There’s a camarilla inside the Springfest board that is doing its best to undermine our efforts to bring back music to the downtown streets of Pensacola. It’s the typical Pensacola smear campaign – all behind our backs, purposely misstating what I’ve said at speaking engagements and attacking every element of the event – location, ticket prices, entertainment.
The only reason I’m doing the Hawkshaw Music Fest is because the Springfest board canceled the event for the second consecutive year, and the PNJ announced on its front page that the event was dead. I saw not having a Spring music festival as a step backward for this town.
Funny thing has been its only the Springfest wannabes of recent years that are upset. The founders and others that built the event to one of the top in the Southeast are very supportive. For them, Hawkshaw is closer to Springfest than the financial failures of the past four years. The local bands, promoters and radio stations couldn’t be more supportive.
Hawkshaw isn’t Springfest
Hawkshaw tickets $5-$10;Springfest $30
Hawkshaw Sat & Sun; Springfest Fri-Sun
Hawkshaw 100% net proceeds to charity; Springfest ???
Hawkshaw Free for active duty military; Springfest $30
Hawkshaw 2 stages; Springfest 5 stages
My suggestion to the Springfest board is get over it. If you want to bring back a music festival in 2008, then do it yourselves and quit pushing the heavy lifting off on others like Classic Sports Group, SMG or Quietwater Entertainment. If your own money was at risk, you might take a different approach to the event.
Pensacola can support more than one music festival. We already have Pensacola Jazz Fest, Grace Fest and Crawfish Creole Festival that are all in the Spring.
Is Springfest dead? We will know in 12 to 18 months. More music is more better.
Until then quit, trying to steal our thunder.