Memphis in May scraps Beale Street Music Festival in 2024. Here's what we know.
Memphis in May has suspended Beale Street Music Festival for 2024,
The three-day music festival will not be held in 2024, according to an email from Memphis in May obtained Thursday by The Commercial Appeal. Memphis in May sent a new release officially announcing the news later Thursday afternoon.
"We wanted to share that the Board of Directors has made the very difficult decision to suspend the Beale Street Music Festival in 2024," said Kevin Grothe, vice president of sponsorships for Memphis in May, in the email.
Grothe added that several factors played into the decision including, "record financial loss in 2022 and 2023... decline in attendance, increasing costs of artists fees, and the extraordinary $1.4 million bill to repair Tom Lee Park."
In the same email, Memphis in May confirmed that it would be moving forward with its two other major events: the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest, which will take place May 15-18 at Liberty Park, and the Great American River Run, set for May 25, in Downtown Memphis.
The news release stated the music fest was being paused "to explore all options to present an event in the future that meets the standards and authenticity expected of the brand. "
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"Obviously, Memphis in May has built a very authentic brand beginning with the name and location of the music festival," said James L. Holt, Memphis in May president and CEO. "With a pending lawsuit and the event now unwelcomed in the new Tom Lee Park, future Beale Street Music Festivals will face fundamental challenges."
The news comes following Memphis in May's Oct. 3 announcement that it had suffered a record $3.48 million loss from its 2023 operations. It also reported attendance at Beale Street Music Festival “fell to its lowest level in over thirty years at 37,805."
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Beale Street Music Festival returned to Tom Lee Park this year for the first time since 2019. It was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was held at Liberty Park in 2022 due to ongoing renovations at Tom Lee Park.
But the return of Memphis in May events — including music fest and the barbecue contest — to Tom Lee Park proved to be costly.
The festival's events at Tom Lee resulted in $1,425,366 damages, which are owed to the Memphis River Parks Partnership, which manages the park. In September, Memphis River Parks filed a lawsuit against Memphis in May, seeking to collect an outstanding balance of $675,000 for the damages to Tom Lee.
"We have proudly presented the Beale Street Music Festival as a world-class entertainment event for nearly half a century," 2024 board chair Al Gossett said in the news release. "Our board's decision is to not disappoint or underdeliver against the high standards and expectations of fans and supporters of this city's largest annual event and signature music festival."
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis in May's Beale Street Music Festival won't be held in 2024
