Advertisement

arts entertainmentPop Music

Homegrown festival in Dallas *will* happen -- and there are already plans for 2019

After the organizers of Dallas' Homegrown Music and Arts Festival issued a plea for help last week, seeking as many as 5,000 ticket buyers, we've learned the show will go on.

The one-day festival on May 12 will feature Explosions in the Sky, the Black Angels, Alvvays and more. It's one of Dallas' best fests, our music Kelly Dearmore has said. Good thing it'll happen, says Robert Wilonsky: "I cannot imagine a spring without a Homegrown," he wrote in April.

The festival was able to "close the gap" on losing six figures, says Joshua Florence, director of Homegrown Festival. He didn't want to get specific. But -- and there always seems to be a but with local music festivals these days -- they didn't sell all 5,000 tickets they wanted to, and tickets are still for sale now, both online and at the door.

Advertisement
News Roundups

Catch up on the day's news you need to know.

Or with:

"It's a risky business," Florence says of music festivals, "and we know what we got ourselves into."

He calls it "a bump in the road" this year, where ticket sales were hard to come by during a season when many Dallas-area music festivals are in limbo. There's still a big question mark over whether EdgeFest, a popular and long-running festival, will return. "We pull for all of our local festivals," Florence says, noting that most of his peers are also facing hardships.

Advertisement

But he seems excited as ever for Homegrown 2019, which will be the festival's 10th anniversary. In fact, Florence is confident Homegrown will happen in spring of that year and at the same venue, Main Street Garden in downtown Dallas.

"We've had Homegrown 10 circled on our calendar for 10 years," he says. "Even if this year is kind of a bump in the road and difficult for us, we are planning to be All Systems Go for next year." Since it's a 10-year celebration, he hopes that it may feature a more expansive lineup.

It appears as though Homegrown will operate at some kind of loss this year, and Florence urges music fans to show their support. Tickets cost $42 for general admission, $125 for VIP (which includes special bathrooms). Kids 10 and under get in for free. Homegrown superfans can pay $999 and get a "lifetime VIP pass" to Homegrown and a sister festival, Old 97's County Fair, among other perks.

Advertisement

Find event details about Homegrown on May 12 in downtown Dallas.

Kids are welcome at Homegrown Fest. Dogs, too. (Here, 7-month-old Sawyer Warren and Cody...
Kids are welcome at Homegrown Fest. Dogs, too. (Here, 7-month-old Sawyer Warren and Cody Warren listen to Lower Dens at Homegrown Music & Arts Festival in Dallas in 2017.)(Jason Janik / Special Contributor)