Live Loud Fest Cruise: So Much More Than Music

by Kevin Wierzbicki

---

At Sixthman, the cruise specialists with popular sailings like Cayamo, Outlaw Country Cruise, Little Steven's Underground Garage Cruise, Flogging Molly's Salty Dog Cruise, Headbangers Boat and many more, they have long used the motto "Live Loud." Live loud doesn't actually refer to volume; it means to have fun with what you do in life, and that's something you can always do on a Sixthman cruise. So it's no surprise that the newest cruise from Sixthman was named after the "live to the fullest" notion and sailed under the moniker Live Loud Fest. While the event had a great lineup of musical acts there were also lots of other things for cruisers to do.

The inaugural sailing of Live Loud Fest took place November 4-8, 2025 aboard the Norwegian Cruise Line ship "Jewel" as she sailed from Miami and headed for Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. The musical lineup was eclectic and included the New Respects, Niko Moon, Liz Vice, Soja, Allen Stone, Kristy Lee, Hirie, Ripe, the Wheeland Brothers and many others. And making a special appearance to play the "sail away" show on the first day of the cruise were heartland rockers 311 who wowed the crowd with their rock/reggae/punk mashup. But the cruise also had a wellness aspect and cruisers could indulge in yoga sessions every morning which were led by the likes of Kate Mak, QVLN with Sunshine Zerda and Gina Caputo. Each hosted multiple sessions, and Caputo had a session on the ship's pool deck that was especially popular, "Gina Caputo X The Women Who Rock!" Caputo also gave a talk, "Level Up: Empowered Aging for Rebels" in the ship's Spinnaker Lounge, stressing to attendees that aging was something to be celebrated as it frees people from limitations, whether self-imposed or imposed by society. Caputo's presentation was frank and conversational and peppered with a few curse words, a style the audience seemed to greatly enjoy. Gina explained that when she uses the word "rebel" that she's not talking about defiance, rather she means owning the authorship of your life story. "When I say empowered ageing, this is what I'm talking about," Caputo said. The presentation was informational as well as entertaining. Now that's living loud!

Another special event that cruisers could attend was "Drink Your Wine," a wine tasting event hosted by singer Kristy Lee and Sixthman's "Sixthman Annie." This event, which was a paid experience, featured a big dose of wine knowledge doled out by the ship's sommelier, "Ronnie." Ronnie led the group in the tasting, explaining the difference between the Old World wines (wine from Europe) and the New World wines (wine from places other than Europe), and showing how to do a proper evaluation and tasting of the wine. Before the tasting began Lee appropriately performed her song "Let Me Drink Your Wine," then Sixthman Annie asked Lee about all kinds of things, including wine. During the tasting Lee commented on each varietal, saying things like "It's Got Soul" after tasting a French cabernet.

Other things to keep cruisers busy during the Live Loud Fest were the Shut Up & Dance Headphone Dance Party, Karaoke, Bingo with the New Respects, Fireside Chat with the Wheeland Brothers and of course there was a well-stocked merch room with vinyl, CDs, t-shirts and more from all of the artists. And really cool was the fact that Liberty Tattoo was set up for those who wanted to get some new ink to remember the cruise by. All of this was in addition to the amenities that the Jewel always had on offer like the pool, spa, casino, bars and restaurants, a lavish buffet and a juice bar. And then there was all the fun of having an adventure in Puerto Plata; we'll tell you about that in our next article. In the meantime check out some of the other Sixthman cruises that are coming up here.

Share this article

---