Sports Techy RSS Feed
Sports Techy on Facebook
Sports Techy on Twitter
| More

Sports Facilities Technology

Merriweather to Host Second Virgin Mobile Fest

September 24, 2010

(SPORTS TECHNOLOGY)

Merriweather To Host Second Virgin Mobile (News - Alert) Fest


Carolyn J Dawson, TMCnet Journalist

The much awaited Virgin Mobile FreeFest is back!

Merriweather Post Pavilion and its surrounding grounds, Columbia, MD, has been chosen for the second consecutive year. This would be the fifth Virgin Mobile Fest presented by Kyocera (News - Alert). The free event to be held on Sept. 25, 2010, is mostly a music festival, and enjoys a great eclectic lineup and the merits of their performances. For one day, the artists, who are popular in their own right, will entertain the music fans, allowing the audience a chance to connect with their music idols, and with each other. They will be performing on the two main pavilion stages, the Pavilion Stage, and the West Stage, and also on the Dance Forest. The doors will be opened at 11.00am and closed at 10.00pm.

The year’s free festival, will be co-produced by Virgin Mobile and D.C.'s own IMP Productions, who operate the 9:30 Club as well as Merriweather. The 2006 to 2009 paid events were operated at Pimlico. More than 35,000 fans are expected to attend the fest, and to witness an A-list of music line up, which includes, Chromeo, Die Antwoord, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes, Jimmy Eat World, Joan Jett, LCD Soundsystem, Ludacris, M.I.A., Matt & Kim, Modeselektor, Neon Indian, Pavement, Sleigh Bells, T.I., The Temper Trap, Thievery Corporation, Trombone Shorty, Wolfgang Gartner (News - Alert), Sharam, Maximum Balloon, Modelselektor and Yeasayer

Virgin Mobile also takes up the opportunity to request donations for this year’s charitable cause, The RE*Generation, a drive to end the homelessness of youths. Virgin Mobile makes this entry free, in return for a voluntary donation of $5 by attendees. Those who donate $5 will receive a special copy of the FreeFest 2010 RE*Gen Remix, it is a DJ mix that consists of entries by every performing band in this year’s fest. People who wish to pay $125 will receive VIP seats in the assigned pavilion seating. Virgin Mobile customers and previous Virgin Mobile Festival ticket holders from the past four years will be invited via text and email to a private “free-sale”, similar to a pre-sale, except that this is free.

In a release, the director of Brand Experiences, Virgin Mobile USA, Ron Faris, said that, “Last year’s free festival was all about giving back to fans in the wake of a horrible economy. This year’s festival will focus even more on charitable giving. It’s a reminder to let people know that even as things are improving, there’s always someone out there less fortunate than you. Last year, we raised over $80,000 and generated 30,000 hours of volunteerism for youth homelessness. This year, together with the fans, we hope to do even better.”


Carolyn John is a Contributor to TMCnet. To read more of her articles, please columnist page.

Edited by Erin Monda