Organizers unveil the future of Raleigh's Dreamville Festival
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Dreamville Festival has made Raleigh the hottest city in North Carolina the first weekend in April since it launched in 2018. Photo: Courtesy of Dreamville Festival
Raleigh's Dreamville Festival will continue in the city under a new brand, Sascha Stone Guttfreund, a promoter with Dreamville and Live Nation, said in a news conference Thursday with Raleigh officials.
Why it matters: The news, which comes two days before the fifth Dreamville is set to begin, is welcome after North Carolina-born rapper J. Cole announced earlier this year that this festival would be the last in its current form.
- Cole will remain involved, but it's unclear whether he will perform in future festivals.
Driving the news: The city has been in talks with Live Nation for months about continuing the festival.
- The pair signed an agreement Thursday that commits the festival to running in the city for another four years at Dix Park.
- Raleigh city manager Marchell Adams-David said the agreement does not include a financial subsidy from the city.
The big picture: Since it launched in 2018, Dreamville has become one of Raleigh's signature cultural events and a serious driver of the local economy. It brings in tens of thousands of visitors who book hotels, eat at local restaurants and shop local vendors.
- In 2023, Dreamville visitors spent $122 million in the area, according to a report commissioned by festival organizers.
Between the lines: But with J. Cole taking a step back, it has left the future of the festival, especially under the Dreamville name, uncertain.
State of play: While no name has yet been picked for the new festival, Adams-David said she expects it to remain similar in content and style.
- "We're going to continue on the same path that's been successful for us," she said. "Consumers have told us what they like, and we're going to try to provide that to them for the next four years."
What they're saying: Ibrahim "Ib" Hamad, president of Dreamville Records and J. Cole's manager, said Dreamville has always wanted to create something special for J. Cole's home state.
- "North Carolina is Cole's home. This is where he started ... so we always wanted to bring something back to the state," Hamad said.
- But in Raleigh, he added, it's found a helpful partner that is also strategically located on the East Coast.
- "The location is great because ... you can drive from Atlanta, you could drive from New York, you could drive from so many places because [North Carolina] is really right there in the middle," he said. "I always felt like there was a void of, you know, a big festival like this" in the state.