West Philly Porchfest returns for a third year this June
Porchfest is exactly what it sounds like: a music festival that uses porches instead of stages. It’s a simple concept, but revolutionary in a way — can you think of a better way to spend a summer afternoon than wandering porch to porch while listening to musicians share their tunes? Get your calendars ready, because the third annual installment of West Philly Porchfest is happening Saturday, June 2.
With the amount of porches in the neighborhood it’s hard to believe no one thought of bringing Porchfest to West Philly sooner. The event originated in Ithaca, NY over a decade ago and gained popularity in New England, but we have local musician Owen Lyman-Schmidt to thank for the Philly version. Lyman-Schmidt happened upon a Porchfest when his band Driftwood Soldier was touring in Massachusetts, and realized a similar event would be a perfect fit for Philly’s DIY scene, making music even more accessible by bringing it out of the basements and into the streets. Read the full backstory here. According to the porchfest.org, over 100 cities are now home to Porchfests, and the event has been such a success in West Philly that last year Collingswood, NJ hosted its own version.
It’s too soon for musicians to register to play the fest, but keep an eye on Porchfest 2018’s Facebook event pagefor more updates in the coming weeks and visit westphillyporchfest.com. Check out a playlist of artists who played 2016’s Porchfest below.