Jim Holt, President of Memphis In May says that Beale Street Music Festival will NOT return in 2024.
MEMPHIS IN MAY ANNOUNCES 2024 EVENTS
AND SUSPENSION OF BEALE STREET
MUSIC FESTIVAL NEXT YEAR
October 12, 2023 – Memphis, TN. – Memphis in May International Festival released
dates and venues for the organization’s 2024 festival events.
The 2024 Beale Street Music Festival will be paused and will not take place. The World
Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest will be held at Liberty Park May 15-18, 2024,
and the Great American River Run, will be held Downtown Memphis, on May 25, 2024.
In 2023, attendance at the Beale Street Music Festival suffered a significant decline,
with attendance at the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest dropping as
well. As a result of multiple factors, including attendance decline, the organization
reported a record financial loss of $3.48 million from the 2023 festival operations.
The programming changes for the 2024 festival events were due to the significant
financial loss in 2023, challenges producing the festival in the new Tom Lee Park, and
the uncertainty surrounding a lawsuit filed against the festival by the Memphis River
Parks Partnership.
The Beale Street Music Festival is being paused in 2024 to explore all options to
present an event in the future that meets the standards and authenticity expected of the
brand. “Obviously, Memphis in May has built a very authentic brand beginning with the
name and location of the music festival,” said James L. Holt, 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.”
