This summer’s Folklife Festival finna be fire, fam.
That’s because, unlike this article (and that sentence) each part of the festival is led, created or presented by young people.
The Smithsonian Folklife Festival celebrates “Youth and the Future of Culture”. Not just static displays here: the festival features lowrider cars and bikes, skateboarders, teen fashion, filmmaking, traditional building arts and a Saturday night prom.
Two cars will be restored in the “Streetwise” tent, where you can also watch teens working on murals, executing skateboard tricks and making custom adornments for lowriders.
Museum of Teenagers
The Museum of Contemporary American Teenagers (MoCAT) will pop up at the festival. MoCAT was started in 2017 by high school and middle school students in Montgomery County, Maryland.
For the Folklife Festival, MoCAT will bring together teenagers from across DC, Maryland and Virginia to collaborate on exhibitions that highlight some of the dynamic and often overlooked youth movements that shape American culture. Their setting will feature venues representing a high school hallway, classroom, bedroom and bathroom where teens can share everything from fashion to their futures. They’ll focus on exhibits and work about social media, mental health and school lockdowns.
Musical performances feature young people, their music and apprenticeship programs that nurture their growth across all sorts of genures.
The featured concert series kicks off Thursday, July 3, with “Homegrown Futures: The Sound of DC,” dedicated to performers from the capital region. The festival celebrates July 4 with “Roots and Voices: Americana Reimagined.” “Prom in the Park” July 5 invites visitors to dress up and dance, and July 6 features “On Key: Next-Gen Music Ensembles” and a community contradance. The final day of the festival will close with a talent show.
Snag the Deets (Get the Info)
Honestly, there’s a lot to spill on this Fest, but you just gotta vibe and see for yourself. The Folklife Festival opens Wednesday, July 2, and runs through Monday, July 7. It happens on the National Mall on the Madison Avenue side, from Seventh Street to 12th Street and inside the Smithsonian’s Arts and Industries Building.
Admission to the festival is free, and hours are from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day, with featured concerts going later Thursday through Sunday. The schedule is available on the festival’s website.
The festival is presented by the Smithsonian’s Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage and co-sponsored by the National Park Service (NPS). Learn more at festival.si.edu
