CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Charleston officials and the Moses Live on the Levee music committee announced the 2015 lineup for the 12th annual outdoor concert series Friday.
A press conference was held at Haddad Riverfront Park at the Schoenbaum Stage in Charleston, where the series will take place every Friday night from May 22 through Sept. 4.
The event includes live music of various styles including local and national acts, free of charge. This year, there will be 16 weekly nights of entertainment.
Adam Harris, committee chairman, said there will be 11 returning acts and 13 new names. He said over 100 performers were considered this year, but they could only fill 31 slots.
Landau Eugene Murphy Jr., “American’s Got Talent” winner, will headline the Fourth of July weekend concert with the Ryan Kennedy Trio.
Charleston City Councilman Tom Lane said Live on the Levee brings in about 2,000 people every Friday night, at the minimum. He said on a good night they see crowds exceeding 20,000 people at what he called a “family event.”
“The biggest impact I think we have is making Charleston a vibrant community where people want to come and live. We’re having people move to downtown Charleston and one of the reasons is the impact that all the activities have,” said Lane.
Lane said the reason why the concert serious is so popular is because of its reputation over the years.
“People can count on having live entertainment every Friday. It’s become part of our summer events and people see that this is the place to come,” he said.
Boaters can also be apart of the event. Organizers said they’re working to allow boaters to listen to the concert on the Kanawha River through FM radio broadcasts. Those FM frequencies will be announced before each concert.
David Molgaard, city council manager, announced a new feature this year. A new smartphone app “charlestonwvmobile” will be added, so residents can get mobile updates or cancellations due to bad weather.
For more information on the concert serious visit www.liveontheleveecharleston.com.
The lineup is as follows:
May 22: Groove Heavy and Stratus
May 29: Meet Me In the Matinee and Tape Age
June 5: Mothers Nature
June 12: White Chapel District and Siren’s Song
June 19: Spurgie Hankins and the Zach Deputy Band
June 26: The Carpenter Ants and Red Wanting Blue
July 3: Ryan Kennedy Trio and Landau Eugene Murphy
July 10: Blue Yonder and Morgan White
July 17: Coyotes in Boxes and Qiet
July 24: Beggar’s Clan and I-Vibes
July 31:A Story Told and The Company Stores
Aug. 7: Farnsworth and Almost Queen
Aug. 14: Jeff Ray Band and Trent Tomlinson
Aug. 21: The CharlieWest All-Stars and The Esquires
Aug. 28: The Joseph Sisters and Cody Wickline
Sept. 4: Blackwater Mojo and Ronnie Baker Brooks