The Blankets and Wine September edition that took place on Sunday, September 28, at Laureate Gardens, Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani, Nairobi, was arguably Kenya’s biggest concert of 2025, attracting tens of thousands of revellers, majorly due to the headline act; Grammy award-winning Nigerian singer Tems.

As of Monday, September 29, social media was dominated by numerous complaints regarding the event despite the performances from her and other acts such as Joshua Baraka, Toxic Lyrikali, Chimano, among others. However, one stood out: network issues.

In a world where digital has become a part of our lives, constant network issues left revellers infuriated, unable to complete their payments via mobile money transactions and log onto the internet to share minute-by-minute updates of the highly anticipated event.

Even worse, some revellers reported being unable to receive calls, hence an emergency, which thankfully did not occur, would have gone almost unnoticed across the country, leading to delayed responses.

Our editor at Viral Tea, who was covering the event, reported similar issues, and given that this is a real-time digital platform, capturing and posting vital updates of the concert on social media was a tall order, and some had to wait until departure from the concert before they could be shared.

If you have ever been at a packed concert or stadium and wondered why your phone stops working, you are not alone. Despite showing full signal bars, calls fail, texts hang, and mobile data slows to a crawl.

As we found out, the culprit is not your phone but the network, which struggles to handle thousands of people trying to connect in the same place at the same time.

Mobile networks function through a web of cell towers that connect phones to the wider internet. Each tower has a limited number of users it can serve simultaneously and a fixed amount of spectrum—the radio frequencies that carry voice and data.

When tens of thousands of people gather in one space, such as a stadium or concert venue, in this case, those limits are quickly reached. Towers reach maximum capacity, and many phones attempting to connect are rejected. Even when devices connect, the available bandwidth is split among so many users that speeds slow to a crawl.

This explains why phones may still display full bars but fail to work properly. Signal bars only measure the strength of a phone’s connection to the tower, not whether the tower itself has the capacity to process all that traffic. It is like standing outside a nightclub—you can clearly see the door, but if the club is already at maximum capacity, the bouncer will not let you in.

The problem has intensified because of how people now use their devices. 10 years ago, eventgoers were mostly making calls or sending texts. Today, audiences livestream shows, upload videos in real time, and rely on messaging apps that consume far more bandwidth. These data-heavy habits strain networks that were never designed to handle thousands of simultaneous uploads from the same location.

The congestion often peaks at particular moments. During a goal at the World Cup, when the headliner steps on stage at Coachella, or when a political candidate makes a key speech, entire crowds instinctively reach for their phones.

In that instant, tens of thousands of devices attempt to upload or stream content simultaneously, overwhelming whatever additional capacity may have been installed. This was a common problem we also witnessed during the African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024 tournament in Nairobi.

Several factors explain why networks collapse in such situations, with spectrum scarcity being the most significant.

Telecom companies only control a limited range of frequencies allocated by governments, and they cannot simply expand spectrum on demand. Each coverage area, or cell, also has a hard cap on how many users it can handle simultaneously. Once that threshold is reached, new attempts fail.

Backhaul capacity is another constraint. Towers must be linked back to the wider internet through fiber cables or microwave links. If those links are overloaded, speeds collapse regardless of how much spectrum is available. Interference from thousands of devices transmitting in proximity only adds to the inefficiency.

To manage these challenges, operators have experimented with several solutions. Temporary towers, known as “cells on wheels,” are deployed to boost coverage for large events.

Further, distributed antenna systems use multiple smaller antennas within a stadium or concert ground to spread the traffic more evenly. Small cells—miniature towers—are often installed in and around venues to relieve pressure on larger towers.

Some venues provide free Wi-Fi to divert users away from mobile networks, while the rollout of 5G brings new features that can handle dense crowds more efficiently.

These measures help, but are not perfect. Temporary systems are costly, Wi-Fi can also become congested if not managed properly, and 5G coverage remains uneven. Not all devices can benefit from 5G’s capacity either, leaving many users still stuck with older technologies.

Solving the issue of network overload at concerts requires action from both telecom operators and event organizers.

Carriers in Kenya can invest more in small-cell networks, which bring capacity closer to users. By blanketing stadiums or arenas with dozens of mini-towers, each serving a fraction of the crowd, congestion can be reduced significantly. This approach has already been tested in major sports venues, where small cells are installed under seats or in light fixtures to distribute the load.

Another option is network slicing on 5G networks. This technology allows carriers to dedicate specific slices of the network for particular uses, such as emergency services, livestreaming, or even event apps. By prioritizing critical communication, carriers can ensure that not all services collapse when demand peaks.

Event organizers can also play a role by integrating managed Wi-Fi systems that complement mobile networks. Well-designed Wi-Fi infrastructure can take a meaningful portion of the traffic off cellular networks. Some music festivals already use private Wi-Fi networks to support media teams, staff, and vendors, reducing their reliance on mobile carriers.

Policy changes could also help. Regulators could free up temporary spectrum licenses for major events, giving carriers additional frequencies to work with. Countries like the United States and the United Kingdom have experimented with dynamic spectrum allocation, which allows operators to borrow underused spectrum for short periods.

On the consumer side, better awareness can make a difference. Users can download tickets, maps, or playlists in advance to avoid relying on congested networks.

Sending texts instead of high-data messages increases the chances of communication getting through. Some people deliberately use older technologies like SMS, which require less bandwidth and often succeed where apps fail.

Ultimately, though, the burden falls on the telecom industry to innovate. Carriers are under pressure not only from consumers who expect flawless service everywhere but also from event organizers who face reputational risks when networks collapse.

The long-term answer may involve a mix of 5G upgrades, shared infrastructure among operators, dynamic spectrum allocation, and smarter venue design that bakes connectivity into event planning.

The arrival of 5G—and eventually 6G—offers the strongest hope for crowded events. 5G is designed for ultra-dense environments and introduces innovations like massive MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output), which uses many antennas to serve large numbers of users at once, and beamforming, which directs signals to specific devices rather than broadcasting broadly.

These advances will reduce congestion, but they cannot fully eliminate the problem. Spectrum will always be finite, and human behavior—everyone reaching for their phones at once—will continue to create spikes that challenge even the best-designed networks.

The more realistic solution lies in collaboration. Telecom companies, regulators, and event organizers must work together to ensure connectivity is treated as an essential part of modern live events. Just as organizers plan for sound systems, security, and sanitation, they may increasingly need to plan for digital traffic flow. Audiences expect not only to experience the moment live but also to share it instantly, and networks must evolve to support that demand.

In the end, mobile networks fail at concerts not because of poor coverage but because of overwhelming demand. While telecom operators are deploying smarter infrastructure and investing in new technologies, digital traffic jams remain a stubborn reality.

The next time your message will not send at a concert, remember that it is not your phone’s fault. It is the unavoidable collision of physics, technology, and human behavior in a world where everyone wants to go live at once.