite events at the Gathering.
"The private juggalo camps that have food and games with prizes. It's all about the family at the gathering for me."
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CONCERTS, COMEDIANS, CONTESTS
The four-day festival is packed full of events from parties, contests, sideshows, wrestling, and more.
ICP will play two sets at the festival this year with one being House of Hours.
The pair hasn't performed the show since 1998, but "one night only, what is dead and buried is made once again new and fresh for The Gathering’s resurrection of Insane Clown Posse’s House of Horrors Show," per the festival's .
They are also playing another show called The Red Show.
"When you hear the sharp pipes of a calliope winding its way into your brain, it's already too late. The music rises, growing ever more frantic, as a gang of redrum clowns take to the stage alongside two titans of bloody terror: Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope, collectively known as the Insane Clown Posse!" described the show, per .
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"From putting the worst of the ghetto in your face to dragging you down to reddish glow of Hell's Pit, it's a name synonymous with Horror Rap since 1992, and in 2024 they're dropping three decades of Wicked S**t on The Gathering of The Juggalos like a Hatchet to the dome!
"Prepare your eyes and ears for some of the scariest and most influential cuts committed to wax, played live and in your face as the Faygo flies like a bigot's head after a visit from a Joker's Card!
"You want horror? Welcome to the core, OG Wicked Clown style painted on a red canvas using real blood! And the only way to reach it is at The Gathering of The Juggalos!"
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There is also a huge lineup stacked with musicians including Rakim, A Killer's Confession, Big Jay Oakerson, Clownvis, Nick Gage, Mishpit Mike, and so many more, per the festival flyer.
In addition to music, festivalgoers can attend side shows such as the Freakshow Deluxe Horror Show.
"You will witness scenes of flesh being taxed and tested right before your eyes. Scenes of torture inflicted upon the human body, pushed to the dizzying heights of extremity," per Psychopathic Records.
"A carnival just isn’t a carnival without a freakshow. But this is The Dark Carnival. We’re going full dark, no stars- but maybe a couple scars- with the Chronicles of Horror Freakshow!
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"Squeamish souls should stay at camp, but for the adventurous spirits and morbidly curious we have a macabre display of gruesome oddities, sure to shock and amaze!"
Another exciting event is the Queen of Cheeks contest which is judged by the crowd.
Juggalettes were pictured on stage and against a pole to show off their best moves and attempts at butt-related obstacles.
There will also be a costume contest, the Miss Juggalette Pageant, an art battle, a rap battle, a Juggalo flea market, and late-night parties.
Who are the Insane Clown Posse?
Insane Clown Posse was formed by Violent J, whose real name is Joseph Bruce, and Shaggy 2 Dope, whose real name is Joseph Utsler.
ICP operates a music label called Psychopathic Records and also orchestrates the yearly Gathering.
Founded in Detroit in the early 1990s, ICP is known for creating its own musical universe known as the Dark Carnival.
Characters introduced on each of the duo's albums have their own storyline.
Some of the characters include Ringmaster, the Great Milenko, and The Amazing Jeckel Brothers.
Though music in the Dark Carnival can be violent, it is meant to serve as a metaphor for systematic oppression, reported.
Juggalos maintain that they do not stand for violence. Instead, they've continuously said their community is about love and peace.
The group uses clown-like face paint and the tradition of spraying Faygo soda on each other as a way to grow closer.
DRUGS AND ARRESTS
In the past, the Gathering has made headlines due to drug overdoses and rowdy behavior.
In 2013, 24-year-old Cory Collins died at the festival after not feeling well.
He had reportedly been to the "drug bridge" which was infamous at the event.
The "bridge" was a marketplace for various recreational drugs that were used during the festival.
Though there had been previous reports of overdoses at the festivals, Collin's death caused the closure of the "drug bridge" the next year.
In 2017, eight people were arrested when the festival was held in Oklahoma City.
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One man was arrested with marijuana possession, drug paraphernalia, and hundreds of dollars, and two others were caught setting off illegal fireworks, per Fox affiliate .
Juggalos maintain that they do not stand for violence and want their community to be a place of love and peace.
The perplexing group was designated as a non-traditional gang as part of its National Gang Threat Assessment by the FBI in 2011.
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At the time there were about one million people who identified as Juggalos and Juggalettes.
ICP has attempted to file lawsuits and challenge the designation but continues to make music and hold its annual festival despite it.
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