Riverbend organizers explain reasoning for hiatus

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Riverbend has been a summertime staple in Chattanooga for more than 40 years. It took a couple of years off for the pandemic, but on Monday, Friends of the Festival announced that Riverbend will not be back in 2024.  

“What we want to do is to just take a look at that product. A relook at riverbend. Make sure it’s what Chattanooga wants,” said Mickey McCamish, Executive Director, Friends of Festival “It just gives us a chance to really focus on what we need to change. We need to get input from the community in order to make that change from the way it used to be.”

The festival began in June of 1982. It started as a way to bring the community together to celebrate Chattanooga. 

Organizers plan to reevaluate and restructure. 

“We need to make sure that we get the Riverbend festival just exactly right. The reaction I get from Riverfront Nights was just so great that it caused us to refocus on Riverbend,” said McCamish. 

Nobody can dispute that Riverbend had a fantastic run. It evolved over the years, but the days of the two-week-long music festival appear to be long gone.  

Friends of the Festival hope that expanding Riverfront Nights to 14 summer Saturdays will more than fill the void.

Instead of expensive wristbands, Riverfront Nights is free. 

“We want to make sure we get it right and Riverfront Nights gives us that opportunity to make sure that happens. The word hiatus is meant exactly that, to anticipate Riverbend is coming back, but we just need to reshape that product,” McCamish concluded.