THE DAY LIVE MUSIC FESTIVALS RETURNED TO KELOWNA - OCTOBER 5, 2021
by Miles Overn
The Long Wait For Something Huge
It had been a long time since there had been a music festival in Kelowna, or at least it sure felt that way. When Covid hit early in 2020, the entire live music industry seemed to shudder to a sudden halt. Major international touring artists and bands cancelled
whole tours in an instant, and live music fans everywhere felt the immediate onset of withdrawal from their most cherished source of energy and excitement. A sense of dread fell over even the most robust and well established promoters. Everyone knew it would come back,
but nobody knew it what form, or when.
While some artists started touring again earlier this year, and south of the border a number of festivals started to re-open their gates and welcome crowds in, nothing of that magnitude was really expected to happen in Kelowna until next summer at the earliest. The
creative minds behind Denim On The Diamond had other ideas. That, and a determination to make it all happen sooner rather than later.
The Relentless Work of the Denim On The Diamond Team and Crew
Thick as Thieves Entertainment partners Mitch Carefoot and Kurt Jory, who are the producers of Denim On The Diamond, managed both the emotional roller-coaster and logistics nightmare rides of the on again off again and finally on again 2021 festival.
Navigating all the Covid restriction changes and permutations meant juggling everything from vendors and sponsors all the way through artist contracts. It had only been days before the eventual go ahead decision from Interior Health that they had released
all the booked artists from their contracts to allow them to go find other work. The sudden reversal from the health authorities and the great relationships built over the many years of putting on the festival allowed for a quick restoration of committments
with all involved except for one artist; JJ Wilde. Fortunately Dear Rouge was able to draw in and they delivered a show worthy of their slot in the program just before the headliners.
The producers described the day going "as smooth as any event we've ever done" and humbly but genuinely gave the credit to everyone involved, including the many volunteers without whom the festival simply couldn't have happened. Local live event veterans such as Ben from SW Audio,
Don from International Crowd Management, Mike Schell and others brought their considerable experience to the table to aid in putting on the biggest live music event in a long time here in town.
Photo copyright (c) 2021 Miles Overn Photography
Photo copyright (c) 2021 Miles Overn Photography
Photo copyright (c) 2021 Miles Overn Photography