The Detroit art scene is a community like no other, and the upcoming inaugural MAP Fest could be proof of that. The event’s name is an acronym for “music, art, and poetry,” three driving creative forces that organizers hope to bring together on Saturday, July 29 at Avalon Village.
“Art is the way of expressing for the people. When you think of music, art, and poetry, just all of them being together in one space, there is no medium or person that can’t be reached,” MAP Fest Founder Koron Wilkerson says.
From 2-9 p.m., the festival will offer activities for all ages including games, food trucks, more than 30 vendors, two music stages, a poetry stage, an art stage, a basketball game, and a hands-on community art exhibition.
“We’ve been doing events for four years and we literally only have had loving, positive, really great feedback and interactions with all of the people who come,” Wilkerson says. “I think this is going to be an amplification of that with how many people we expect to be there.”
MAP Fest is just another way for Wilkerson to raise the noise surrounding Detroit talent. He does a lot in the city already — he’s a musician who founded Jewels of Detroit and Rock Local Entertainment Cafe. So, when he met fellow Detroit creative Anthony Young Jr., who goes by AyeWhy, and the pair started discussing their common goal to host festivals, everything quickly fell into place.
As a triple threat musician, visual artist, and poet himself, Young was a big part of the vision. Now, he serves as a head director for MAP Fest and looks forward to seeing his idea coming to fruition.
“I can’t say I’m most excited about the music, the art, or the poetry, I just really want this vision to be accomplished and really cover everything that the city of Detroit is looking for,” Young Jr. says. “I know this festival is really gonna be a lot different than any other things that Michigan has seen so I’m just really excited to see it all come together.”
MAP Fest is sponsored by cannabis companies JARS and Jeeters, and partnered with entertainment company CrowdFreak, local nonprofit organization We Are Culture Creators and community nonprofit space Avalon Village.
“A large portion of the proceeds are going directly to Avalon Village, they’re a nonprofit that does tremendous, tremendous, tremendous works with the youth of our city,” Wilkerson says.
Having worked with Avalon Village previously for volunteer work, Wilkerson asked them in March or April if they would allow him to throw a festival there — and luckily, they were very down.
“It’s a beautiful, beautiful space,” Wilkerson says. “Just kind of being over there as an event promoter, as a party thrower, you just can’t help but to wonder what it would be like to see the place packed and full of people.”
Unique to other music festivals, MAP Fest will also be hosting a live basketball tournament where all of the main organizations involved will be competing.
“The Jewels of Detroit will be going against the CrowdFreak team and the Culture Creators team as well,” Wilkerson says. “We’ll have all of the entities that were involved in putting on the festival put together their best basketball guys, come out on the court and shoot some hoops.”
If this year goes well, Wilkerson, Young and other organizers hope to make the festival an annual event. “I want this to be something that the community can look forward to and know that this is an event that’s going to happen each summer and everybody just puts it on their calendar like something like Rolling Loud but for Michigan,” Young says.
For people who are into nightlife, there will be an afterparty hosted at Rock Local Cafe continuing the day with more art in a smaller setting, as well as viewing of a boxing match. Wilkerson is excited for all of it.
“I’m really expecting a certain genuine energy that you don’t really see at first time festivals,” Wilkerson says. “We had very mild expectations for our first year and we are already surpassing them in every regard… it’s a really good feeling and it gives me the feeling that this event is going to be very special.”
MAP Fest performers are posted on the festival’s Instagram page. People interested in performing or being a vendor at the event can still apply.
Tickets for MAP Fest can be purchased through Eventbrite.
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