Charge: In 2019, The City of Birmingham wanted to curate an annual summer event that would reenergize the community, enhance tourism and bring awareness to the heartbeat of the city, the Birmingham Civil Rights District. Thus the idea of having a summer festival that would combine musical performances and empowerment sessions came into fruition and the Birmingham Freedom Fest was established. FREEDOM FEST is an empowerment and music festival celebrating Birmingham’s movements, unique culture, connection to the community, and access to content that motivates and inspires.
Solution: LRY was chosen as the official festival producer of the inaugural event in the summer of 2019 and for the virtual festival in the summer of 2020. As producers, LRY provided services such as stage and talent management, sound & visual production, sponsorship outreach, ticket sales coordination, marketing& promotions strategy, venue booking, hospitality, and all logistic & operational functions of the festival.
Results: The inaugural Birmingham Freedom Fest weekend was a tremendous success that featured live performances from :
- Ruben Studdard
- MidNight Star Band
- Musiq Soulchild
- Translate
- 8 Ball & MJG
The festival attracted over 5,000 attendees.
The 2020 virtual celebration of the Birmingham Freedom Fest went virtual due to the COVID-19 pandemic. LRY produced the virtual event providing services such as audio & visual production, talent booking, virtual stage management, marketing & promotions, and sponsorship outreach.
Live performances and guest speakers included:
- Stacey Abrams
- Corey Booker
- Rapsody
- Pastor Mike McClure Jr.
- Senator Doug Jones
The Birmingham Freedom 2020 virtual experience had over 30,000 views and garnered over 1.2 million digital impressions.