By By Zoe Nicholson
Copyright postandcourier
COLUMBIA — Jam Room, the long-running Main Street music festival, is moving to Finlay Park.
The free one-day festival is set for Nov. 15 and will coincide with the park’s grand reopening after more than two years of renovations that cost $25 million.
“Two stages, 10 bands, six food trucks, one good time,” promised David Stringer, chairman of the Jam Room Foundation, the nonprofit founded by local musician Jay Matheson that puts on the festival.
Ten music acts, including “America’s Got Talent” finalist and Hopkins native Steve Ray Ladson, will perform on two stages set up in the newly revamped park. The other headlining act is Silkworm, a rock band formed in 1987 and reunited last year.
“That’s gonna be a good one,” Ladson told Free Times Sept. 19. “I’m really excited about playing the hometown state, so make sure you blow that out.”
The rest of the lineup will be announced Oct. 9 at WECO Bottle and Biergarten in West Columbia, but a city press release promises a mix of local, regional and national talent. Two partner events are scheduled, including a kickoff party at Art Bar on Friday, Nov. 14 and a Nov. 6 screening of “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley” at The Nickelodeon, in partnership with West Columbia’s Scratch N’ Spin.
The festival has always been free thanks to tax grants from the city of Columbia and Richland County. The festival board worked with the city this year to move festivities from Main Street to Finlay Park, where city leadership has said they’d like to create a hub for events in the downtown corridor.
