APRIL | FEATURE
Major step
Forwards
Bristol-based Team Love , the promoter behind festivals including the recently expanded Love Saves The Day , has teamed up with AEG Presents for the launch of the 60,000-capacity Forwards festival . Access caught up with AEG Presents European Festivals CEO Jim King and Team Love co-founder Tom Paine to discuss the long-term plan for the event .
Words : Christopher Barrett , Joe Gallop
There certainly isn ’ t a shortage of new festivals launching this year but among the biggest will be 60,000-capacity Forwards , created in partnership by AEG Presents and Bristol-based promoter Team Love . Forwards will take place on 3-4 September at Bristol ’ s Clifton Downs , where Team Love has previously staged its Love Saves The Day festival and The Downs Festival ( both 30,000 cap ). Among the event ’ s headliners will be Jamie XX and The Chemical Brothers .
The promoters have presented the event as “ more than just a music festival ”, with a focus on activism and debate to “ challenge what metropolitan
festivals can be today and how they can do good , from the inside out ”.
This year is already shaping up to be a busy one for the events industry , not least for AEG Presents , which is working on European festivals including London ’ s All Points East ( 40,000 ) and BST Hyde Park ( 65,000 ), as well as the three-day Rock en Seine ( 120,000 ) in Paris . So why launch a festival now ? “ We have a growth strategy for our festival division and , whilst this was paused during the Covid period , it was always our intention to move forward in this market as soon as we were able to ,” explains Jim King . “ Forwards has been years in the planning , but we felt that 2022 was the right time to launch and have Forwards , All Points East and Rock en Seine start to establish themselves as a strong anchor presence at the end of the summer period . The event has launched strongly , and we are confident it will be a good year for us .” King says partnering with Team
Love on the project was a natural fit ,
“ The event has launched strongly , and we are confident it will be a good year for us .”
not least because the promoter of Love Saves The Day , which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year , is ingrained in Bristol ’ s live events and cultural scene : “ They are valued partners , and we are happy to support their ambitions and vision , which we saw matched our own . It is already a very rewarding and productive partnership . They understand Bristol as well as
anyone and are hugely respected across the industry .”
One of the aspects of Forwards that sets it apart from other festivals of its scale is its organiser ’ s focus on working holistically with the local community . Team Love has set up the Big Team CIC ( community interest company ), which the festival will partner with to offer opportunities for young people in Bristol who have historically been excluded from and / or are under-represented in the festival and events industry .
Paine says the work with CICs will go further than encouraging new event professionals : “ We ’ re also partnering with CICs to nurture new talent , provide community catering at the festival and give back to Bristol communities through the festival ecosystem .”
He says Forwards is looking to challenge what metropolitan festivals can be today and how they can do more and give back to communities through the festival ecosystems : “ We have partnered with and put CIC social
18