The Festy Experience has announced their second round of lineup additions today! The 8th annual festival is going down October 5-8, 2017 in the Blue Ridge Bowl at Infinity Downs Farm in Arrington, Virginia. The lineup comprises a carefully curated blend of national and local roots music acts, and additions include Ani DiFranco, Elephant Revival, Beats Antique, Joan Osborne, Sierra Hull, EmiSunshine, Della Mae, Shook Twins, Sarah Siskind & Sunliner, Phoebe Hunt, Maggie Koerner, Dori Freeman, Erin Lunsford, and Tara Mills. Danny Barnes, Nick Forster, and Gallatin Canyon have also been recently added!
Other performers already announced include The Infamous Stringdusters, Drive-By Truckers, Sam Bush Band, The Travelin’ McCourys, The Jerry Douglas Band, Cabinet, Billy Strings, Love Canon, Carl Anderson, and The 8th Annual Garrettgrass Gospel Hour.
With half of the lineup consisting of female artists, The Festy Experience Director Michael Allenby says, “We recognize that the previous version of the music industry is hurting and can not invest in artists and progress their careers. It is now the promoter’s job to evolve the industry and we believe that gender equality is a critical issue. Other industries often claim that gender inequality is a ‘pipeline issue’ that will take a long time to evolve; however, there’s no shortage of amazing female artists and performers. The marketing of this talent happens AT festivals… not just FOR festivals.
“The fact that the first half of this year’s Festy lineup was ALL MEN went surprisingly unnoticed by most.” Allenby continues, “We see unbalanced programming too often and wanted to do something to draw attention to the issue. It’s one of many progressive changes that The Festy intends to roll out over the coming years and we are challenging promoters to make social progress a priority in all aspects of large-scale community gatherings.”
More information can also be found on the event’s website.
The Festy Experience ~ Full 2017 Lineup:
The Infamous Stringdusters
Ani DiFranco
Drive-By Truckers
Elephant Revival
Sam Bush Band
Beats Antique
The Jerry Douglas Band
Joan Osborne
The Travelin’ McCourys
Sierra Hull
Danny Barnes & Nick Forster
EmiSunshine
Garrettgrass Gospel Hour
Della Mae
Cabinet
Shook Twins
Billy Strings
Sarah Siskind & Sunliner
Carl Anderson
Phoebe Hunt
Love Canon
Maggie Koerner
Dori Freeman
Erin Lunsford
Gallatin Canyon
Tara Mills