Why Moon River Festival Is Skipping 2024

After five years in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the Moon River Festival is hitting the pause button for 2024. Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly joins hosts Barry, Lord Taco, and Bryan Stone on The What Podcast to discuss possible reasons why.Despite three sell-out years in Chattanooga, Moon River won’t be returning for what Mayor Kelly admits are complicated reasons. He points to the general impact of inflation, as well as the economics of a festival in 2024.But while he hopes Moon River will return at some point in the future, he’s not waiting around for the stars to align. “I can tell you behind the scenes, we’re talking to some folks about trying to stand up something local,” Mayor Kelly says, noting the event would focus on “local and smaller artists.” “Because the consolidation of the festival business isn’t helpful to any of this either, because there aren’t enough entrants and competitors.”Listen to the full chat or watch it via YouTube. While you’re at it, go ahead and like, review, and subscribe to The What Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.______ CHAPTERS (00:00:00) Intro (00:17:35) Interview with Mayor Tim Kelly (01:03:23) Outro______ CaveFest at The Caverns, Oct 10-11, 2026 | Get Tickets Here! 🎧 LISTEN LINKS Website: https://thewhatpodcast.com Spotify: https://thewhat.co/spotify Apple Podcasts: https://thewhat.co/applepodcasts YouTube Music: https://thewhat.co/youtubemusic Amazon Music: https://thewhat.co/amazonmusic 📱 SOCIAL LINKS Discord: https://discord.gg/zShHTeCYGn YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thewhatpodcast X: https://x.com/thewhat_podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewhatpodcast/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewhatpodcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thewhatpodcast The What Podcast theme: "Aquarius" by *repeat repeat, used with permission. Other music provided by Midist and used with permission. We love to hear from you! Send us an email at [email protected] or call (423) 667-7877 and leave us a voicemail. We might just feature it on the show.