Fever Fest looks to the future of Indy festivals
Why it matters: The people throwing the party tell Axios it wasn't just a one-time thing. It was the first edition of the Circle City's next big festival franchise.
Driving the news: Despite a midday downpour and the looming threat of show-canceling conditions, fans stormed White River State Park for the event produced by Kevin Hart's Hartbeat Media Group in collaboration with Pacers Sports & Entertainment.
Stand-up headliners like Cedric The Entertainer and Leslie Jones handled the funny — with some help from the Fever's Sydney Colson — while hip-hop hitmakers BIA and G-Eazy took care of the tunes.
What they're saying:"I consider Indianapolis to be the best major event host city in the country, and I think this event is going to only continue to elevate that," said Joey Graziano, PS&E's EVP of strategy and new business ventures. "With our partnership with Hartbeat as the official culture curators of the Pacers and the Fever, we created something new. Probably earlier than we would have otherwise. But we wanted to make sure that this event had a signature inaugural moment."
"For the rest of Fever Fest's existence — and we believe it's got a long, long runway ahead — people are always going to say the first one was at WNBA All-Star."
Between the lines: The partnership between PS&E and Hartbeat was announced earlier this year with the promise of festivals, halftime performances, scripted content and bespoke merchandise collaborations.
Hartbeat EVP and head of marketing Janina Lundy told Axios the aim is to make Fever Fest and everything else born from the multi-year partnership feel distinctly Indianapolis.
She added that the "inaugural" prefix the event carried in its branding was intentional, so expect the name to stick around even as the time, venue and list of performers change.
"The idea isn't that we're just coming into the market when this big event is happening. We're really a partner … and we're just kind of trying to enhance what already exists," she said. "Fever Fest itself will continue to grow both with local entertainment and entertainers coming from around the world."
For Graziano, the ultimate goal is one day turning Fever Fest into a citywide takeover.
"We know we've got to start small. We've got to earn credibility and trust in each step. But we are looking at and saying that our city lines up so well with what we believe is the future of music and comedy festivals," he said.
Zoom out: Fever Fest's future is being considered as Indy-area concertgoers enjoy a growing selection of new or expanding single and multi-day festivals of all sizes.
After making its debut in May 2024, GANGGANG's I Made Rock 'N' Roll Festival will return in May 2026.
Thursday marks the start of Post. Festival 2025, a three-day showcase of global post-genre bands hitting HI-FI and HI-FI Annex.
The Chreece hip-hop festival returns on Aug. 23, packing performances from more than 50 acts across seven stages into a single day.
Indy Jazz Fest runs from Sept. 9-20 with a loaded lineup for local and international talent.
The 10th anniversary of the traveling Outlaw Music Festival Tour comes to Ruoff on Sept. 18 with legends like Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan and Sheryl Crow.
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