After one day of rainy weather and two days of relative sunshine, the Richmond Folk Festival reported 175,000 visitors this year.
Last year, the festival was blessed with three days of picture perfect weather and recorded its largest ever attendance of 230,000.
Typical Folk Festival attendance averages around 200,000 over the three days, depending on weather.
This year, the festival collected over $93,000 in donations. In contrast, last year, the Bucket Brigade and online donations drew $125,000 in donations.
“It was an amazing weekend of music, culture, and community. And whether you came for the zydeco, bluegrass, salsa, or gospel tunes, you probably found a new style of music to love,” organizers said in an email. “There’s no other place in Virginia where you can see Native American dance traditions on one stage and Ukrainian traditional music on another.”