LOCKN 2023 Rumor Mill Starts Here

At this point, I feel the ship has sailed on 2023. If they were gonna put on a Halloween Event, then maybe and I really stress maybe they could get away with a Memorial Day Announcement but that’s skeptical.

in all sectors of the consumer spending economy (which is the majority of the US economy) things are tightening up everywhere. Spending is still going on, but at a reduced level. When Home Depot misses its numbers, things are looking ugly.

They, like the Dollar+ stores and auto parts shops, are counter-cyclical.  The worse things get, the better off they are. Scatter and splatter!

Maybe it's not festivals in general but Dead-centric festivals don't have the draw--because the fan base is aging out and fading away? It's largely a crowd with more than just a touch of gray at the tribute shows.

The fan base may seem like it is aging out but it is being replaced by the new generation of heads, the sons and daughters of the OG. Hell my kids are seeing more shows on this DeadCO tour than I am. The future is so bright, they'll need to wear shades...

There’s probably a dozen non dead bands they could build a festival around and sell as many tickets as they wanna print… I don’t feel Dead Music has ever been a big festival draw in the last 20 years. Bonnaroo wasn’t ever really Dead Centric, Rothbury either…. I mean String Cheese sells out Electric Forest & Hulaween every year… build an event around them. Billy Strings would sell 15,000 tickets in a two days if they went that route, Widespread too. Goose could sell 10,000 easy, STS9 could probably do about that too, the Avett’s as well, etc, etc… and then there’s Phish, they could sell 30,000-40,000 tickets for a stand alone, no other bands, festival in a few hours….

Theirs is no reason for there not to be a Lockn other than the powers that be just don’t wanna do it… the problem Pete has is vision not finances.

Goose didn’t sell out either night there.

exactly

that was the point I was making, too.   Sure there are a good number of younger people filling in the crowds at Dead bands--young being 30+--but not enough volume there. The twenty year olds are the sweet spot for many large music events. And therefore, Billy Strings and the like.

Great heads-up though. Thanks.

Not sure if this belongs here or in the 2024 rumor mill thread but I really can't think of a reason why they would renew the permit this year unless they are planning an event for this year. 

B. Review of Special Use Permit #2017-01 – “Festival Grounds”

Consideration of a review of existing Special Use Permit 2017-01 requesting County approval to use specified subject properties for a “Festival Grounds” land use. The application involves a total of seven (7) subject properties located in the Arrington area of the South District, including: Tax Map Parcel #77-A-1, which is an approximately 390-acre parcel owned by Lockn, LLC; and Tax Map Parcels #67-4-18, #67-4-18A, #67-4-20, and #77-5-15, which are owned by The Estate of Rhonda Holland & JoAnn Nesson; and Tax Map Parcels #67-A-74A and #67-A-74B, which are a total of 70.8 acres owned by James Goodwin. All subject properties are zoned Agricultural (A-1).

Tonight (7/11/23) the Nelson County Board of Supervisors, as requested, renewed the Special Use Permit for a “Festival Grounds” on adjoining properties owned by Lockn’, Oak Ridge, and James Goodwin.

Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!

Just. Give. Us. Some. Dates.