Earth Day Music Fest & Expo stretches four days across the Myrtle Beach area
.JPG "Kaity Essel of Conway dances at The Annual Earth Day Music Fest The Boathouse in Myrtle Beach in 2013. File photo.")
With the eighth annual Earth Day Music Fest & Expo kicking off Thursday and running through Sunday, the Surge spoke with Kristi Jacques Falk, executive director of the Wellness Council for South Carolina for a progress report.
Falk is cofounder of the expo – along with Jared Hendrix of Surfrider Foundation and Curtis Freeman of Compassion Music.
The event website, www.earthdaymusicfest.com, sums up the thrust of the weekend:
“We are creating several partnerships to bring you a full weekend of great music and entertainment, all in an effort to raise awareness of the environment and ways you can be a better steward of our Mother Earth.”
The festival will take place at several locations this year, including House of Blues, the Boathouse and Riverfront Park in Conway.
From humble beginnings in 2008, Falk is pleased with its trajectory.
“It started off very small on the soccer field at Market Common and then it grew very quickly the first couple of years,” she said, adding that weather issues became a challenge at times.
But weather, she says, is one of the reasons for the festival in the first place.
“The increase in the storms and all of the droughts out west – it’s all connected, and so we are doing this festival for that very reason – to get people more aware.”
The weather issues were also the reason for seeking out partnerships with the venues.
“We started working with House of Blues and the Boathouse a few years ago and they have been wonderful,” she said.
This year marks Conway’s first as a participating partner for events at Riverfront Park.
“The City of Conway has been fantastic setting us up for the festival downtown, and [Conway] City Council was all for it. We have good people that we are working with this year, and everybody is really excited.”
The Wellness Council’s mission, according to Falk, is promoting healthy living through education – and Earth Day is a logical extension of this.
“People always wonder why we do things for the environment – going green and Earth Day – but it’s all connected,” she said. “You can’t be truly well if the environment is unhealthy.”
Schedule of events
Thursday | Fashion | Art | Music event at the Boathouse Waterway Grill from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Features live music by Electric Soul Pandemic and ALLAREONE. The Boathouse is at 201 Fantasy Harbour Blvd., Myrtle Beach.
Friday | moe. plays at The House of Blues at Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach at 8 p.m. The House of Blues is offering a farm-to-table menu, live music in the concert hall and on the Deck, and an electronics recycling program.
Saturday | Blackberry Smoke plays at the House of Blues at 7:30 p.m. Conway Riverfront Park is hosting the EDMF Outdoor Family Event with music, kids events, local vendors and more.
Sunday | The Boathouse has more live music from 2-8 p.m., featring Sweet Sweet, Sideways Derby, TreeHouse!, Resinated and Ballyhoo!
This story was originally published April 15, 2015 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Earth Day Music Fest & Expo stretches four days across the Myrtle Beach area."