Photo by Rick Olivier, Rick Olivier
The Iguanas -- Rene Coman (from left), Rod Hodges, Joe Cabral and Memphis native Doug Garrison -- blend roots-rock with Latin styles and a touch of the blues.
The Cooper Young Festival has come a long way.
Joyce Cobb was the only performer at the first festival in 1988. Seventeen performers will be featured at this year's festival, which will be 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sept. 19 at Cooper and Young in Midtown, said Tamara Walker, director of the Cooper Young Business Association.
Photo by Rick Olivier
The Iguanas -- Rene Coman (from left), Rod Hodges, Joe Cabral and Memphis native Doug Garrison -- blend roots-rock with Latin styles and a touch of the blues.
The New Orleans band The Iguanas, which includes former Memphian Doug Garrison on percussion, will headline.
Twenty-five booths were featured the first year. This year there will be a record 385 booths selling "everything from hand-made pottery to hula hoops," said Walker, who has been the association's director since 2000. A parking lot next to the Beauty Shop Restaurant will be opened for the first time and will house 20 more booths and more food venders.
About 2,000 people attended that first festival. Last year, 90,000 attended, Walker said. This year, depending on the weather, Walker predicts 90,000 to 100,000 people.
Six men from the neighborhood came up with the idea for the festival 22 years ago, Walker said. "This neighborhood had been deemed a neighborhood in decline by the city of Memphis. They wanted to revitalize it, bring property values back up."
They wanted a festival so they could "raise money to shoot it back into the neighborhood. Those six people had a dream it could be something else -- what it is today."
Cooper Young is flourishing, Walker said. "When everybody else was losing their leases in January and February, going out of business, I had seven businesses move into the neighborhood. I had an attorney move in last week.
"There's something here for everybody. It's so diverse -- upscale restaurants, bars you can hang out in, patios, a club scene, lots of retail."
Each year the festival became more successful, Walker said. As the number of booths grew over the years, so did the number of performers.
"When you have more people coming, you have to have more entertainment."
The main stage still is where it originally was -- in front of Young Avenue Deli.
"The festival prides itself on every year featuring local Memphis talent," said Cameron Mann, a festival planning committee member. "The goal of the music portion of the festival is to -- as best as we possibly can -- try to showcase the diverse talent that exists here in Memphis," Mann said. "With the headliner, there's some flexibility. Sometimes we'll go with a national headliner."
One thing at the festival hasn't changed over the years: admission still is free.
2009 Cooper Young Festival performers
East Stage
12:30 p.m. Organ Thief
1:30 p.m. Ryan Peel
2:30 p.m. Good Luck Darkstar
3:30 p.m. Streetside Symphony
4:30 p.m. Bulletproof Vests
Congo Stage (First Congregational Church)
12:15 p.m. The Will Tucker Band
1:15 p.m. Groundspeak
2:15 p.m. Valencia Robinson
3:15 p.m. Two Mule Plow
4:15 p.m. Queens of Zion
Main Stage
11:30 a.m. Rhythm Realm
12:15 p.m. University of Memphis Jazz Band
1:15 p.m. River City Tanlines
2:15 p.m. Tonya Dyson
3:15 p.m. Darrel Petties and Strength and Praise
4:15 p.m. Susan Marshall
5:15 p.m. The Iguanas
— Michael Donahue: 529-2797
- |
Comments » 3
DryRib writes:
Bulletproof Vests at 430pm. Its a band or they giving them out? Doesnt get dark in Cooper Young until 8 or so........<G>
DavidX writes:
The CA finally told us about something before it happens. That is news.
MemphisJune writes:
And where are The Midtown Lowdowns, Bluff City Backsliders and/or Valerie June? At least, give them to us next year, please.
Share your thoughts
Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.