By: Jaclyn Wickersham

After attending “Summit Indie Fest” this October, I sat down with the festival’s founder, Joel Greer, to discuss the event’s future. The festival was founded by Greer’s non-profit organization, Team Summit, and the ticket sales raised money for the non-profit. Team Summit supports impoverished youth and families in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and their  mission is to share music, art, and culture through the spirit of philanthropy. Summit Indie Fest is a small festival held in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, that hosted around 600 people throughout this year’s event. Summit Indie Fest 2023 was on Saturday, October 30th, the same day as the large festival “All Things Go,” which featured marquee names like Lana Del Ray, boygenius, and Maggie Rogers. Since “Summit Indie Fest” and “All Things Go” were held on the same day and appealed to similar demographics, much of Greer and my discussion harped on the value of independent festivals when juxtaposed with huge festivals. 

Greer strongly argues for supporting small festivals because of the  atmosphere and accessibility. He believes that the atmosphere created by the patrons of Summit Indie Fest made the event successful. The audience is directly connected with the music, which creates an intimate and memorable night of live music. Greer notes, “…because it’s not thousands and thousands of people, it’s more of a friendly atmosphere where people seem to be making more connections with each other and the music.” Additionally, throughout the festival, fans have access to the musicians, deepening their connection to the musical experience. 

Beyond the metaphorical atmosphere, the venue, Portsmouth Book & Bar, is very accessible. Everyone can get in and out easily, and during the show, they have a comfortable place to stand or the opportunity to find a seat. No one has to wait in line for food or water, and its sight lines are relatively clear from all corners of the Book & Bar. The Summit Indie Fest experience is exceptionally comfortable and inclusive, which is a significant advantage of small-scale festivals. Greer recognizes the value smaller events possess in fostering a positive experience: “If you compare Summit Indie Fest to Boston Calling and ask which is a better festival, most people would say Boston Calling. But if you ask which they had a better time at, most people would say Summit Indie Fest.”

I asked Greer if he felt he sacrificed talent by keeping the festival relatively small, as you are working with less experienced artists. He did not feel like he was sacrificing talent and told me how much work he invests in finding the right performers for the event. Greer does not have the added pressure of high-profile investors pushing for specific numbers in ticket sales, which allows him to focus on the quality of the music rather than targeting particular demographics. When curating a lineup, Greer aims for genre diversity but not at the expense of the music. In our interview, he provided an example of how much effort and painstaking thought goes into the lineup by noting that if one year he doesn’t find the right R&B artist, then the festival will go without one. 

Summit Indie Fest 2023 featured a plethora of artists, including the hauntingly beautiful vocalist and Phoebe Bridgers-inspired singer-songwriter Alaina Ray. Joining Ray in the lineup was the engaging, profound, and exceptionally talented R&B artist Adrienne Mack-Davis. Headlining the festival was the folk-pop band “Sneaky Miles” whose poetic songs and lively instrumentals rival some of the greats like “The Head and the Heart” and “Mt. Joy.” Personally, I enjoyed every minute I spent at Summit-Indie Fest and was able to discover some exceptional regional musicians. 

To conclude our conversation, I proposed the question of whether Greer considered growing the festival, and to that, he responded, “That’s always a tricky question.” He continued by saying that he’s open to growth, but not at the expense of connecting with the music. In expanding the festival, he would need a venue that offers the same comfortable atmosphere, musicians who have a strong love for the music, and festival goers that embody the festival’s mission. For Greer, the festival is an expression of his core beliefs in musical and cultural connection. At its core, Summit Indie Fest really is all about the love for the music.