Folk Alliance International (FAI) will host a significant music gathering in Kansas City, Missouri, from Feb. 21-25, 2024. The conference and showcase is primarily attended by artists as well as industry professionals and folk radio DJs. FAI stands out for its fostering of a do-it-yourself (DIY), communal, and collaborative spirit.
Many renowned artists, including Anais Mitchell, Chris Thile, Valerie June, and others, began their journey at FAI before achieving fame. Returning as nominees or winners of the International Folk Music Awards, they often speak fondly of the community’s early support. The next breakout artist in roots music is likely to grace the FAI stage in 2024.
The atmosphere resembles a condensed version of SXSW, with networking sessions during the day and nightly showcases extending until the early hours. These intimate performances, held in creatively adorned hotel rooms, offer a favorite aspect of FAI. The event includes a diverse lineup of artists from around the world, earning praise for its expansive music spectrum.
Noteworthy demographic shifts within FAI reflect broader changes in the industry. Initiatives like the Cultural Equity Council, featuring influential members like Dom Flemons and Lilli Lewis, aim to drive further progress.
Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary fame, will deliver a keynote address. Stookey’s speech will underscore the enduring power of folk music to provoke thought, inspire discourse, and catalyze social change.
Among the artists announced to be performing Official Showcases are:
* Bodega, California’s Rainbow Girls;
* JUNO Award nominee and multiple Maple Blues Award winner Matt Andersen;
* Arkansas’ Willi Carlisle;
* Jolie Holland;
* Flamy Grant, winner of 2023 Kerrville New Folk Competition;
* Canadian-Grenadian and Smithsonian Folkways Recordings artist Kaia Kater;
* Olive Klug, who found success on TikTok;
* Tony Award winner John Gallagher Jr., star of Broadway’s American Idiot, Spring Awakening, and the upcoming Avett Brothers musical Swept Away;
* 2022 International Folk Music Award Song of the Year winner Crys Matthews;
* Memphis’ Amy LaVere;
* The Steel Wheels;
* Livingston Taylor, writer of four Billboard Top Forty hits and subject of a 2019 PBS special;
* IBMA Momentum Vocalist Award winner AJ Lee and Blue Summit
* Hit songwriter Bruce Sudano;
* Three-time JUNO Award Winner, Connie Kaldor;
* Austin’s Gina Chavez;
* New Orleans’ Handmade Moments, who incorporate alto sax, bass clarinet, sousaphone, mandolin, guitar, and beatboxing and were subjects of the documentary Busking, which screened at dozens of film festivals around the world;
* Justin Adams, frequent Robert Plant collaborator, & Mauro Durante;
* English singer John Smith, International Folk Music Award-nominee with over 100 million Spotify streams of his music;
* Jorge Glem, Venezuelan virtuoso cuatro player, and Sam Reider Present Brooklyn-Cumaná;
* Memphissippi Sounds, a blend of North Mississippi hill country blues, Memphis blues and soul, rock, and hip-hop featuring Cameron Kimbrough, grandson of blues legend Junior Kimbrough;
* Three-time Scottish Traditional Music Awards Live Act of the Year winners Skerryvore;
* IBMA Momentum Band award winners Still House Junkies
More About the Theme
Folk Alliance International’s 2024 Conference theme Alchemy: A Transformative Force explores how changes in culture alter the ways we make and share music, which, in turn, transforms lives and changes the world. The power of alchemy can manifest, for example, when an artist processes their individual pain into words and vibrations that connect and comfort listeners. The alchemy theme invites us to lean into processes of discovery and experimentation, and to think about how we nurture the sparks of creativity that light fires of change.
2024 Schedule: folk.org/programs/conference/schedule-at-a-glance
Author: World Music Central News Room
World music news from the editors at World Music Central