- October 30, 2024
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The Palm Coast Songwriters Festival isn't happening this year — in person. But it's happening online, with a new YouTube channel in the works and a virtual tip jar to enable country music fans to support songwriters who have had many events canceled.
Links to the performances, April 30 to May 3, as well as the virtual tip jar, will be at palmcoastsongwritersfestival.com. Fans can watch each evening as more videos are uploaded, or they can binge watch after it's all over, according to organizer Garry Lubi.
"We're trying to do two things," he said. "We want to give people an entertainment break from everything that's going in. The second thing is, these writers have been impacted pretty negatively, financially." All proceeds from the tip jar will go to the writers.
The festival continues to grow in reputation among Nashville songwriters, Lubi said. He hears stories from new songwriters who have not been part of previous Palm Coast festivals but are now planning on joining the list of performers in 2021, when the next in-person show is planned. (Read the Palm Coast Observer's interviews with songwriters here: Anthony Smith and James Slater.)
"We know some people who will be watching this, they’ve been impacted as well," Lubi said. "They've lost their job or had to take a pay cut. For them, we’re just saying, 'Enjoy. If you can’t give, still enjoy it, and get your mind off some other stuff. But if you are able to give, we appreciate it."