Council to Propose Resolution for City Co-Sponsorship of Free Live Music Events

Zilker Park has played host to the free summer music series Blues on the Green for two and a half decades (photo by Jana Birchum)

In light of Blues on the Green canceling its 2024 season due to rising costs, Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison will propose a resolution at the Feb. 15 City Council meeting to suggest city co-sponsorship of the concert series and other free live music events.

Council members Ryan Alter, Zo Qadri, and Paige Ellis also sponsored the resolution that would direct Interim City Manager Jesús Garza to negotiate with the organizers of Blues on the Green to preserve free access to the public, ensure diverse musicians are hired to play the concert series, and guarantee performers receive the city’s adopted pay scale of $200 per hour per musician. Garza must return plans to Council by the end of February for any budget authorizations needed for co-sponsorship.

Blues on the Green first launched at North Austin shopping center the Arboretum before moving to Zilker Park, where in recent years, tens of thousands of Austinites have enjoyed free summer concerts organized by Austin City Limits Radio. Last summer, longtime ACL Radio host and Blues on the Green booker Andy Langer announced he was stepping away from the concert series and did not organize that season’s events, citing similar financial challenges. The festival announced the cancellation of its 2024 season last month.

“It’s become more challenging every year to produce an event that’s grown to this size and still keep it free and open to the public,” Austin City Limits Radio wrote in a statement. “Unfortunately, this year, the rising costs present too big of a hurdle.”

The resolution directs the city manager to “explore and provide recommendations on ways to support and preserve accessible, inclusive, open-to-the-public events and Citywide traditions comparable to ‘Blues on the Green’ and community festivals.”

In an interview with the Chronicle, Harper-Madison reminisced on taking her own family to Blues on the Green – or as her child used to call it, “The Blues and the Greens.” “[My kids] would not complain one bit – we had to park a mile away, under the bridge, and so we're lugging a cooler and chairs and they're carrying stuff – no complaints,” the council member said. “Getting the whole family together in the minivan and having all the stuff and stretching out our blanket, there’s a strange sense of community that you create when you’re blanket to blanket [with strangers].”

Harper-Madison said in order to preserve free public events, city co-sponsorship wouldn’t entail direct funding but rather the offsetting of logistical costs like retaining permits for sound, security, and parks and recreation access. She said that while players in the arts industry have the creative aspect of public events covered, city support should primarily focus on providing resources for the “business acumen” of events.

“Marketing staff, production setup, event planning, business planning, AV,” Harper-Madison said. “Those are real tangible needs that some of our event producers have, and not having access to that – especially if you're a small scale event – is the difference between it being possible and not, or not at its highest, best capability.” She added that free events would still need private sponsorships in order to last.

The resolution suggests the application process for events seeking city co-sponsorship should include education on event planning and says the application process should connect event organizers with “local resources” like higher education institutions, Austin’s Music and Entertainment Division, and the Small Business Division.

Harper-Madison stressed that the resolution would lead to city support for multiple music events, not just Blues on the Green. She listed Jump on It, which is free, and ticketed events like Urban Cultural Fest and Austin Reggae Festival as examples. “I really want to make sure that our commitments extend to all events and an Austin for everybody,” she said.