What was the Bacardi Triangle? Everything to know about the 2014 festival as Ellie Goulding shares a throwback photo with Kendrick Lamar

On February 11, 2025, singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding took to X to share a throwback photo with Kendrick Lamar, captioning it "Babies." One of the times that Goulding's name came up with Kendrick Lamar was in 2014 when the two were headlined Bacardi Triangle.

According to a report by Muse by Clios dated February 2019, Bacardi Triangle was a private festival that took place on a desert island in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle, off Peurto Rico, from October 30 to November 2, 2014. As per Festival Insights' report dated June 2015, Bacardi Triangle was a multi-channel branded concept, comprising media partnerships and a contest for attendees to win tickets for the concert.

Additionally, every headliner hosted specially chartered flights from New York, LA, and London to transport the audience from the respective regions to the concert. The publication mentioned a count of 1862 guests consisting of influencers, press, competition winners, and VIPs.

Ellie Goulding, Calvin Harris, and Kendrick Lamar were also scheduled to fly with the concert attendees. However, Calvin Harris bailed from the plan at the last moment as he reportedly had his own helicopter.

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More details about Kendrick Lamar headlined Bacardi Triangle music festival explored

In a statement to Festival Insights concerning Bacardi Triangle as a new experience, Bradley Thompson, director of Broadwick Live, a UK-based production company, mentioned that the festival was designed "to go all out and engage a global audience".

Thompson said the audience they targeted shared a passion for adventure and music.

"We pushed the boundaries of the traditional festival brand experience and transformed it into a music travel adventure. This is a million miles from headline sponsors paying to have their logo stamped onto a stage. Not many brands would have the courage to take this on," he added.

Additionally, Gareth Cooper, director at Broadwick Live, commented on the inception of the music festival featuring Kendrick Lamar as one of the headliners. Cooper said that Bacardi hosted some of the most legendary parties throughout the 1920s prohibition era, featuring people from all over Cuba and the US.

Broadwick Live aimed to use Bacardi's heritage to curate an extension of the rum brand's ‘Bacardi – Untamable since 1862’ campaign by doing something "big and disruptive."

The Broadwick Live director mentioned:

"We chose a remote and stunning Caribbean island located seven miles out to sea from mainland Puerto Rico, right in the heart of the infamous Bermuda Triangle, tapping into one of nature’s most untameable forces, on the most untameable weekend of the year, Halloween."

Broadwick Live undertook the responsibility of managing the Kendrick Lamar-headlined festival from scratch, right from the logistics. The production company coordinated the transport of the party attendees and also managed rights, negotiated licenses, and oversaw legal issues. The Bacardi Triangle also consists of the Puerto Rican army to keep gatecrashers away from the festival.

According to a report by FAB News article dated November 2014, Kendrick Lamar performed his new single at the time called I, which sent the crowd into a frenzy.

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It is not yet confirmed if the throwback picture posted by Ellie Goulding alongside Kendrick Lamar was taken at the Bacardi Triangle— however, some netizens speculate so under the tweet.