The 34th Annual Pollstar Awards were held on Wednesday evening in Beverly Hills California, and Newport Folk Festival had a big night – once being named Music Festival of the Year.
According to Pollstar, the Pollstar Awards, presented by Live Nation, is the only peer-voted live entertainment industry awards and the most relevant and coveted recognition for achievement in the touring and live events industry.
Newport Folk Festival walked away from the awards ceremony with an award for Music Festival of The Year (Global; under 30k attendance). Other nominees in that category included the All Things Go Music Festival in Columbia, Maryland; FORMAT in Bentonville, Arkansas; Ohana Festival in Dana Point, California; Portola Music Festival in San Francisco, California; and Sound on Sound Music Festival in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
“So grateful for our entire team and community; while we don’t do it for the awards, the recognition from our peers means the world to us,” Jay Sweet, Executive Producer of Newport Festivals Foundation, producer of Newport Folk Festival and Newport Jazz Festival, shared with What’sUpNewp. “We know we are a unique event in live music so it’s always a surprise. We hope to continue to make a difference and make Newport and Rhode Island proud of our festivals.”
Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin, Texas, took the honor of being named Music Festival of the Year (Global; over 30k attendance).
See a full list of winners and an event recap here – Harry Styles, Bad Bunny Among 2023 Pollstar Award Winners; Chappelle, Grohl & Henley Make Surprise Cameos
In recent years, Newport Folk Festival was named Music Festival Of The Year for festivals held in 2012, 2014 2016, and 2019.
What’sUpNewp has reached out to Newport Folk Festival for comment.
The sold-out 2023 Newport Folk Festival will take place July 28 – 30, 2023, at Fort Adams State Park.
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