Rap and comedy dominate Bonnaroo this year

The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival celebrated its 10th anniversary with a lineup far more diverse than its origins of jam bands. Rap and comedy ruled the weekend along with a collection of festival veterans emerging as major acts.

Bonnaroo started in 2002 and is held every June on a 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tenn. The four-day festival puts an emphasis on being environmentally conscious and features multiple stages. There is also a comedy tent, a cinema, a silent disco, a beer festival and many other activities. The 2011 festival was held from June 9 to 12 this year.

Eminem followed in Jay-Z's footsteps this year as the festival's headliner. Rap was more prominent than ever this year with performances from Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa and Big Boi, among others.

One of the puppets in Henson Alternative's "Stuffed and Unstrung" even joined in with a rap. The show, co-created by Patrick Bristow and Jim Henson's son Brian, is like an HBO version of "The Muppets" crossed with "Whose Line Is It Anyway?"

More than 80 puppets are controlled by six puppeteers with adult-themed sketches and songs based on sketches from the audience.

Actor and comedian Donald Glover is also a published rapper but avoided his alter ego "Childish Gambino" while ruling the comedy tent. He discussed the vulgar inner-workings of children's minds, racial slurs and his campaign to be the next Spider-Man.

Lewis Black was his usual cantankerous self with an assortment of angry rants. The comedy tent also featured performances from Cheech Marin, Ralphie May, Bill Bailey, Kathleen Madigan and others.

Several Bonnaroo veterans and rising indie artists earned their first performance on the festival's main stage including Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, The Decemberists, My Morning Jacket, Arcade Fire and The Black Keys.

Mumford & Sons proved they deserve a shot at the main stage after drawing an enormous crowd to the secondary stage on Saturday night.

This year's festival featured an abundance of random happenings, for example, Portugal.

The man sprayed the crowd with champagne while performing an unannounced set atop a van decorated like a "Mr. T" parade float.

Grace Potter & the Nocturnals held an intimate set to record footage for a video covering Joan Jett's "I Love Rock and Roll."

Aziz Ansari held a question and answer session in the comedy tent after an advanced screening of the upcoming movie "30 Minutes or Less."

Visit www.Bonnaroo.com for more information on the festival.