Music Midtown sets schedule
The Constellations will open the main stage at Music Midtown on Sept. 24. Photo credit: Jennifer Tzar
The revived Music Midtown will feature two stages with continuous music – but never at the same time.
According to a schedule released Wednesday by Live Nation, which is promoting the Sept. 24 all-day event, the festival at The Meadow at Piedmont Park will launch with a 1 p.m. set by The Postelles on the secondary Great Southeastern Music Hall Stage. The first act to take the Electric Ballroom Stage will be The Constellations at 1:45 p.m.
The rest of the plan on the Great Southeastern Music Hall Stage:
2:45-3:30 p.m. – Mona
4:30-5:15 p.m. – Band of Skulls
6:15-7 p.m. – Young the Giant
8:15-9:15 p.m. – Cage the Elephant
And on the main Electric Ballroom Stage (following The Constellations):
3:30-4:30 p.m. – The Joy Formidable
5:15-6:15 p.m. – Manchester Orchestra
7-8:15 p.m. – The Black Keys
9:15-11 p.m. – Coldplay
General admission tickets to Music Midtown are on sale now for $56. VIP packages are also available. Call 1-800-745-3000 or visit www.musicmidtown.com or www.livenation.com to purchase.
**After reading some of these blog posts, it seems some people aren’t familiar with the intent of Music Midtown this year (i.e., starting small). Here’s our earlier story from when the fest was announced last month: http://www.accessatlanta.com/atlanta-music/music-midtown-to-return-1001901.html
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106 comments Add your comment
kevin
August 11th, 2011
8:45 am
first
Diego
August 11th, 2011
8:48 am
Lot’s of luck at that ticket price and with that line-up. (And if they get rain, like they used to regularly at the annual fest, they will really take a beating.)
J
August 11th, 2011
8:51 am
Well at least with the higher ticket prices it will keep the riff raff out! Except when you get ready to walk back your car blocks away.
Atlien
August 11th, 2011
8:55 am
Park Atlanta scumbags are going to make a killing on writing parking tickets.
WTH
August 11th, 2011
9:01 am
Will there be WHITES ONLY signs posted too?
UndertheCherryMoon
August 11th, 2011
9:05 am
meh at the lineup
Greg
August 11th, 2011
9:11 am
Thank you WTH, for the first race-baiting of the day. That’s Atlanta!
concertgoer
August 11th, 2011
9:11 am
55 dollars to see 9 bands. thats about 6 bucks each band. How is this not a good deal?
And why would you drive to this when there is a marta station 3-4 blocks away!
George Bush
August 11th, 2011
9:12 am
@WTH I said the same thing…where is the diversity. If you look at the population of the city this looks like Graceland meets the Grand Ol’ Opry.
George Bush
August 11th, 2011
9:13 am
Sorry I meant to add the ?
Ossie
August 11th, 2011
9:14 am
horrible lineup….i don’t know if i’d even pay $20, let alone $55.
greshambrown
August 11th, 2011
9:14 am
Lame
Doug
August 11th, 2011
9:19 am
uh concertgoer, because the lineup sux. you have fun walking between bands. im sure you and 2 othe people will do that. i wouldnt go to this if it was free.
how old?
August 11th, 2011
9:25 am
folks, if you don’t know who the bands are, you think $55 for a full day of music is too expensive, and you think the area around Piedmont Park is sketch….you might be too old for the event. These are some great bands, $55 is a steal, and I think people that are scared of Midtown and Piedmont park are pansies. There. I said it.
R
August 11th, 2011
9:26 am
The only group I’d be remotely interested in hearing is Coldplay. These other groups don’t sound too appealing.
WTF
August 11th, 2011
9:28 am
I gets worst every year. It gets Whiter, and Whiter. Like my boy says, Are they going to have any WHITE ONLY signs posted. YUCK!!
jsf3000
August 11th, 2011
9:29 am
@WTH That line-up IS the WHITES ONLY sign.
WTF@
August 11th, 2011
9:34 am
It because yall are a drain on the city and no one wants to come enjoy it. All yall do is beg for money. USE your change from obuma and get a JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wee Willy
August 11th, 2011
9:37 am
Come on idiots. You know if Music Midtown was to get Snoop or Lil Wayne then all the thugs and gangs would riot the place. You can NOT gather a group of rival hoodies in one place without chaos and violence! Music Midtown has been dead for 10 years! If the producers have ANY chance of resurrecting this love affair, then yeah! It needs to be geared toward white bands and white people! Blacks had FREAKNIK but because they couldn’t behave themselves, it was ALWAYS a high risk pile of crap that fostered the perfect storm of lude and violent behaviors from the black partygoers! So are you REALLY surprised at the low key line-up? There are plenty of hispanics, asians and blacks who will still go but thank god it want be the thugs who worship krump and crank!
Brian
August 11th, 2011
9:37 am
How entitled are people now to think that every concert must appeal to them. If you don’t like it, stay home.
Evansdawg
August 11th, 2011
9:40 am
There’s enough “Blacks Only” stuff, why not??? Black Award Shows, Black Beauty Pageants, Black Expo, Black Yellow Pages, Jet Magazine, Black Entertainment Television. Where have white’s have anything like that? If someone started WET….”White Entertainment Television,” Al Sharton and Jesse Jackson would be the first with their fists clinched. How many hip-hop or urban music festivals are there without a single white person in a sea of thousands unless they are in uniform??? Get over it.
mike
August 11th, 2011
9:43 am
I see both sides of the race aspect here..the lineup is 100% geared towards a mid to late 20’s to early 30s all white demographic..essentially they are saying “we don’t want any blacks at music midtown” without really saying that… on the other hand, if the lineup had rap acts- it would draw the teens that cause trouble routinely and ruin the event for adults.. in order to fix this situation they should have invited someone like Jennifer Hudson, Keri Hilson, or comparable R&B act to show diversity…just my two cents
Mo's mom
August 11th, 2011
9:47 am
Who are these people??
Dolanrg
August 11th, 2011
9:48 am
Don’t let the article fool you….the ticket price is actually $72, once you add the $17 convenience fee! $72 to hear a few songs from each band, while paying $10 per beer, and your $55 ticket somehow turned into a $150 day. I think I’ll bring a cooler,
hangout outside the fence and listen for free!
david c
August 11th, 2011
9:58 am
Further sullying Atlanta’a music legacy by naming the stages after two venerable venues. Conlon, you should know better.
david c
August 11th, 2011
9:58 am
Atlanta’s – oops!
Chris
August 11th, 2011
10:02 am
Cage The Elephant and Coldplay are the only bands that interest me. But because they play back to back on different stages it would be impossible to get a decent place in the crowd for Coldplay. This is Music Midtown in name only. It’s just not the same.
Reality
August 11th, 2011
10:06 am
For those of you who are complaining about “WHITES ONLY,” what do you think when there’s an all day hip hop festival at Lakewood? What would you call Freaknik? I mean, yes, these events may attract more of one demographic than the other, but you don’t have to go. These are all good up and coming bands, save Coldplay who’ve already made it big. Bottom line, don’t like it, don’t go. Don’t go all racist on it just because there won’t be stuff you like there.
Hello
August 11th, 2011
10:19 am
I love Cold Play, and I’m black…..Music doesn’t have a color.
leelar
August 11th, 2011
10:21 am
@Evansdawg … at the Lil Wayne concert last week, there were actually more white people in attendance than black believe it or not! It doesn’t really matter…it’s all good!
Dezzie
August 11th, 2011
10:24 am
I”m an AA woman who loves cold play but this sucks major. Tons of white teenaged wanna bees show up at hip hop festivals all the time. It’s routine for y’all to copy and imitate the African American swag. Futher the last hip hop festival I went to had Eminem as the headliner. So much for your theory.
kswiss
August 11th, 2011
10:24 am
Midtown Music festival SCREAMS… this is an Atlanta event. Flashback Festival (Reality – get your teminology right) SCREAMS this is an R&B event. An Atlanta event suggests that the MAJORITY of Atlantans might enjoy this – the lineup clearly days otherwise. Anyway – between the prices and the number of YOU idiots going….this will only be a one time event. WTF; Weewilly and Evansdawg – you guys should stop speaking in public – your ignorance is showin….where do you keep you white hoods?
David
August 11th, 2011
10:27 am
We need some real rock acts. Where is Ted Nugent,The Stooges,George Thourogood,Slayer,Godsmack,etc…
Former Music Midtown Fan
August 11th, 2011
10:34 am
Enter your comments here
MaG
August 11th, 2011
10:34 am
I thought Music Midtown is an event that is supposed to be for the city of Atlanta & all of its citizens. That being said & the city being so diversified, the lineup should have reflected a little someting for everyone’s enjoyment. Not all rap – but a little rap/hip hop, not all R&B, but a few, a little country, a little rock, heavy metal, something for the teens & tweens, etc. And, it would’t be a bad idea to find an Indian band, a Latino band & Asian band, African band, etc. SOMETHING THAT TRULY REFLECTS the beautiful, giant melting pot that ATL is!
People, let’s wake up, it is 2011, slavery has long been abolished & should have never been in the first place. We are a diverse culture & any event purported to be for the City of Atlanta should wholeheartedly reflect that.
For the person who spoke about WET (White Entertainment TV) – TV, award shows, etc., in general, for decades has been WET. There is no need to now have WET because the country has been inundated with that for as far back as I can recall. As far as the Latin & Black, etc. award & TV shows go – they were needed since the WET programming wasn’t reflective of other cultures talent or achievements at large – that is what started BET – to fill that void. Advice to you Mr/Mrs WET – sit on an open can & rotate twice!
Pot Pie
August 11th, 2011
10:35 am
Dezzie is right
Former Music Midtown Fan
August 11th, 2011
10:35 am
I remember back in the early 2000’s when Music Midtown show cased all types of music. It was very diverse with several stages. This does seem to be a slap in the face to a certain demographic,
John
August 11th, 2011
10:36 am
The scheduling does stink…they should give more time between acts. Cage the Elephant and Coldplay are the bands I would like to see and as someone else said, if you see them both, your Coldplay spot will be awful.
paul
August 11th, 2011
10:40 am
This is a great lineup at a great price. Those of you who would rather see something else: quit your ignorant whining and go cough up the dough to see your own special nobody-cares act at Phillips, Gwinnett Arena, or wherever.
John
August 11th, 2011
10:43 am
Eminem is still a rapper. Would you make the same argument if TV on the Radio was playing Music Midtown?
Mase
August 11th, 2011
10:44 am
Are you kidding??? Have you people been to a concert??? $55 for all of those bands is NOT a high ticket price.
Wee Willy
August 11th, 2011
10:48 am
kswiss…maybe it’s YOU who should remove your HOODIE! And while you’re at it, pull your saggy pants up. No place for none of that at Music Midtown. It is NOT a rap or hip-hop festival. Get it?!
Wee Willy
August 11th, 2011
10:51 am
Notice the picture of the band above? None of them are wearing backward baseball caps, oversized baggy pants or flashing diamond grillz with clocks hanging on gold chain links around their necks! That should be your FIRST clue Sherlock. Sometimes whites just want to get away from all the worn out hip-hop and rapping.
S
August 11th, 2011
10:54 am
Wow, that lineup sucks no matter what your age or color
Will
August 11th, 2011
10:55 am
I can’t believe some of the comments. First I am really excited to see Music Midtown coming back and by one of the original radio stations 99x. I wasn’t around for the first Music Midtown events, but from what I have heard it was pretty similar, small. The reason it was shut down before was partly because of the weather and partly because it was too diverse and too big. Music Midtown is going back to its roots which was a rock based event hosted by rock stations. Adding hip hop, country was a bad mix, the last Music midtown I left because of all the fighting between these groups.
Nostalgic
August 11th, 2011
11:00 am
Missing the old days of Music Midtown when there was something for almost everyone from rock to hard rock, r&b, gospel and even blue grass. I think the name is this concert is a misnomer! It really confuses the former fans of MM.
beebee
August 11th, 2011
11:20 am
“Hello,” I decided to post after reading yours.
I’m black and I like ColdPlay too.
But folks, let’s stop all the bickering and fighting. Let the people who will go see these bands have their fun in the sun. It’s not like there ever isn’t a concert with your favorite artists that you can go see.
bee
Evansdawg
August 11th, 2011
11:23 am
Soooooo…..white people are not allowed to be proud of their race, but black people can cram it down everyone’s throats. Thats not equality….its racism in itself. I would have no problem if the festival added black acts, but how many black festivals include white acts??? Sure, there are examples of that happening. Eminem for instance playing a hip hop festival, but the examples are few and far between. You can point the finger of racism all you want…but the truth is that ANY mention of color at all is racism. Music Midtown does not say “WHITES ONLY.” Its open to everyone….and you can’t say that there aren’t black people that love Coldplay or The Black Keys. They have no reason not to go and enjoy themselves. I bet they would feel much more welcome as blacks at a predominately white festival that whites would be at a predominately black festival. Use some common sense. The person that said music has no color is absolutely correct. Your ears interject the ‘color.’
Weston
August 11th, 2011
11:35 am
Looks like I’ll be spending all of my time at the “Electric Ballroom Stage.”
Manchester Orchestra, The Black Keys, Coldplay. That lineup by itself is worth $55.
George Bush
August 11th, 2011
11:40 am
This is the racist south, and I see the rebels are out flying that flag high.
Mike made a good point, the rest of you can kick rocks. You need to broaden your horizons…diversity is not just black/white. What about the Asians, Latinos, etc.? This lineup does not represent Atlanta, and one can tell the organizers did not look at diversity and wasn’t diverse. For the record there are acts that appeal to everyone, it is called “Pop” music and those bands/singers have a cross-over effect.
MJ
August 11th, 2011
11:42 am
“I bet they would feel much more welcome as blacks at a predominately white festival that whites would be at a predominately black festival. Use some common sense”
@Evansdawg – Sooooo, where’s the common sense in the above statement? Answer: There isn’t any!
Drew Barrett
August 11th, 2011
11:42 am
Whoever said that people that don’t like this lineup are too old… Really pretty far off with that. The problem with this lineup is that it caters pretty much exclusively to a white mainstream 30-ish audience. In 2005 when I went to music midtown, there was something for just about everybody. I know that was the last year, but they had the right idea with the variety in the show, they just did a lot of other stuff wrong. Saw some major classic artists like The Pixies, Lou Reed, Devo, Tom Petty… Interpol played… Black Eyed Peas were there… The lineup was still pretty mainstream, but there were definitely artists to draw from just about every demographic.
Coldplay is boring, these other groups aren’t very great either. The Black Keys is the only band I’d like to see, and I’m not spending ~$70 to see them. Will not be there.
AdeleFan
August 11th, 2011
11:55 am
I’m an AA woman who loves Cold Play as well. But, this lineup sux big time. Another one bites the dust because this will be another midtown concert I won’t be attending.
Yech
August 11th, 2011
11:57 am
Tension and fighting between the country people and the rap people at the last music midtown? Maybe that’s true, but if so it’s pathetic. White or black, just ignore the people you don’t like. No need to get all drunk and fighty at a concert ’cause you’re still stuck in the 50s with your attitudes towards other races.
Saggy pants, medallions, cowboy hats and confederate flags. Snoop and Lil Wayne (lazy examples) would bring out “gangs and thugs”? Come the eff on, people. At least be creative with your stereotypes, rather than just spitting out the same lazy, ignorant garbage that people have been saying for 20 years. A lot of the fans of rap music have been white since I was in grade school or junior high school and “Doggystyle” (the last time Snoop would have been a good example to use) came out. A city like New Orleans, another southern city, can have all types of acts at their highly successful jazz fest. Atlanta should be able to pull off something similar, or is Atlanta THAT much more racist and behind the times than New Orleans? Get a large list of bands that people want to see. Don’t be a bunch of mentally stunted goofballs and learn to coexist with the people you have to coexist with.
Drew
August 11th, 2011
12:13 pm
If you don’t like the lineup, don’t go. Such love and tolerance on display here. This town is doomed.
Young Black Female
August 11th, 2011
12:32 pm
I am a young black female and I know ALL of the bands in the lineup. For all of you misinformed people blasting their opinions on the event this is the 1st year Music Midtown is trying to make a comeback. If you read any of the previous articles regarding Music Midtown you would know that they are starting small this year. The event is hosted by Q100 a pop radio station here and the bands are people that you would hear on their station or their sister stations. Can’t we just have 1 year where we start out small, have a decent turn out, and see how it goes? Has anyone else noticed that we are in a recession? Even radio stations are feeling the tightening of the purse strings due to laws that are constantly being passed taxing radio stations harder and harder. Does anyone ask if Hot 107.9 will have BLACKS ONLY signs posted at birthday bash? As you can see by the scheduled line up Music Midtown does not even have as many acts performing this year as Hot 107.9 had at birthday bash. I am EMBARRASED AND ASHAMED of all of you taunting each other with your unwitty banter. No wonder you have no jobs to go to and you sit here all day trying to initiate arguments with each other. I can’t imagine how you would even conduct yourself outside of the ajc forum. SMH
Atlien
August 11th, 2011
12:36 pm
This is exactly what is wrong with America these days. People who think they are entitled to have every concert cater to their wishes. People stupid enough to not realize that the people who put concerts together don’t care about diversity. They are only trying to make a buck like the rest of us.
Kem
August 11th, 2011
12:46 pm
Music Midtown in the past had a more diversed lineup. One year they actually had the “Queen of Salsa”, Celia Cruz. The weather was not a major factor
For the poster who says hip and country can’t be included in this mix, I totally disagree.
If you look at the “Jazz” fest in New Orleans, the lineup they have includes rock, soul, jazz, gospel, R&B, etc. That fest is about as good as it gets.
African-Americans should not be put or put ourselves in a box. We like all type of music and excell at any genre we play.
disappointed
August 11th, 2011
12:49 pm
got tickets because my 12 yr daughter is a Cold Play fanatic but really disappointed in the total lack of diversity. not even a “token black” act out of 8. c’mon now. are there no black rockers at least?
Kem
August 11th, 2011
12:49 pm
Yech,
I saw your New Orleans Jazz Fest analogy after I posted. Sorry for being repetitive.
TallyGuy
August 11th, 2011
12:53 pm
Lighten up people. I am a black guy from Tallahassee who saw my first Coldplay show in ATL on 11-5-2008. Chris Martain opened the show with the following “Its is about time Americia got something right, Obama”. Since that memorable night I have attended Coldplay shows in London and Mexico city. I will be at at the festival to enjoy the music and remember that is what it is all about. Let something positive put a smile on your face and stop looking for Trouble.
Yech
August 11th, 2011
12:53 pm
I’m fully aware of the fact that the concert is not for everybody, and I know that there are plenty of people who will want to go. It’s no skin off my back to have a concert that I don’t want to go to, and I’m not really even saying there’s anything wrong with what Music Midtown is doing here. It’s just disturbing to me to see some people’s REASONS for not wanting there to be more diversity at a music festival. All the intolerance on here makes me fear that Atlanta will never have a large, multi-cultural music event that caters to a wide variety of people.
Atlanta...
August 11th, 2011
1:06 pm
That used to be called “the city too busy to hate”
Is becoming
The city that is not too busy to make a racist rant on the AJC…
veggie
August 11th, 2011
1:25 pm
If white society was historically inclusive to everyone on an even scale there wouldn’t have to be BET, Jet Magazine, Black EXPO, Black Universities etc.. So now you feel left out? Now you want in? Now you know how minority groups have felt for hundreds of years…..
Atlien
August 11th, 2011
1:27 pm
You can’t tell if the Black Keys are white or black by listening to their music.
veggie
August 11th, 2011
1:27 pm
There’s plenty of diverse bands that is not rap that could play this event. They only wanted whites here.. point blank end of discussion
Andre
August 11th, 2011
1:42 pm
To those folks complaining about the so-called lack of diversity in the Music Midtown lineup, I say if you feel that strongly about it, write the Georgia NAACP and urge that organization to apply pressure to the event’s promoters so that a “token” black act is added to the resurrected festival.
I’ll even make it easy for you:
Georgia State Conference NAACP
970 Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, SW
Suite 306
Atlanta, Georgia 30314
(404) 577-8977
P.S., Yes, I’m deliberately being sarcastic in my comments because the lineup of a music festival is NOT a civil rights issue, so stop treating it like it is one.
k@atl
August 11th, 2011
1:46 pm
I can’t beleieve that this blog is becoming about race, this is about music people!!!..PLEASE GROW UP!! IF YOU DON’T LIKE THE MUSIC DONT’T GO
I AM SURE THE BANDS THAT ARE PLAYING DON’T CARE WHERE THE MONEY COMES FROM AS LONG AS IT IS GREEN!!!!!
Michele Bachmann
August 11th, 2011
2:15 pm
I can’t wait! I love the line up. Afterwards, my dear sweet hubby and I will hang out at The Phoenix on Ponce. Good times.
Christine Harper
August 11th, 2011
2:21 pm
Having attended all but 1 Music Midtown, this really isn’t Music Midtown. I enjoyed the evolution of Music Midtown into a diverse, 3 day music fest blending old, new, unknown, local and infamous. Shame on you for calling this something it is not.
Karma
August 11th, 2011
2:39 pm
I can’t wait – this line up is awesome! I’ve been waiting to see the Black Keys for some time now.
Karma
August 11th, 2011
2:43 pm
Young Black Female – just want to say – Well Said!
JD
August 11th, 2011
2:46 pm
MM is going up against multiple huge festivals with great lineups in September: Bumbershoot in Seattle, Austin City Limits Fest, and several others. I agree with other folks. Calling this Music Midtown is like calling a rowboat the Titanic. Atlanta should be able to pull off something MUCH more impressive than this dud.
JS
August 11th, 2011
2:56 pm
coldplay sucks. what a way to bring back MM. needs more hippy bands.
brent
August 11th, 2011
3:15 pm
Maybe the organizers went with a lineup in which they can pay half the amount for security than that of a rap/hip-hop lineup
Wee Willy
August 11th, 2011
3:29 pm
Like I said in one of my first posts. The point of THIS music selection is to eliminate the typical thug and violence you’re going to find at a hip-hop, rap concert. I merely threw out Snoop and Wayne as simple examples but there’s plenty of lesser knowns who fill venues who encite the audience to “buck up” and foster street thug mentality. And you know the ones I’m talking about and you can’t deny it. THOSE are the kinds of people THIS line up will eliminate. That is the goal of the producers. PERIOD!
Praveen
August 11th, 2011
3:34 pm
You idiots who keep harping on race need to get a life. I am one of those who was torn between the Public Enemy stage and the Devo stage(I hope I got the combination in the same year right) because I loved both at one of the last Music Midtown fests. I loved the old music midtown. Much as am I disappointed that this new one day fest is quite simply not in the same ballpark of value as the old MM, I still can’t get mad at the promoters. It is still an OK value.
But the local residents are to blame for the old music midtown, probably the greatest music bargain I have ever seen, flaming out. Let us see why
1) Incessant whining about the rain. Guess what. It’s that early shower that led me to have a great view of the B-52s because too many people were chicken to take a chance that year. 3 Day passes were not even 70 bucks that year.
2) MARTA, parking. : waaaah. If you were creative, you would know they were not so bad parking spots and you should negotiate a bit and you could park for a very reasonable price. I parked not too far from the 99x stage as the last few MMs.
3) Whining about the losers and slackers and blacks. : goddamit. will you guys ever get over this? Wasn’t it enough for you racists that the 103 stage was relegated to some back of the hill location? And you guys are still whining about thugs and crap???If you dont want to live here, move somewhere else. And as far as the young wandering people, hey, at least they got a taste of some good music. The fun of those MMs was seeing people from very different walks of life in one big area. You saw burned out vets, exhippies, preppies, all kinds over here.
4) Whining aobut the price: Seriously??? now you see what you have done. We got 56 bucks for a few measly acts when the old MM charged you 50-70 dollars for 3 days of acts on SEVERAL stages. It was a much better deal than Bonnaroo.
5) Neighborhood idiots complaining about noise: Why the hell do you guys live downtown? Go , live ina suburban house.
Weena
August 11th, 2011
3:41 pm
Hope there are promotional food giveaways. That always starts a good riot.
Mr.Obvious
August 11th, 2011
3:53 pm
Obviously, most of you posting are either from some backwood area outside of Atlanta or from a whole another State… Atlanta is in the South, but it’s not the average Southern City….. I’m a black male in my late 20’s and I remember the great days of music midtown in the 90’s and early 2000’s. While this version of Music Midtown isn’t as appealing as the original one, it’s good to see that the city is pushing for another musical event and hopefully it will be like it once was in due time, I really enjoy Coldplay and Cage the Elephant, I can’t honestly say that I have heard of the other groups, but it can be assumed that these groups have something entertaining to offer.
Corey
August 11th, 2011
4:00 pm
Some of the comments posted here would have one believe whenever whites and blacks enounter each other in this city that all hell breaks loose. Nothing could be further from the truth. Gwennett County is probably one of the most diverse counties in America. Midtown Atlanta is quite diverse (seniors, empty nesters, young urban professionals both black and white and gays with a few hippie levftovers). Even Southwest Atlanta has white residents. Stop being frightened by the evening news. Controversy seems to be the media’s sole existence. The south in general is quite aware of its ugly, not too distant past and continues to make great strides in trying to distance itself from that dark legacy. Do different groups often hold contempt for each other? Sure. So do members within a family. Get over yourselves already. The power in victimhood is fading away.
C
August 11th, 2011
4:09 pm
The Black Keys kind of rule.
Radical 1
August 11th, 2011
4:10 pm
I see why people talk so bad about Atlanta. First of all, this is not a real city, and secondly it is full of racist crackers. This is exactly why this so called city/metro has fallen. No jobs, no economic development, and a sorry ass educational system. You racist crackers suck.
John Belushi
August 11th, 2011
4:17 pm
Hey, I’m alive and well and a member of the Constellations.
Alex Cooley
August 11th, 2011
4:20 pm
This lineup is total garbage, who wants to see this crap? Give me a good product like we had back in the day and people will come!
Joey
August 11th, 2011
4:24 pm
For that price was Amy Winehouse going to be there as well. Hmmmm…..
From what I have experienced at the Festivals right before their demise people should:
Watch for stumbling drunk teens, they will pee and defecate at will any where.
Get used to huge crowds, bring binoculars and pepper spray.
Do not eat the food, I lost 10 pounds after the 1995 event, no chicken.
Bring over $100, you will get a ticket one beer and a water, that is all.
Watch for flash mobs at this one.
Daniel
August 11th, 2011
5:04 pm
Nostalgic said it correctly. It was great in Music Midtown had something for everyone. I am black, love the bands that are there, Peter Conlon and Alex Cooley as well. Support this line up and Peter will broaden the bands that play. He has ALWAYS done that. Let’s give Music Midtown and chance to be great again. As far as the racial comments, we ALL have to work better at understanding one another. It’s amazing how a lineup for Music Midtown causes so many racist and ignorant comments.
Wee Willy
August 11th, 2011
6:07 pm
If we’re such racists, why is it everytime you have a rap/hip-hop concert that someone gets shot!? Hell…Buckhead had to frickin close down because the thugs ran rampant at night murdering and shooting. Ray Lewis got away with murder….just like O.J.!!! Back in the day when the black thugs didn’t roam Buckhead, it THRIVED!!! It was mostly white and very little to NO violence. Maybe a drunk would get punched but that was it. THEN along came the blacks and turned the place upside down and ran it to the brink of destruction with their flash mobs and violence. It turned away the whites and asians who had always enjoyed Buckhead. Now it’s an empty mausoleum dedicated to the memory of what used to be! BEFORE the thugs!!!
Ben
August 11th, 2011
6:28 pm
Wow, I can’t believe comments regarding race on here. I mean, I literally can’t believe it. Great music should unite not divide! Trying to suggest that black people only enjoy rap/hip hop is ignorant. Let’s keep this a rockin’ good time. First off, if you are a regular concert-goer, you’ll recognize that the price is fantastic. I’m pumped for Band of Skulls (dumb name, good band), The Black Keys and Coldplay (please play some good old stuff…pleeeease). Piedmont Park is a great place to enjoy a concert as well. Hope to see you out there!
Ben
August 11th, 2011
6:34 pm
I find it hilarious (sad, really) that O.J. has been mentioned in the comments of “Music Midtown sets schedule.”
Yech
August 11th, 2011
8:19 pm
Oh yeah, Wee Willy, it’s not racist to go on a racist tirade and say “THE BLACKS” ruined Buckhead (Buckhead sucks anyway). People wouldn’t get shot at concerts if there was proper security. There are things you can do, other than only appealing to snoozy mid-30s white people, that keeps “gang-bangers” of ALL colors from ruining fun for everybody. Rap groups can play without “the blacks” killing people afterwards. And aren’t “Flash mobs” those things where a bunch of white people think it’s so cool to put on a big dance production in public? Flash mobs aren’t part of Buckhead being on the brink of destruction, that’s just an annoying thing in a food court… you ignorant prick.
Atl
August 11th, 2011
8:25 pm
Music Midtown doesn’t want blacks period. Neither does Midtown, or Atlantic Station….You guys ruin anything good this city has to offer. The new owners of AS are trying their best to get rid of you. Just take a hint, Music Midtown doesnt want you.
Yech
August 11th, 2011
8:32 pm
Never thought I’d be saying this… but it would be LESS offensive if you would just say “poor people.” After all, poor white people like crack and guns and meth amphetamine as much as any black person.
Yech
August 11th, 2011
8:33 pm
Also, I know plenty of black people with way more class than you crackers will ever have. And I’m a white guy.
TheBlackness
August 11th, 2011
9:15 pm
To a sense everyone is RACIST besides BABIES!!!
Michelle
August 11th, 2011
9:28 pm
I guarantee you that if blacks could have a “blacks only” show, they would love it. There are so many groups, shows, clubs, etc.. for blacks. Yet, they complain that MM doesn’t haven’t enough black acts.
Alan
August 11th, 2011
9:38 pm
There is a reason there are no black bands you morons! All you people do is cause trouble and violence. Look at Screen on the Green. Mostly white people enjoying themselves and a gang shows up and starts problems. Nobody wants your kind around anything!
Alan
August 11th, 2011
9:39 pm
A white person is a “cracker?” Wow that hurt. What a loser.
Old But Wise
August 11th, 2011
9:47 pm
After reading thses comments, I (AA Male)am more convincsed as ever that I will be spending my retirement years far away from this so Called Bastion of Civil Rights. It is so refreshing to visit by kids who live in Seattle and Ventura California, places where the race card has been buried. Life is too short to live it with blinders on.
brock
August 11th, 2011
10:02 pm
This is not the Music Midtown of old, but a mini-MM that hopefully will blossom into something bigger. The lineup does not move this middle-aged white guy, but I wish the fest well, so maybe next year it gets bigger.
If you do not like the lineup because it’s too white (whatever that means), or it’s more for younger fans, there is no shortage of other shows in Atlanta for you to attend. They are probably staged at a venue nicer than a big field too. That’s what I am doing. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones tomorrow at Chastain! Oh my, the band is 1/2 black! Should I even go? Yes.
Amy
August 11th, 2011
10:07 pm
@young black female: AMEN!!! good grief this is a music fest. Everyone needs to stop crying racism! Music is the universal language. If someone doesn’t like it, then don’t go!!!! It is freedom of choice and tastes in music.
These comments are embarrassing to our city and further add fuel to the “backwoods GA” jokes.
White Guy
August 11th, 2011
10:31 pm
A white person is a white person, an ignorant white person that reinforces all the stereotypes of the south is a “cracker.” Or a “honkey ass mother_” if you will. Just like white people always like to say that an ignorant black person is a N word. I only censor that for fear that the AJC might censor it. How does a gun get into an event like screen on the green? Atlanta has a crime problem, blacks and whites are both responsible for that, and it’s a problem related to poverty and upbringing, not race… blaming it on “BLACK PEOPLE” is not going to do one tiny bit of good. I like rap music. Lots of white people like rap music. I like music from all cultures, I have albums full of Thai pop music, assorted field recordings from the Middle East, East Asian countries, India, I have music from all over the planet. I would like a festival where all of these cultures are represented (no, I’m not saying Music Midtown should do this). Should Middle Eastern musicians be excluded from events because “people from the middle east blow up buildings”? Musicians that originate from communist/socialist countries shouldn’t be invited to concerts because it attracts a crowd that wants to redistribute wealth? When you live in a city that has the crime rate that we do, when you host a major event, you just have to take proper security measures to make sure that no guns, knives, etcetera make it into the event, and have security on hand to handle problems. Remember that big meatheaded white party that was the ’90s version of woodstock, where all those girls got raped and it was a disaster? That was white people ruining things, my friends. Whites can do it, too. Racism is, when you dig deeper and get to the bottom of it, what pushes minorities into poverty and eventually leads to crime which eventually reinforces those racist’s confidence in their racism. I’ve only been here a few months, and I live in a mixed-race neighborhood and I work in an industry where there are lots of very successful black people and everybody gets along, so I guess I haven’t really been aware of it until now… but the south is still too filled with hillbillies, frat boys/good ol’ boys, and tea partiers. The most frustratingly ignorant and somehow confident portions of the population. I bet you racists are all GOD FEARIN’ CHRISTIANS as well. Go die or something.
White Guy
August 11th, 2011
10:34 pm
@Amy Some people were crying racism about the show. I’m not really on that bus, though I do think it is just a kinda boring vanilla line-up… I’m just crying racism about the INSANE AMOUNT OF RACISM that has been in the comments and makes this city look awful.
Praveen
August 12th, 2011
10:32 am
Hey can we discuss actual music here? Stop the freaking race debates when we are talking about music in Atlanta. Man, I really miss the 90s in Atlanta.
First of all, music midtown has usually favored “white” music because they were not just drawing people from the center of Atlanta but neighboring regions too. At the time, Bonnaroo wasn’t there and was just starting out as MM was winding down. For bigger outdoor venues, the older R&B acts from the 60s and 70s play better as they are more accomplished at non-studio related performances. They used to showcase them in the oldies stage which got phased out as oldies radio was phased out of Atlanta. And old guys like Cooley probably didn’t have the networking required to draw in the more contemporary black acts. Even white pop was underrepresented.
As far as the white racists who troll AJC comment boards for anything local related, I would love to see AJC require registration for comments. And if you do not wish to be moderated, you need to provide a facebook identity or something similar. Let us see how brave you will be with your ignorant racist comments.
Best location for me was the one in front of the 10th avenue marta station. You got out of MARTA and just walked straight into the one of the MM entrances. More grass(no pun intended) than the other venues.
Once it moved downtown, a few blocks south, it wasn’t really close to any MARTA station. SO I just drove and parked in one of the unofficial lots and just bargained with the guy to give me a 3 day deal. Loaded up my car with water so I could go to my car during breaks and drink free water and relax.
It was also interesting to see how a band would suck one year and hten do well another year. Steve Miller band was a lot of fun one year, and then during a later year, they just went on and on and were kind of boring. MM pulled the plug just as other music fests around the country started to gain steam. You don’t think TN and Chicago enjoy the extra revenue vistors give for bonnaroo and Lollapallooza? And with bands hurting at the gate, you wonder why there wouldn’t be renewed interest by bands to discount their services for a music fest setup. MM served a mainstream niche.
Biggest trainwreck moments
1) Courtney Love meltdown as the final act of the 99x stage one year. I was right next to her as she came to the edge of the stage in a near blackout mode with her top hanging down and totally incoherent as bottles were being thrown in her direction.
2) Jessica Simpson feeling nervous and embarassed at her lack of talent: I was walking by and decided to check out the Simpson stage to see how bad she really was. Wow, she really delivered on that. She would pause awkwardly and giggle nervously. No wonder she doesnt do music that much anymore.
3) 40 year old women rockin out at the Def leppard stage who were probably at one time hot 19 year olds. These women looked like they were 60. A lot of mileage on their bodies, i guess. Not a pretty sight trying to see them relive their glory days.
Alt Girl
August 12th, 2011
6:51 pm
Black, white, who the hell cares??? Shut up and go have fun on a fall Saturday afternoon. This happens to be a fantastic lineup … if you know alternative music at all, you will know everyone of these bands. At least come support your local bands – Manchester Orchestra and The Constellations! $55 to see all these bands is a great deal.
Gary B.
August 16th, 2011
2:01 am
Terrible Lineup…would have been nice to see a little diversity in the music mixture…but this is terrible…just terrible…
Praveen
August 16th, 2011
6:00 pm
I dont think it is a terrible lineup. But with a single day two stage setup, is this going to be much differnet from other Piedmont Park concerts where you had one big band dominate? It is like the other bands are the warmup acts. If I go, it will be mainly for the Black Keys. I like Coldplay, but am a little tired of their music.
But then again, I can’t blame Conlon as no other promoter has done better for Atlanta. I can’t ever get myself to go to those Chastain picnic concerts .