Sixthman History

2016

2016Expanding our reach

For over a decade, we’ve pioneered the festival cruising industry and have continued raising the bar across the board. So what happens when we expand into industries beyond music, our tried and true? In 2016, we found out as we took the leap by jumping into the realms of entertainment and sports. Brand new to the Sixthman roster, The Impractical Jokers Cruise, Walker Stalker Cruise, and Gronk’s Party Ship made their inaugural journeys across the Caribbean. New communities were formed and we learned even better ways to serve our guests through a different scope. We also added one new music festival to our roster with the first-ever Outlaw Country Cruise, a partnership with Sirius XM's Outlaw Country. We finished out our spring season with six returning festivals - all full ships!

Impractical Jokers Cruise
Walker Stalker Cruise
The Rock Boat XVI
Cayamo
The Outlaw Country Cruise
Sail Across the Sun
Blues Alive at Sea II
Gronk's Party Ship
PARAHOY!
Kid Rock Cruise
The KISS Kruise VI

PARAHOY!

With a fresh head of hair dye, a guest poses for a selfie with Hailey.

Sail Across the Sun

Andy Grammer performs at late night karaoke.

Walker Stalker Cruise

Norman Reedus high-fives a fan during his autograph session.

Outlaw Country Cruise

Blackberry Smoke performs in the Stardust Theater on the Outlaw Country Cruise.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock gets up close and personal during the Sail Away Show.

Impractical Jokers Cruise

Surprise stowaway Joey Fatone gets crazy with The Tenderloins during karaoke.

Sail Across the Sun

A frosting-free Pat Monahan just seconds before his decorating companions smashed cupcakes in his face.

Cayamo 2016

Kacey Musgraves teaches a sand art class.

Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea

John Popper from Blues Traveler performs as the cruise sails away from Miami.

PARAHOY!

WE ARE PARAHOY! Not a frown in sight during the Parahoy family photo.

Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea

Joe Bonamassa delighting fans during a performance.

GRONK's Party Ship

Rob Gronkowski and Family celebrates after winning the Flip Cup Tournament on the beach.

Walker Stalker Cruise

Norman Reedus pauses to take a selfie with excited fans.

The Rock Boat XVI

Slow Jams and Soft Serve with Steve Everett and JD Eicher.

PARAHOY!

A talented guest performing with Taylor of Paramore during Paraoke.

Cayamo 2016

Cayamo 9-timers receiving robes before singing onstage with Shawn Mullins in the Stardust Theater.

Sixthman Sessions

The highly anticipated Sixthman Sessions performance during The Rock Boat XVI.

Outlaw Country Cruise

Horseshoe comin' at-cha! It's not just a game, it's a tournament.

Walker Stalker Cruise

Serious discussions about The Walking Dead with Norman Reedus and Greg Nicotero.

Sail Across the Sun

Michael Franti helps guests find their center during a yoga session on the Pool Deck.

Walker Stalker Cruise

Zombies and survivors roam the halls of the Walker Stalker Cruise.

The Rock Boat XVI

Sister Hazel performs "The Load Out/Stay" in the Stardust Lounge, featuring all artists of The Rock Boat XVI.

The Rock Boat XVI

Gavin Degraw performing "Brother" with NEEDTOBREATHE.

Cayamo 2016

A magical moment in the Stardust Theater with Kacey Musgraves and John Prine.

Outlaw Country Cruise

Bowling at Nikki Lane(s).

Walker Stalker Cruise

Greg Nicotero smiles with fans (and Hershal) during the autograph session.

Kid Rock Cruise

Whitey Morgan and Tony Martinez judge the Belly Flop Tournament.

GRONK's Party Ship

GRONK's Family Feud hosted by Sixthman Bear.

The Rock Boat XVI

Sister Hazel poses with fans as zombies for the Zombies vs. Unicorns theme night.

Cayamo 2016

Tai Chi with Chai Tea taught by Jim Lauderdale.

Kid Rock Cruise

Lexxi Foxxx of Steel Panther bringing back the glam on the Pool Deck.

GRONK's Party Ship

Rob Gronkowski DJs with Brazzabelle in the Stardust Theater.

The Rock Boat XVI

Just another awesome performance on The World's Greatest Floating Music Festival.

Walker Stalker Cruise

Dead to Life with Tate during the Walker Stalker Cruise.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock performs a duet with Nikki Lane.

Impractical Jokers Cruise

The Tenderloins onstage during their gut-busting performance.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock in glam metal garb (center), fitting in perfectly with Steel Panther.

Impractical Jokers Cruise

Joe Gatto serves unsuspecting guests in the Garden Cafe.

GRONK's Party Ship

Now the world will know that this guy partied with Gronk.

Cayamo 2016

Cayamo ends with a Moonlight Revival, an intimate performance under the gazebo on the Pool Deck.

Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea

Vintage Trouble performs in the Stardust Theater.

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2015

2015New office, new beginnings

As we entered a new year, we found ourselves getting settled into a brand new office. The team members that we’d brought on months prior had gone from timid toe-dippers, to salty sailors eager to explore greater depths of our expanding company. Based on what we learned in 2014, we scaled back the number of events with the intention of working smarter, not harder. The Rock Boat hit the high seas for it’s milestone 15th voyage, and we introduced another new event, Blues Alive at Sea with Joe Bonnamassa. Our CEO, Andy Levine, joined the Sixthman Home Team for the first time ever and remained on land during the first round of cruises, leaving the events in the capable hands of his team. When he sailed later on in the season as a guest, we didn’t believe that he’d stay hands-off and actually take time to enjoy a much-needed vacation aboard the Pearl…he proved us all wrong.

After the end of a successful spring season, we headed back to Atlanta to give our sea legs a much needed break. The recently launched Sixthman Sessions gained a great deal of momentum during the next few months as bands from all over the country graced our new office stage with live performances during the work day. October arrived like a freight train and we suddenly found ourselves aboard Norwegian Pearl ready to blow our final three events of 2015 out of the water.

Sandy Beaches Cruise 21 -
Cayamo
The Rock Boat XV
Sail Across the Sun
Blues Alive at Sea I
311 Caribbean Cruise
Kid Rock Cruise
The KISS Kruise V
Florida Georgia Line Cruise
Mad Decent Boat Party

The Rock Boat XV

Honoring our three 15-timers with custom TRB guitars.

Cayamo 2015

Lyle Lovett and Shawn Colvin.

Sail Across the Sun

Pat Monahan from Train performs during the Sail Away Show.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock during the Q&A session on the Pool Deck.

Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea

Joe Bonamassa on the Pool Deck.

The Rock Boat XV

The original Boat the Rock, official mascot of The Rock Boat. Current whereabouts: Somewhere in the middle of the ocean.

Sixthman Sessions

Sixthman Sessions 2015.

The Rock Boat XV

Sixthman defeating Gaelic Storm once again during Flip Cup on TRB.

The Rock Boat XV

Boozical Squares on the Sports Court.

311 Caribbean Cruise

Basketball tournament with P-Nut.

Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea

Robert Randolph and the Family Band.

The Rock Boat XV

Show on the beach at Playa Mia in Cozumel, Mexico.

The Rock Boat XV

The Sixthman crew on the beach at Playa Mia in Cozumel, Mexico.

The Rock Boat XV

The Barenaked Ladies perform a cover of Norwegian's Washy Washy song.

Sail Across the Sun

Pat Monahan takes a selfie with the pool deck crowd.

Sail Across the Sun

Trainaoke.

Cayamo 2015

Brandi Carlile during Brandioke competition.

311 Caribbean Cruise

Cayamo 2015

Artists from Cayamo 2015.

Cayamo 2015

Ken & Drew from Sister Hazel performing at Great Outdoors.

311 Caribbean Cruise

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2014

2014Back to back to back to back

One of the unanswered questions in our industry is this: What is the growth potential if we were to have a partner to invest with us, allowing us to take more risk? At the beginning of 2014, Norwegian brought a new ship to Miami and the Norwegian Pearl was available for an 8 week window between January and March, so we took it. We produced our annual cruises and added some new ones that we had been curious about over the years. Our new additions included Sail Across The Sun with Train, Progressive Nation at Sea and PARAHOY with Paramore. We gained a new partner with Delbert McClinton's team and helped them produce the 20th Sandy Beaches Cruise, and we experimented with programming the entertainment on a normal Norwegian sailing with the first-ever LIVE LOUD. Festival. We probably bit off more than we could chew. But we learned a ton about executing back-to-back festivals and finding the amount of new cruises that we could successfully nurture each year. After taking some time to rest and reset, we prepared ourselves for the fall cruise season and introduced the world to two new events; Florida Georgia Line’s: This Is How We Cruise and The Mad Decent Boat Party. Both events were highly successful, creating two new communities that are sure to see even more growth in the coming years. But with new beginnings came the end of an era as the 8th Simple Man Cruise made its final voyage, closing out the fall season of 2014 with fond memories and bittersweet farewells.

Sandy Beaches Cruise 20 -
Mountain Song At Sea
Cayamo
Sail Across the Sun
Progressive Nation at Sea
The Rock Boat XIV
LIVE LOUD Festival
Kid Rock Cruise
PARAHOY!
The KISS Kruise IV
GRAMMY Festival at Sea
Florida Georgia Line Cruise
Mad Decent Boat Party
Simple Man Cruise

Simple Man Cruise

Lynyrd Skynyrd performs in the Stardust Theater.

PARAHOY

Finalists for the Paraoke contest with Paramore.

Mad Decent Boat Party

Jack U on the Pool Deck. 7:15. Never Forget.

Florida Georgia Line Cruise

FGL joins Nelly during his beach show on Great Stirrup Cay.

Cayamo

Brandi Carlile stops by Bar City for a late night jam with guests.

GRAMMY Festival at Sea

Heart performing in the Stardust Theater.

Cayamo

Kris Kristofferson performs on in the Stardust Theater.

Sail Across The Sun

Crowdsurfing fun with some of Train's youngest fans on board.

Florida Georgia Line Cruise

Florida Georgia Line playing blackjack on the cruise.

Simple Man Cruise

Lynyrd Skynyrd on the Pool Deck.

Mad Decent Boat Party

Ravercise with Brazzabelle.

The Rock Boat XIV

Some of the "merit badges" that could be earned aboard Camp Rock Boat.

The Rock Boat XIV

Guests scramble to find an empty seat in a game of Boozical Chairs.

The KISS Kruise

KISS acoustic sailaway show on the Pool Deck.

The KISS Kruise

Gene Simmons during the sail away show

Sail Across The Sun

Train's Sail Away Show.

PARAHOY

Paramore poses with the crowd on the Pool Deck.

Kid Rock Cruise

A band performs in an elevator.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock performs on the Pool Deck at night.

Simple Man Cruise

Starship performing all their hits on the Pool Deck stage.

Progressive Nation at Sea

Mike Portnoy performs on the Pool Deck.

The Rock Boat XIV

Guiltier Pleasures with The Goose. Collaboration show on Great Stirrup Cay.

PARAHOY

Tegan and Sara host a Ping Pong Tournament.

PARAHOY

Paramore poses with fans at dinner in Teppanyaki.

PARAHOY

Paramore bows down to the winner of Paraoke.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock with all 5-time alumni.

Cayamo

Jim Lauderdale leads guests in a yoga session on the Pool Deck.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock answers questions from fans in a Pool Deck Q&A.

The Rock Boat XIV

Gaelic Storm celebrates our St. Patrick's Day theme night on the Pool Deck.

The Rock Boat XIV

Guiltier Pleasures with The Goose. Collaboration show on Great Stirrup Cay.

The Rock Boat XIV

Ready to sail away.

Florida Georgia Line This Is How We Cruise

The KISS Kruise IV

Simple Man Cruise 2014

Mad Decent Boat Party

PARAHOY!

Norwegian Pearl
March 7-11, 2014

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise

Norwegian Pearl
March 3-7, 2014

The Rock Boat XIV

Norwegian Pearl
February 22-26, 2014

Progressive Nation at Sea

Norwegian Pearl
February 18-22, 2014

Sail Across the Sun 2014

Norwegian Pearl
February 14-28, 2014

Cayamo 2014

Norwegian Pearl
February 7-14, 2014

Mountain Song at Sea 2014

Norwegian Pearl
February 3-7, 2014

Sandy Beaches Cruise 20

Norwegian Pearl
January 19-26, 2014

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2013

2013The beat goes on

Norwegian made investments in the Norwegian Pearl to make it more “Music Cruise Friendly” and we moved all of our cruises over in 2013. It was nice to be such a priority on board and be able to work closer with the ship to deliver a world class experience to our guests and artists. While our guests preferred the Norwegian Pearl, there were little things that they missed from other ships we had used. We worked quickly to identify those things and fill the gaps to make it a better vacation overall. We realized the ship had 1200 crew members and we only showed up with 80 staff to work alongside them for each Sixthman sailing, and finding ways to allow them to be more engaged made a huge difference. There are 14 of them for every one of us, so we appreciated them having the enthusiasm needed to make our festivals happen. This year we added two new festivals to our lineup - ALABAMA Festival at Sea and our first bluegrass event, Mountain Song at Sea.

Cayamo
TCM Classic Cruise - Jan
Mountain Song at Sea
The Rock Boat XIII
311 Caribbean Cruise
Kid Rock Cruise
Simple Man Cruise
ALABAMA Festival at Sea
The KISS Kruise III
Rombello

The KISS Kruise III

Kids meet & greet with KISS.

311 Caribbean Cruise

311 and their fans during their first-ever nighttime pool deck show.

ALABAMA Festival at Sea

Randy Owen of Alabama at the ALABAMA Sail Away show.

Simple Man Cruise VII

Lynyrd Skynyrd and Blackberry Smoke collaboration.

The KISS Kruise III

KISS Sail Away Show, acoustic and unmasked.

The Rock Boat XIII

NEEDTOBREATHE performs on the Pool Deck.

311 Caribbean Cruise

DJ Soulman keeps the vibe lively on the Pool Deck.

Cayamo

Artists perform a tribute to Levon Helm.

The KISS Kruise III

Kids dress up for the KISS look-alike contest.

The KISS Kruise III

Kids meet & greet with KISS.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock's island set on Great Stirrup Cay.

Mountain Song at Sea

Guests dance.

Rombello

Guests dress up as the official Rombello bird for a costume contest.

311 Caribbean Cruise

Guests enjoy a show from the hot tub.

311 Caribbean Cruise

Guests dress up for Costume Party Night.

The Rock Boat XIII

Finalists in the very first game of Boozical Chairs with Stokeswood.

The Rock Boat XIII

Love Hope Strength sails to register guests as bone marrow donors.

Simple Man Cruise VII

Rickey Medlocke and Johnny Colt of Lynyrd Skynyrd have dinner with winners of a pre-cruise recipe contest.

The Rock Boat XIII

Sister Hazel performs "Washy Washy, Happy Happy" with NCL staff.

Simple Man Cruise VII

Lynyrd Skynyrd performs the Sail Away show on the Pool Deck.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock plays a beach show at Great Stirrup Cay.

ALABAMA Festival at Sea

Alabama fans play Battleshots on Great Stirrup Cay.

Mountain Song at Sea

Horseshoe tournament on Great Stirrup Cay.

Rombello 2

DJ Soulman starts a full blown mid-afternoon dance party while it storms outside.

Rombello 2

Norwegian Pearl
November 1-5, 2013

The KISS Kruise III

Norwegian Pearl
October 28 - November 1, 2013

Alabama & Friends Festival at Sea

Norwegian Pearl
October 24-28, 2013

Simple Man Cruise 2013

Norwegian Pearl
October 20-24, 2013

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise 2013

Norwegian Pearl
March 6-10, 2013

311 Caribbean Cruise 2013

Norwegian Pearl
March 1-5, 2013

The Rock Boat XIII

Norwegian Pearl
February 24 - March 1, 2013

Mountain Song at Sea

Norwegian Sky
February 1-4, 2013

TCM Classic Cruise 2013

Celebrity Constellation
January 21-26, 2013

Cayamo 2013

Norwegian Pearl
January 13-20, 2013

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2012

2012The missing puzzle piece

In the summer of 2011, we were approached by Norwegian Cruise Line to become a part of their family via an acquisition. After months of discussions and negotiations, we agreed to become a Norwegian owned subsidiary in February of 2012. We produced 8 cruises in 2012 which was less than the previous 3 years but had been able to establish The Rock Boat, Simple Man Cruise, KISS Kruise, 311 Cruise, Cayamo, TCM and Kid Rock Cruises as annual events. We wrapped up our 3 year partnership with Graceland as their partner for the Elvis Cruises, and also enjoyed the adventure of bringing the 1st Weezer Cruise to life.

The Elvis Cruise
The Weezer Cruise
Cayamo
The Rock Boat XII
Kid Rock Cruise
311 Caribbean Cruise
Simple Man Cruise
The KISS Kruise II

Sixthman Sessions

The Rock Boat XII

Pre-Party: Guests parade through the streets of New Orleans led by a brass band.

Cayamo 2012

Guests perform in an elevator.

Kid Rock Cruise

Fans gather for Kid Rock's show in Redneck Paradise.

The Weezer Cruise

Sail Away Weezer Show, featuring Greatest Hits and the Blue Album.

The Rock Boat XII

Sixthman teams up with the St. Bernard Project and cruise guests to help rebuild houses in New Orleans before setting sail.

The Rock Boat XII

Celebrating the first-ever Sixthman sail away shot with Cabo Wabo Tequila.

The Rock Boat XII

Pre-Party: Guests parade through the streets of New Orleans led by a brass band.

The Rock Boat XII

Jett Beres of Sister Hazel takes part in the first ever TRB Grilled Cheese-Off.

The Rock Boat XII

Guests volunteer with St. Bernard Project the day before we leave New Orleans.

The Rock Boat XII

Guests earn a Track Jacket on their 10th TRB sailing.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock takes the stage.

Kid Rock Cruise

Guests enjoy Kid Rock's beach show from the ocean.

Simple Man Cruise VI

Members of Lynyrd Skynyrd judge the bellyflop contest.

Simple Man Cruise VI

Dale Rossington gets ready for her vow renewal ceremony with Gary, a surprise event to guests.

Simple Man Cruise VI

Lana Turner hosts a Halloween pumpkin carving contest.

Simple Man Cruise VI

Detroit artist, Jeff Shea, tattoos guests on board.

The Weezer Cruise

The Weezer flag emerges from the crowd.

The KISS Kruise II

Norwegian Pearl
October 31 - November 4, 2012

Simple Man Cruise 2012

Norwegian Pearl
October 27-31, 2012

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise 2012

Carnival Destiny
April 26-30, 2012

The Rock Boat XII

Carnival Elation
March 1-5, 2012

311 Caribbean Cruise 2012

Carnival Destiny
May 10-14, 2012

Cayamo 2012

Norwegian Pearl
February 5-12, 2012

The Weezer Cruise

Carnival Destiny
January 19-23, 2012

The Elvis Cruise 2012

Carnival Fascination
January 12-16, 2012

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2011

2011Moving in the right direction

Kid Rock and VH1 returned for their 2nd year and we were fortunate to be able to start partnerships with 311, KISS and Turner Classic Movies to create new festivals. 311’s fans crashed our servers for the first time ever during their presale signups, but the band and their excitable fans created the most amazing, energy-filled atmosphere for any Sail Away Show we had ever witnessed. KISS attracted fans from 30 countries and performed a 2 hour "unmasked and unplugged" set for their first Sail Away Show. Our first film festival with TCM gave us a chance to work with Celebrity Cruise Line and earn our first non-music driven sold out cruise.

The Rock Boat XI
Simple Man Cruise
Ships and Dip 4 -
Cayamo
311 Caribbean Cruise
Kid Rock Cruise
VH1 Best Cruise Ever
Rombello
The KISS Kruise I
TCM Classic Cruise

Sixthman's Summer Road Trip · Sixthman Sessions

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock takes the stage for the Sail Away show.

311 Caribbean Cruise

Nick Hexum of 311.

Rombello

Michael Franti on the Pool Deck.

Cayamo

Guests dance as the sun sets on the Pool Deck.

Ships and Dip IV

Ed Robertson of Barenaked Ladies.

The KISS Kruise

A KISS fan sunbathes in full makeup.

The KISS Kruise

A guest shows off their KISS Kruise tattoo.

Rombello

Guests stay cool in the pool for the afternoon Pool Deck shows.

311 Caribbean Cruise

311's Sail Away Show.

311 Caribbean Cruise

311's Sail Away Show.

311 Caribbean Cruise

Andy gets the crowd pumped up.

311 Caribbean Cruise

The 311 Cheerleaders.

The KISS Kruise

KISS face painting - one of the many activities available onboard.

The KISS Kruise

KISS plays an unmasked, acoustic set as we sail away from Miami.

The KISS Kruise

Rockin' the KISS sunglasses during the Sail Away show.

VH1 Best Cruise Ever

Danny O'Donoghue of The Script judges the cannonball contest.

VH1 Best Cruise Ever

Colbie Callait performs on the Pool Deck.

VH1 Best Cruise Ever

Yacht Rock Revue.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock look-a-like contest.

Kid Rock Cruise

Kid Rock poses with fans.

Ships and Dip IV

Barenaked Ladies on stage.

Ships and Dip IV

Kevin Hearn of Barenaked Ladies.

Cayamo

Cayamo family photo.

Cayamo

Simple Man Cruise 2011

Viking Kappy.

Simple Man Cruise 2011

Sail Away group with Kappy the Viking.

Simple Man Cruise 2011

Alumni group shot.

Sixthman Summer Road Trip

Sixthman Summer Roadtrip Crew in Chicago. Chuck Cannon, Tim Brantley, Trailer Park Ninjas and Sixthman.

Sixthman Summer Road Trip

Tour bus dance party.

Sixthman Summer Road Trip

Sixthman Jen with longtime Rock Boater, Gail.

Sixthman Summer Road Trip

Featuring Bronze Radio Return, Chuck Cannon, Tim Brantley, and Trailer Park Ninjas. With stops in Tampa, Miami, Orlando, Atlanta, Chapel Hill, DC, Boston, NYC, Philly, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis & Nashville.

TCM Classic Cruise

Celebrity Millennium
December 8-12, 2011

The KISS Kruise

Carnival Destiny
October 13-17, 2011

Rombello

Carnival Inspiration
September 29 - October 3, 2011

VH1 Best Cruise Ever 2011

Carnival Inspiration
April 28 - May 2, 2011

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise 2011

Carnival Triumph
April 7-11, 2011

311 Caribbean Cruise

Carnival Destiny
March 3-7, 2011

Cayamo 2011

Norwegian Pearl
February 13-20, 2011

Sixthman's first trip on The Pearl.

Ships and Dip 4

Norwegian Dawn
February 6-11, 2011

Simple Man Cruise 2011

Carnival Inspiration
January 20-24, 2011

The Rock Boat XI

Carnival Inspiration
January 6-10, 2011

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2010

2010Getting stronger in more ways than one

After holding at 5-6 festivals a year in 2008 and 2009 to build our foundation and processes, we had the opportunity to take on new event in 2010. We moved all but two cruises to Tampa and spread them out over 5 months to give ourselves a better chance for success. We had the chance to bring the VH1, Zac Brown Band and Kid Rock cruises to life for the first time and we also ventured into lifestyle cruising with a Jillian Michaels Cruise. One highlight during this year was when Kid Rock decided to get on the Ship’s PA System at 1:30 in the morning to invite all the guests up to the pool deck for a party while he DJ’d for 3 hours. We also achieved a milestone by celebrating the 10th Rock Boat, our flagship event.

The Rock Boat X
Simple Man Cruise
Cayamo
VH1 Best Cruise Ever
Kid Rock Cruise
Malt Shop Memories
Sailing Southern Ground
Ultimate Wellness Cruise
The Elvis Cruise

Sixthman Sessions

The Rock Boat X

Sister Hazel and Sixthman celebrates 10 years with a giant "X" cake.

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise 2010

Kid Rock and his fans on the inaugural sailing.

Cayamo 2010

Guests dancing on the pool deck.

Simple Man Cruise 2010

The infamous Simple Man Cruise bellyflop contest.

Malt Shop Memories Cruise

Malt Shop Mike on deck.

VH1 Best Cruise Ever

Lifehouse turns their rained-out pool deck show into one of the most unforgettable moments of the trip by taking over the Atrium.

Sailing Southern Ground

Guests pose for the "Zamily" photo.

Jillian MIchaels Ultimate Wellness Cruise

A guest from the Red Deck Wars team at an outdoor cycling class.

Cayamo 2010

Brandi Carlile in the Stardust Theater.

VH1 Best Cruise Ever

Sixthman says relax. The staff celebrates '80s Night.

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise 2010

Sixthman staff gets ready for the first ever Kid Rock Sail Away show.

Cayamo

Lyle Lovett.

Jillian MIchaels Ultimate Wellness Cruise

One of the youngest passengers participates in a group workout with Jillian.

Jillian MIchaels Ultimate Wellness Cruise

The Deck Wars Pep Rally & Sail Away Party.

Jillian MIchaels Ultimate Wellness Cruise

Guests take part in a group workout on Great Stirrup Cay.

The Rock Boat X

Sixthman staff dressed up for St. Patrick's Day.

The Elvis Cruise 2010

Carnival Fascination
November 4-8, 2010

Jillian Michaels Ultimate Wellness Cruise

Norwegian Star
October 21-25, 2010

Sailing Southern Ground

Carnival Inspiration
September 2-6, 2010

Malt Shop Memories Cruise

Carnival Inspiration
May 13-17, 2010

Kid Rock's Chillin' the Most Cruise

Carnival Inspiration
April 29 - May 3, 2010

VH1 Best Cruise Ever 2010

Carnival Inspiration
April 15-19, 2010

Cayamo 2010

Norwegian Dawn
February 21-26, 2010

Simple Man Cruise 2010

Carnival Inspiration
January 21-25, 2010

The Rock Boat X

Carnival Inspiration
January 7-11, 2010

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2009

2009Now we groovin'

We applied our lessons from 2008 and were able to execute the Simple Man Cruise, The Rock Boat, Ships & Dip, Cayamo and Mayercraft Carrier to our standards. We had only worked with Carnival in the past but selected Norwegian Cruise Line to host two of our cruises this year. The idea of going to a new cruise line was daunting but our team did an excellent job. Getting to work with two different cruise lines helped us learn much quicker and would end up being worth the extra work to build relationships and understand two styles. This was also the first time we jumped up to bigger ships, going from 2,200 person capacity ships to 2,800 person capacity ships. Our team used the term “huggable” to describe the difference between the smaller ships and the bigger ships. We felt like somewhere in the 2,500 person range, it lost a little bit of intimacy. Since then, we've mainly used the smaller ships because it felt like more of a "huggable" family.

Simple Man Cruise
The Rock Boat IX
Ships and Dip V -
Cayamo
Mayercraft Carrier
The Elvis Cruise

Rock Fore! Dough · Sixthman Sessions

Cayamo

John Hiatt and Lyle Lovett.

Mayercraft Carrier 2

John Mayer greets fans.

The Rock Boat IX

Aslyn and Zac Brown sing their duet, "Trying to Drive."

The Elvis Cruise 2009

Elvis Tribute Artists represent the various stages of Elvis' life.

Shps and Dip V

And the crowd goes wild.

The Rock Boat IX

Wideawake performs during the Presidential Inauguration.

Mayercraft Carrier 2

John Mayer on the Pool Deck.

The Elvis Cruise 2009

Fans swoon as performers pay tribute to The King.

Ships and Dip V

The Rock Boat IX

All Rock Boat artists singing "We Are The World" as the grand finale.

The Rock Boat IX

Stephen Kellogg perfects 'the lift' after performing "Time Of My Life."

The Rock Boat IX

Sister Hazel performs an "Island Set" as we sail away from our port stop.

The Rock Boat IX

Backstage antics with some artists.

The Rock Boat IX

Guests celebrate Rubiks Cube Night.

The Elvis Cruise 2009

Carnival Inspiration
November 12-16, 2009

Mayercraft Carrier 2

Carnival Splendor
March 27-31, 2009

Cayamo 2009

Norwegian Dawn
February 28 - March 7, 2009

Ships and Dip V

Norwegian Jewel
February 1-6, 2009

Barenaked Ladies' third event despite the "V" name, and Sixthman's first charter with Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Simple Man Cruise 2009

Carnival Destiny
January 8-12, 2009

The Rock Boat IX

Carnival Destiny
January 17-22, 2009

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2008

2008SOS we did too much

With 10 months to prepare, we felt that producing 5 cruises in one month was doable. In the end, it nearly brought us to our knees. The funny thing about our experience is that we were constantly in a position with our guests where we were asking them for a chance to make something right. While it took a huge emotional and physical toll on all of us, that experience had a profound impact on how we would prepare, staff and anticipate our guests' needs in the future. It’s almost like we had to go thru that to see what we were made of. It also allowed our guests to see what we were made of. We never gave up and did not rest until all our guests were back on track. We still reflect back on this year as the one that defined what our recipe needed to be in order to grow without compromising the quality of the experience. Our new cruises this year, Cayamo and Mayercraft Carrier, proved to be great experiences and both signed on again for the following year. At the end of 2008, Sixthman had outgrown the little yellow house we had used as an office since 2004, and moved into a bigger space next to the Zoo in Atlanta.

Simple Man Cruise
The Rock Boat VIII
Ships and Dip III -
Mayercraft Carrier
Cayamo

Rock Fore! Dough · Sixthman Sessions

The Rock Boat VIII

TRB Family Photo.

Mayercraft Carrier

John Mayer takes the stage on the Pool Deck.

Cayamo

Keith Sewell and Lyle Lovett.

Simple Man Cruise 2008

Sometimes even Guitar Heroes play Guitar Hero. Rickey Medlocke of Lynyrd Skynyrd battles against a young fan.

Sixthman Sessions 2008

Our first Sixthman-hosted songwriting retreat took place in Augusta, GA.

Ships and Dip III

Fans prepare for Barenaked Ladies to take the stage.

Cayamo 2008

Banjos and bananas.

Cayamo

Fans enjoys an atrium show.

Mayercraft Carrier

John Mayer on the Pool Deck.

Simple Man Cruise

Guests pose for a photo with Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Simple Man Cruise

Lynyrd Skynyrd fans ready to sail into the sunset.

The Rock Boat VIII

Our very first "sessions" collaboration set, just for Rock Boat Alumni.

The Rock Boat VIII

Stephen Kellogg finishes his set in the crowd.

The Rock Boat VIII

DJ Marc Broussard.

The Rock Boat VIII

Glen Phillips of Toad The Wet Sprocket with fans.

The Rock Boat VIII

Drew Copeland of Sister Hazel hosts a flip cup tournament with Josh Kelley.

The Rock Boat VIII

A crowd fills the atrium for a show.

The Rock Boat VIII

Zac Brown makes an appearance in the finale collaboration.

The Rock Boat VIII

Artist vs. Artist Trivia

The Rock Boat VIII

Drew Copeland and Josh Kelly host a flip cup tournament.

Ships and Dip III

Cayamo

Carnival Victory
February 4-10, 2008

Sixthman Retreat

Sixthman staff pyramid.

Sixthman Retreat

Sixthman staff group photo.

Mayercraft Carrier

Carnival Victory
February 1-4, 2008

Ships and Dip III

Carnival Victory
January 27 - February 1, 2008

Technically the second Ships and Dip, though Barenaked Ladies decided to call it the third.

The Rock Boat VIII

Carnival Imagination
January 19-24, 2008

Simple Man Cruise 2008

Carnival Imagination
January 10-14, 2008

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2007

2007Going in some new fun directions

Going from one cruise a year to three in one month was overwhelming. Lynyrd Skynyrd went first followed by the the Rock Boat and then the Barenaked Ladies. We pulled it off and both Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Barenaked Ladies committed to doing it again because they loved it so much. That was a huge moment to see all three events become annual events instead of just one offs. That’s when we really knew we had a business we could build. Within a couple months after completing these cruises, John Mayer agreed to do a cruise and our other festival Cayamo was conceived by Ken Levitan who managed Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, John Hiatt, Shawn Colvin and Buddy Miller.

Gimme Three Days
The Rock Boat VII
Ships and Dip I -

Rock Fore! Dough

Gimme Three Days

Lynyrd Skynyrd hosts an autograph session.

Gimme Three Days

Heather Luttrell collaborates with Zac Brown.

The Rock Boat VII

Emerson Hart and Drew Copeland.

The Rock Boat VII

Captain Ezra. (Better Than Ezra)

Gimme Three Days

Lynyrd Skynyrd's first Q&A with guests.

Gimme Three Days

Family Photo.

The Rock Boat VII

Guests watch a band on the pool deck stage.

The Rock Boat VII

Cowboy Mouth's last show of the trip, complete with a drum circle finale.

The Rock Boat VII

Sonia Tetlow and Fred LeBlanc of Cowboy Mouth.

The Rock Boat VII

Marc Broussard, Andy Levine, Chris Stacy, Ryan Newell and Jett Beres.

The Rock Boat VII

Carbon Leaf calls numbers for Bingo.

The Rock Boat VII

Zac Brown signs a guests' guitar at a meet & greet.

The Rock Boat VII

Artist collaboration on the final night.

The Rock Boat VII

Impromptu jam at the piano on the Promenade Deck.

The Rock Boat VII

Scott Munns plays on the Atrium Stage.

The Rock Boat VII

Collective Soul participates in an autograph signing.

Gimme Three Days

Ken Block of Sister Hazel with Zac Brown Band.

Gimme Three Days

Excited for Lynyrd Skynyrd to take the stage.

Ships and Dip I

Carnival Legend
January 15-19, 2007

Sixthman's first try at back-to-back cruises.

The Rock Boat VII

Carnival Legend
January 11-15, 2007

Gimme 3 Days

Carnival Fascination
January 5-8, 2007

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2006

2006Turning it back up again

The Rock Boat was hosted in January out of Galveston, TX due to the port of New Orleans still being closed from Hurricane Katrina. We allowed guests who had been booked on TRB V to transfer, and ended up with a great crowd on board. One day, we hit some bad weather on the way back from Mexico and had to move all the shows indoors. The band Wideawake stole the show by playing in the Atrium and guests lined 7 stories of railings and stayed there for 2 hours. On the last night of the cruise, Sister Hazel kicked off a jam and every artist got up and played one song. It went 'til 6:00am as we pulled back into Galveston. Sister Hazel brought their new manager on the cruise and he liked it so much he asked us if we could do a cruise for his other band Lynyrd Skynyrd. This was an exciting time for us, but the idea of doing 3 cruises in a year totally freaked us out. Each one was like giving birth - just as painful and just as rewarding.

The Rock Boat VI
The Rock Slope III

The Rock Bus · Rock Fore! Dough

The Rock Boat VI

Wideawake creating magic in the atrium after we missed a port, and their outdoor show was rained out.

The Rock Boat VI

The year we discovered the atrium as a venue.

The Rock Boat VI

Carbon Leaf lost their luggage. Luckily the ship had tuxedo rentals, so the band was stuck with that until we reached our port. Which we missed.

The Rock Slope II

Ready to hit the slopes.

The Rock Slope II

Sister Hazel signing someone's jeans.

The Rock Slope II

Snow Bunnies.

The Rock Boat VI

Gaelic Storm PJ show.

The Rock Boat VI

Barry from Carbon Leaf and Chardy McEwan of Pat McGee Band jamming.

The Rock Boat VI

Guests chill out in the hot tub, despite the rainy weather.

The Rock Boat VI

Crowd gathered on the Pool Deck for Marc Broussard's show.

The Rock Boat VI

Ken Block's acoustic set.

The Rock Boat VI

Sister Hazel ended their last show in the main lounge by leading the entire crowd into the atrium, which culminated into a huge jam, complete with confetti.

The Rock Slope II

Having fun in the massive hot tubs.

The Rock Slope II

Showing off some fresh Sharpie ink.

The Rock Slope '06

Steamboat Grand Resort
March 29 - April 2, 2006

The Rock Boat VI

Carnival Elation
January 14-19, 2006

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2005

2005Caught in the eye of the storm

The Rock Boat was set to sail out of New Orleans at the end of September and sold out months in advance. We decided to add a 2nd Rock Boat in January of 2006, thinking we would have one event every 6 months. One month before we were scheduled to sail, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and Carnival rented our ship to FEMA so they could use it to house relief workers and families that lost their homes. The Rock Boat was cancelled. We were sure that we'd go out of business. Even though the cruise line owed us our charter fee back, we were still out all the money in marketing, artist fees and a year's worth of general operating costs. After a trip to Miami, Carnival agreed to pay us all our unrecoverable expenses and allow us to stay in business. Guests were calling us saying, “keep our money... just don’t go out of business." This is when we realized we were in the community business, and that was a defining moment for sure. In an effort to make the best of a bad situation, we invited guests and artists to Atlanta during the weekend we were supposed to be on the cruise, and 500 guests traveled to "Rock For Relief," a concert with most of the bands scheduled to play on board. We ended up raising $55,000 for Hurricane Katrina Relief that weekend. At the end of December, Andy got a call from the Barenaked Ladies manager asking if we could help them host their fans on a cruise. We said “We’ve been waiting on your call.” We also decided that we would no longer represent Sister Hazel as a management client, but help them find a new manager and continue being their partner on The Rock Boat.

The Rock Slope II
The Rock Boat V (cancelled)

Rock For Relief · Rock Fore! Dough

Rock For Relief

Sister Hazel spends the day in Atlanta's Piedmont Park playing kickball and other games with fans.

Rock For Relief

Zac Brown performs at Park Tavern in Atlanta, where displaced Rock Boaters gathered to raise money for Katrina victims.

Rock For Relief

Francisco Vidal performs at Park Tavern in Atlanta, where displaced Rock Boaters gathered to raise money for Katrina victims.

Rock For Relief

Sixthman Jen pitches during the Rock For Relief kickball game.

Rock For Relief

Cowboy Mouth performs at Earthlink Live along with other Rock Boat artists.

Rock Fore Dough

Darius Rucker of Hootie and the Blowfish.

Rock Fore Dough

Edwin McCain takes the stage.

The Rock Slope II

Steamboat Grand Resort
March 17-20, 2005

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2004

2004Narrowing our focus

We put The Rock Boat on sale in November of 2003 and it sold out within a few weeks. The hard work and patience had paid off. Gavin DeGraw joined us for this sailing with 20+ other artists. Zac Brown performed on his first cruise with us after winning a Battle of the Bands contest in the Southeast. We didn’t have to vote anymore about whether to do it or not. We were learning so much about producing a vacation rather than just a concert.

The Rock Slope I
The Rock Boat IV

The Rock Slope I

Rock Slopers from a land far, far away.

The Rock Slope I

Welcome sign at the Steamboat Grand Resort.

The Rock Slope I

Guests hang out in the hot tub.

The Rock Boat IV

Guests report to their muster stations for the safety drill.

The Rock Boat IV

Chardy crowd surfs.

The Rock Boat IV

Zac Brown becomes a late night staple on the Promenade Stage.

The Rock Boat IV

Artists wrote lyrics on guitars that were part of a silent auction benefiting Lyrics for Life.

The Rock Boat IV

Our CEO Andy, trying to look official.

The Rock Boat IV

Will Hoge's first Rock Boat.

The Rock Boat IV

Pre-Party at the hotel pool.

The Rock Boat IV

A fancy cucumber creation.

The Rock Boat IV

Toga Party by Toons.

The Rock Slope I

Sister Hazel

The Rock Slope I

The Rock Slope

Steamboat Grand Resort
March 20-23, 2004

The Rock Boat IV

Carnival Imagination
October 7-11, 2004

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2003

2003This may just be a good idea

We couldn’t wait to announce the next Rock Boat. We invited a lot of the same bands and Tonic jumped in on the fun. The event grew a little, but it didn't sell out. It was a lot of risk and work, so we had a meeting afterwards to vote whether to keep it going or shut it down. In the end, we determined that we'd give it one more year.

The Rock Boat III

The Rock Boat III

Fred LeBlanc of Cowboy Mouth.

The Rock Boat III

Francisco Vidal and Edwin McCain share the stage.

The Rock Boat III

Guests get ready for the Safety Drill, which used to require wearing life jackets.

The Rock Boat III

Despite being full-festival style these days, The Rock Boat used to require wristbands to get into some of the main lounge shows. Shows were assigned based on guests' dinner time.

The Rock Boat III

Guests get their posters signed at an artist meet & greet.

The Rock Boat III

Collaboration finale.

The Rock Boat III

Ken and Drew of Sister Hazel.

The Rock Boat III

Ryan Newell & Brian Fechino jam.

The Rock Boat III

Guests line an upper deck, looking down on the show below.

The Rock Boat III

Carnival Sensation
August 28 - September 1, 2003

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2002

2002First full-ship charter

We launched the first Rock Boat and sailed out of Tampa on Labor Day Weekend. We made so many mistakes, but we had over 2000 guests and a festival was born. We even ran out of beer and had to borrow some from another Carnival ship when we were in the Bahamas. Pat McGee led an all night jam playing covers, and Edwin McCain delivered a Braveheart speech while standing on the bar, inspiring the bartender to stay open.

The Rock Boat II

The Rock Boat II

Sister Hazel fans unite on board.

The Rock Boat

Ken Block of Sister Hazel on the pool deck, before we had an actual stage.

The Rock Boat II

Pat McGee on the Pool Deck.

The Rock Boat II

Late night collaboration.

The Rock Boat II

Guests hang out on the plank in the pool between shows.

The Rock Boat II

Chuck Carrier on stage.

The Rock Boat

The Rock Boat II

Sister Hazel makes an appearance at their fan club meet-up.

The Rock Boat

The Rock Boat II

Andy with Gnorman the Gnome.

The Rock Boat

Brian Fechino of Pat McGee Band.

The Rock Boat 2

Carnival Sensation
August 29 - September 2, 2002

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2001

2001Getting the game plan together

During a weekly message board chat with the Sister Hazel street team, the fans requested a weekend to hang with the band since they had been working so hard to promote them. Andy relayed the message to the band and they simply said, “lets do it”. Not knowing exactly where to start, Andy randomly talked to a Travel Agent while on a flight from New York to Atlanta. She suggested a cruise, so we invited 400 fans on a cruise over Labor Day for what we called “Rock and Roll at Sea". We had no idea what we were in for, but it was a ton of fun. When we stopped in Key West on our way to Mexico, Andy decided to try to build a business of bringing fans and bands on vacation. After we returned from the cruise, we set our sights on chartering the whole ship so we could make it a real festival. We called Edwin McCain, Pat McGee, Cowboy Mouth and asked them to join us in 2002. If they brought 400 fans each, we could fill an entire ship. We began getting prices from cruise lines to rent the ship on September 10th, 2001. The next day, the world changed and the cruise was the last thing we could think about. When we picked back up conversations with the cruise lines, prices had dropped significantly. We still had to come up with $750,000 to rent the ship, and none of us had the money. We built a website and were able to get 1,000 fans to put down a $99 deposit and then took that info to local Atlanta businessmen who loaned us the money.

The Rock Boat I

The Rock Boat

Sister Hazel on stage in the main lounge.

The Rock Boat

Piñatas on the Pool Deck.

The Rock Boat I

The Rock Boat

Otherwise known as "Rock & Roll at Sea"
Carnival Jubilee
August 30 - September 3, 2001

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EARLY

EARLYLet's get this party started

Andy Levine played in a band with Jett Beres and Ryan Newell from Sister Hazel. He wasn’t very good, but he booked all the gigs so they let him stay in the band. When the band dissolved in the Spring 1994, Andy began promoting concerts for a local Gainesville club called Richenbachers. Sister Hazel was starting up and Andy had a great relationship with the band so they decided to work together. In 1996, Sister Hazel released an independent album and sold 10,000 copied in 90 days, leading them to sign a record deal with Universal Records. From the beginning, Andy and the band invested heavily in connecting with their fans and organized a Street Team to help spread the word about Sister Hazel. In 1997, the band earned a #1 song, “All For You”, which helped propel the album to Platinum status. As the band toured, the Street Team, called “The Hazelnuts”, continued to grow.

Sister Hazel

Promotional shot of the band.

Sister Hazel

Mark and Ryan from Sister Hazel with Andy Levine

Waterdog

Waterdog with Blues Traveler

Waterdog

Andy's band, Waterdog, which included Jett Beres of Sister Hazel, and Sixthman's current COO, Anthony Diaz.

Waterdog

Andy's band, Waterdog, which included Jett Beres of Sister Hazel, and Sixthman's current COO, Anthony Diaz.

Sister Hazel

Sister Hazel's "...Somewhere More Familiar" album.

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EARLY

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2016

2016Expanding our reach

2015

2015New office, new beginnings

2014

2014Back to back to back to back

2013

2013The beat goes on

2012

2012The missing puzzle piece

2011

2011Moving in the right direction

2010

2010Getting stronger in more ways than one

2009

2009Now we groovin'

2008

2008SOS we did too much

2007

2007Going in some new fun directions

2006

2006Turning it back up again

2005

2005Caught in the eye of the storm

2004

2004Narrowing our focus

2003

2003This may just be a good idea

2002

2002First full-ship charter

2001

2001Getting the game plan together

EARLY

EARLYLet's get this party started