Faithful fans of the Philadelphia Folk Festival endure showers to see new acts, veteran performers
Faithful fans of world, blues, and folk music endured a weekend of intermittent showers to see a broad roster of performances at the 57th Philadelphia Folk Festival.
Faithful fans of world, blues, and folk music endured a weekend of intermittent showers to see a broad roster of performances at the 57th Philadelphia Folk Festival in Upper Salford Township.
This year, the festival made a commitment to creating more gender balanced and culturally diverse performances, aiming to include more female, world music, and international performers in their lineup.
While veteran musicians, Tom Paxton, Chris Smithers and BeauSoleil among others returned, many of the newer acts brought the audience to their feet as well.
The crowd was quickly won over by what may have been the festival’s most unlikely musical pairing. The Mongolian throat singing group ALASH was joined by Baltimore-based beatboxer Shodekeh. Earlier in the day, festival first-timer, Venessa Collier, a soul, funk, and blues vocalist, songwriter, and saxophonist kept her newfound fans on their feet during the closing set of WXPN’s Philly Local Showcase.
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