MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – Memphis in May unveiled the lineup for the 2023 Beale Street Music Festival on Monday.
This year’s top acts include The Lumineers, Greta Van Fleet, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss and Earth Wind & Fire.
Other big acts for the 2023 festival include Hardy, Jazmine Sullivan, The Roots, AJR, 311, GloRilla, Gary Clark Jr, Ziggy Marly, Young the Giant, Halestorm, Live, PJ Morton, The Struts, Gov’t Mule, Dru Hill, Mike., Andy Grammer, Yola, Toadies, Lucinda Williams, Living Colour, Finesse2Tymes and Big Boogie.
This year’s festival is set to take place on May 5-7 at Tom Lee Park, which is still under construction.
“We are good to go.”
Those words came from the head of Memphis in May (MIM) on Monday, as the non-profit announced the long-awaited line-up for the 2023 Beale Street Music Festival.
“Quite honestly, five months ago, I wasn’t sure we were going to be back,” said Jim Holt, MIM president and CEO, “but we’re happy to be back.”
“It’s so exciting that we’re going to be back in our home in Tom Lee Park in 67 days,” said MIM Board Chairwoman Leigh Shockey. “We’re so excited to be going back home.”
“We’ve lost about 40% of the space we’d typically use for the festival,” said Holt, “and that’s going to cause a reduction in capacity for the music festival.”
Along with the new park layout this year, MIM is celebrating a new style, of sorts. Local artist Danny Broadway created the 2023 commemorative music fest poster. Memphis in May’s longtime artistic collaborator, George Hunt, passed away in 2020.
Broadway says Hunt was a mentor to him. The two shared gallery space together.
“He was such a nice representation of what an artist should be,” Broadway told Action News 5, “and this is a very exciting day for me. This is a wonderful crowd on a beautiful day.”
Broadway’s imagery for the 2023 Music Fest poster is designed to evoke a certain emotion in this season of the City of Memphis.
“The image, in my mind, is very positive, and represents something that’s needed for Memphis, something that has a healing quality,” he said. “I hope it will be translated that way.”
One little hitch? Memphis in May and Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) still need to ink a deal on the Tom Lee Park lease agreement.
“I’ve got an agreement sitting in my office waiting for clarification from the city on one issue,” said Holt. “But I have a signed contract from the MRPP president, so we’re good to go!”
Because of space limitations at Tom Lee Park, the popular Blues Tent will be on Beale Street in Handy Park. The entrance will be free.
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