The World’s Fair Performance Lawn, prepared at considerable expense by the city and ready for use in late 2019, has not seen a major performance since its completion. The pandemic hit just a few months after completion and for the last year a major concert performance was difficult to imagine.
That will soon change, when Born & Raised productions presents Nashville artists Moon Taxi at the site. The concert will take place May 20th as Moon Taxi promotes “Silver Dream, their fifth studio album. It’s the first major concert in Knoxville since the advent of the pandemic.
Moon Taxi is a band familiar to many in Knoxville, as they’ve performed here multiple times in recent years, including performances on Market Square. The band’s song Mercury is a local favorite for its mention of Market Square. The group’s sound ranges from dreamy and layered to crunchy rock-and-roll and they deliver a great live show.
The concert comes serious pandemic-related protocols. Tickets will be sold in two, four, and six-person pods and masks, temperature checks and a COVID-19 questionnaire will be required for entrance to the outdoor show. Fans will remain in their pods as much as possible, with food and drink delivered directly to each pod as requested via the Noble app.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Keep Knoxville Beautiful. The organization will be working with the producers of the event to ensure the event is as “clean and green” as possible. Sponsors helping make the event possible include Miller Lite, White Claw, Sierra Nevada, Axle Logistics, and Grayson Auto.
While premium pods will be available, pods are assigned from closest to the stage to farther from the stage in the order they are purchased. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, March 19th at 10:00 am. Access to a limited presale will be available by joining the Born &
Raised mailing list. For more details about the event and to purchase tickets go here.
It is interesting to see these green shoots coming up in the wake of the last year’s disaster. Live music has been devastated and, while fans miss the fun, musicians have suffered economically. This and other efforts at offering live music in a safe environment will be blossoming soon around the city. Whether fans are ready to return remains a question in everyone’s mind. This seems like a good effort at making it work.