Thrival Innovation + Music Festival gears up for an amazing fifth year .
Making PittsburghThrive
Thrival Innovation + Music Festival gears up for an amazing fifth year .
By Nicole Tafe
Celebrating its fifth year , the Thrival
Innovation + Music Festival is gearing up for what promises to be another year of spectacular events .
The Thrival Innovation + Music Festival is an annual , Pittsburgh-based event featuring multiple days of innovation-focused programming capped by a two-day outdoor live music experience .
The festival started in 2013 as an initiative of Ascender ( known then as Thrill Mill ), and was founded by CEO Bobby Zappala , Chairman Luke Skurman and a group of their friends . The original concept started even further back — almost 10 years ago — when this group started a neighborhood barbecue that served as an informal party for young Pittsburghers , raising funds for local startup companies .
This yearly block party eventually transformed into a nonprofit , now called Ascender , a “ start / build ” hub that offers an incubator program for early-stage entrepreneurs , co-working space and free community programs — and Thrival . Ascender produces Thrival as the organization ’ s flagship initiative that promotes and celebrates Pittsburgh ’ s innovation and creative ecosystems .
It has two parts : Thrival Innovation and Thrival Music .
“ Thrival is a Pittsburgh creation ,” says director Dan Law . “ It has grown and scaled over the years with the support of Pittsburghers , and it now welcomes attendees from over 30 states and multiple countries .”
This year ’ s Thrival Innovation will be held in Pittsburgh ’ s East End on Sept . 27 and 28 at the Ace Hotel , Kelly Strayhorn Theater , Bakery Square and the Carnegie Museum of Art . Thrival Innovation will feature two full days of programming and events centered on “ Intelligence : Humans X Tech ,” focusing on the relationship between humans and technology .
Thrival Music will be held at Carrie Furnaces on Sept . 29 and 30 . “ The Carrie Furnaces site is special for Thrival Music because the space literally represents the physical and philosophical transformation of our entire region ,” explains Law . “ The furnaces no longer produce hot metal , but the facility now contributes to new economic growth and creativity . Carrie remains a significant element of our culture and we ’ re proud to partner with Rivers of Steel , the nonprofit dedicated to preserving the site .”
Thrival Music has always been cross-genre and eclectic . The approach is to avoid having the festival serve one particular audience or taste . Each year , audiences hear a mixture of sounds and orchestration — from hiphop to electronic , alt-indie , funk and more . “ Additionally , Thrival Music has always grabbed a lot of attention because , simply put , it ’ s a lot of fun and really cool ,” notes Law . “ On the site , attendees can check out vendors , interactive activities , food trucks , tours inside the Carrie Furnaces and more .”
Thrival involves hundreds of people and dozens of organizations all working together toward a common goal . Whether it ’ s local and regional government partners , universities , community groups , startups , corporate sponsors , musicians , innovators or the many volunteers who offer their time and skills , Thrival partners all bring something unique to the table that helps the festival succeed year in and year out .
Thrival Innovation + Music Festival has seen a lot of great change over the past five years , with the size and scale of Thrival Music as the most obvious difference . The festival had over 14,000 attendees last year , compared to 1,500 +
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