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Somerset ' s two-day outdoor music festival rebounded in 2021 with a crowd for the record books and a top-notch headliner in rock icons Blues Traveler , after bad weather and COVID concerns stymied the event the previous two years .
Now as the festival ' s full-time executive director , Tiffany Finley has been able to focus her attention on making the event bigger and better than ever as it approaches three decades of being a part of the community ' s cultural fabric .
" We are coming out of a year that went fantastic , that broke records as far as attendance and I think reputation across the state ," said Finley . " Just building upon that momentum is what we ' re hoping to do ."
Finley said the MMF board is proud of the line-up they ' ve
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put together for 2022 and is excited to start selling tickets and putting all the pieces in place for an all-around festival experience — one that Finley termed " authentic ," and " fun for the whole family ."
Indeed , MMF always features activities for kids as part of a whole weekend full of fun , with multiple stages of music going on at the same time — whether the big acts on the main stage , or up-andcomers in " Art Valley ," so named because of the many vendors there selling unique items .
" We like to get the kids involved , because we ' ve got to find a new generation to take over the festival ," said Finley . " Them having fun and making memories is what will make them want to get involved when they ' re older ."
A whole host of food trucks and different types of
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adult beverage stations are also available to help provide refreshment throughout Friday evening and all day Saturday , and last year introduced a VIP tent , sponsored by Horse Soldier Bourbon , that created a special experience for many of the key sponsors who help make the festival possible every year .
MMF started out in 1994 at SomerSport Park , the dream of local music lover Gabrielle Gray . She started it as a community artist in residence with the Kentucky Arts Council , working to help kids in kindergarten through high school learn to compose their own music .
" At the end of the first year , I had put in the proposal to the Kentucky Arts Council that I ' d showcase the work created that first year ," said Gray . " It was imperative to me
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not just because of the grant because the work was so good . ... Some of the songs the kids had written were amazing ." Gray contacted some notable performers that she knew and asked if they would like to be part of the festival to help drive up ticket sales . Now she needed a name for the festival . She had read a piece in the New York Times about " brilliant musicians in their teens and 20s , and the fame they have , and then they lapse into anonymity in their 30s and 40s and are barely making a living . Then in their 50s and that age range , they ' re passing on what they know to the new generation in their teens and 20s ."
The name the Times gave to these artists ? Master Musicians .
" I thought , ' That ' the perfect title for what we ' re doing in Somerset , Ky .," she said .
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