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Indianapolis added one homegrown music festival in 2024, while three others were put on hold because of financial challenges in the concert industry.
WonderRoad and All IN, two multi-day festivals that debuted in 2022 and returned in 2023, were absent from the summer schedule. The first two editions of WonderRoad were staged at Garfield Park and featured headliners such as Weezer and Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit. The first two editions of All IN were staged at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and featured headliners such as Cage the Elephant and Trey Anastasio.
Also taking a break in 2024: Back Alley Ballyhoo, a psych rock gathering in Fountain Square that debuted in 2017. Festival co-founder Patrick Burtch told IBJ he would like to bring the event back in 2025, but box office losses in 2022 and 2023 dictated a pause in 2024.
“I feel like the festival market has been so inflated,” Burtch said. “Asking prices for bands are so high at this point. It’s just very difficult to make it financially feasible unless you’re one of the big boys who have big pots of money to play with.”
Indianapolis-based cultural development organization GangGang gave it a go by presenting the first “I Made Rock ’n’ Roll” festival in May at American Legion Mall. The single-day Black music festival was designed to honor rock ’n’ roll originators Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Fats Domino and Sister Rosetta Tharpe.
The artist lineup for I Made Rock ’n’ Roll included Janelle Monae and Gary Clark Jr.
Outside the realm of music, two new festivals showcased local arts on the rise. PlayFest Indy debuted in September with Indianapolis-based New Harmony Project pairing eight professional theater companies with in-progress works by national playwrights. In October, Indiana Humanities organized the first “Proof: A Midwest Lit Fest” and its 10 public conversations, five author readings and four writing workshops.•
Check out more year-in-review stories from 2024.
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