Firefly Music Festival dropped its lineup – the first under new ownership – on December 10. Earlier than many of its fans expected. The branding that has been available both before and after the lineup release seems quite different from the look we have been used to. The marketing has been organized and though I haven’t done any official analysis, seems to be more frequent and cohesive.

Anecdotally, it seems the lineup has gotten mixed reviews. Many of the members of the Fest’s Unofficial/Official Fan Page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/FireflyFestyFans/)  have shared opinions across a spectrum. This group has more than 15,000 members and is an awesome place to exchange Firefly information and to connect with and discuss all kinds of music related topics.

This is my local festival. It is not only the one that started my love of music festivals seven years ago, it is also one I had the opportunity to support as a Brand Ambassador for several years. Although that opportunity came to an end with the transfer in management, this one is still very close to my heart – so I tend to give them the benefit of the doubt.

For what it’s worth, here are my early thoughts:

As someone in my early 30s, I am certainly not the “target demo” for most festivals, especially one like Firefly that seems to have moved towards catering to a younger demographic. That said – from a business perspective their shift seems to make sense. I start here because the main complaint I have heard is that the headliners are not what we expected or are used to from the past. To me – these headliners are aimed at their target audience and also likely based on a lot of research and fan feedback that “we” don’t have access to. That said, I am super excited for Panic! and excited to see some new faces on a lineup that in the past has featured some significant repeats.

I also think that once you really start digging into the lineup, the undercard is far deeper than we have seen in the past. I haven’t had the opportunity to start digging in and exploring via some of the awesome Spotify playlists out there, such as these:

Every year, I discover at least one or two new favorites deep in the undercard of Firefly that I had never heard before. And I am excited to explore the lineup more in the coming weeks. That’s how I first came across Pell (one of my all time favorites -see ACL 2017 post) and where I got to see Alice Merton for the first time.

For now, I can say that I can already list off a number of bands I am excited to see below the top line: TLC, Arkells, Dennis Lloyd, Awolnation, Two Feet, lovelytheband (of course!!!), AJR, Sir Sly and Walk the Moon – just to name a few.

Look for a bunch more posts on all things Firefly in the coming weeks. I have been every year and am happy to answer questions or share stories.