A Photo Gallery and Daily Diary

The 2024 ShipRocked cruise boarded in Miami on February 4th, making stops in Ocho Rios, Jamaica and Bimini, The Bahamas, before returning to Miami on February 10th. The Carnival Magic ship experienced a couple bumps along the way due to severe weather, including slamming into a pier at Ocho Rios, which led to the cancellation of a planned stop at Grand Cayman. Nonetheless, this year’s ShipRockers were thoroughly rocked by the likes of I Prevail, Killswitch Engage, and more. Photojournalist Amy Harris was on board for Heavy Consequence. See her photo gallery and daily diary notes below, and get info on ShipRocked 2025 via the cruise’s official website.

Photo Gallery – ShipRocked 2024 (click to expand and scroll through):

DAY ONE:

• Severe weather led to some changes in schedule, but ShipRockers rallied to enjoy the festival.

• The beloved former carnival cruise director, Cookie, kicked things off with a performance of “Thriller” on the Deck Stage.

• Columbus, Ohio rockers Beartooth followed with a raucous set that sent singer Caleb Shomo’s voice roaring over the crowd.

• Crobot grooved in the theater with singer Brandon Yeagley bedazzled in a mirrored vest and skin tight black pants.

• From Ashes To New had fans singing along through hits “Broken,” “My Fight,” and “Through It All.”

• Powerful sister trio The Warning made their debut onboard. They ricocheted across the stage, as each member riled the crowd up to match their energy.

• Killswitch Engage ended the day on the Deck Stage in matching Hawaiian shirts and shorts. As “Jaws” played on the screen behind them, the band ripped through “My Curse,” “This Fire,” and “Hate By Design,” which found singer Jesse Leach serenading the crowd at the barricade.

DAY TWO:

• Day Two was a seaday, which allowed guests to relax and build out their day with more downtime.

• Morning meet and greets were Nonpoint, Dorothy, Dayseeker, and Point North.

• Afternoon meet and greets were Black Stone Cherry, Fire From the Gods, Killswitch Engage, and Highly Suspect.

• Gearheads attended a chat about Paul Reed Smith guitars with The Warning’s Daniela Villareal Vélez and I Prevail’s Dylan Bowman. The Music Experience founder and owner Squiggy DiGiacomo hosted.

• Sleep Theory’s set oozed sultry R&B vibes and their cover of *NSYNC’s “Bye, Bye, Bye” was iconic.

• Badflower’s set was cut short due to inclement weather and I Prevail had to be rescheduled entirely for the same reason.

DAY THREE: 

• On Day Three, the high winds and current caused the ship to collide with the port while ShipRockers were enjoying a stop at The Port of Ocho Rios.

• After 6 p.m., guests who had left the ship were finally able to re-board, and Fire From the Gods kicked the performances off. For singer AJ Channer, who is lovingly known as the Metal Marley because of his heritage, performing while docked in Ocho Rios was a career milestone. He dedicated “INI” to his dad and the sky cracked open with rain during the tribute.

• Nonpoint poked fun at the situation, kicking their set off with “What a Day.” Singer Elias Soriano said, “If a hole at the side of the boat ain’t going to stop us, the rain ain’t going to stop us.”

DAY FOUR:

• Day Four began with the ship still being docked in Ocho Rios for inspections.

• As the rum punch flowed, Dorothy and Dayseeker provided VIP guests with a unique acoustic experience.

• I Prevail finally got to give their headlining performance on the Deck Stage. They sent the crowd into a frenzy with “Bow Down”, “Scars” and “FWYTYK,” as well as teasers of System of a Down’s “Chop Suey” and Limp Bizkit’s “Break Stuff.”

• The Stowaways, ShipRocked’s very own curated supergroup, brought a lot of heavy hitters to the stage. Crobot’s Brandon Yeagley nailed “Give It Away” by Red Hot Chili Peppers, while Steel Panther frontman Michael Starr served up his version of “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’” by Judas Priest.

• Dead Sara’s Emily Armstrong tugged at our heartstrings with Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On,” but her cover of “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” by The Smashing Pumpkins was one of the most incredible performances from the day.

• Keith Wallen of Breaking Benjamin performed as a Stowaway before later debuting songs from his forthcoming solo project in the theater.

• Black Stone Cherry ripped through “White Trash Millionaire,” “Blind Man” and new releases “Screamin’ at the Sky” and “Nervous”. Surprisingly, the Kentucky natives also delivered a cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason.”

• First timers Winona Fighter served up a hard hitting set in the Ocean Lounge later in the evening.

DAY FIVE: 

• The day began with codes over the loudspeaker at 4:30 a.m., but the cruise continued as it became evident that these were just false alarms.

• Morning meet and greets were Badflower, Beartooth, Crobot, and Eva Under Fire. In the afternoon, guests met I Prevail, The Warning, and The Stowaways.

• ShipRocked Captain Alan Koenig hosted a Q&A, wherein he told the audience that they’re planned out until 2026 and credited them with the cruise’s success.

• The Music Experience hosted the finals for “30 Seconds to Shred” before the music began for the day. Cody and Fitz squared up to win bragging rights and a guitar.

• Dorothy took the stage to serve up rock dripping with blues and soul. Her set included hits “Down to the Bottom” and “What’s Coming to Me.”

• Beartooth, Black Stone Cherry, and Killswitch Engage delivered their second performances for the day. Killswitch was sure to include “My Last Serenade,” which had been cut from their first set. Their set was full of songs selected by fans that were submitted on dream setlist cards earlier in the week.

• Dreamy lighting set the tone for Highly Suspect’s theater set. “My Name is Human,” “Serotonia,” and “Lydia” echoed around the room.

DAY SIX:

• Members of From Ashes to New hosted Beach Wars in Bimini.

• The Warning rocked their final set aboard ShipRocked 2024.

• The fan favorite Artist Q&A included Jesse Leach of Killswitch Engage, Cullen More of Sleep Theory, The Warning’s Daniela Villarreal Vélez, Johnny Stevens from Highly Suspect, Crobot’s Brandon Yeagley, and Luna Aura.

• Eva Under Fire belted out hits “Comatose,” “Unstoppable,” and “Blow” to a packed house in the theater.

• Dead Poets Society and Dayseekers served up their final sets of the cruise.

• The Stowaways took the stage to deliver their horror themed set. Crobot’s Brandon Yeagley and Dead Sara’s Emily Armstrong gave us chills with their cover of Danzig’s “Mother.”

• Nonpoint’s Elias Soriano delivered an exceptional cover of Pantera’s “Cowboys From Hell” before teaming up with Blacktop Mojo singer Matt James on Alice Cooper’s “Feed My Frankenstein.”

• Blacktop Mojo’s Matt James delivered an otherworldly tribute to Layne Staley with Alice and Chains’ “Them Bones.”

• Steel Panther’s Michael Starr had the devil on his mind with his song choices: “Shout at the Devil” and “Running With the Devil.”

• An all-star performance of “Highway to Hell” was delivered by The Stowaways crew and The Warning.

• Badflower finally got to serve up a set without rain interruptions and absolutely killed it, closing out the Deck Stage.

The dates and ports for ShipRocked 2025 have already been announced. The ship will board January 19th, 2025, in Miami, and visit Saint Thomas and Half Moon Cay before returning on January 25th.