For the thousands and thousands of people that attend Bourbon & Beyond and Louder Than Life each year, it’s all about the music, bourbon, food and fun. However, for festival organizers Danny Wimmer Presents (DWP), it’s about more than just that. “Our commitment to Louisville is deep,” said Danny Hayes, CEO of Danny Wimmer Presents, and they have the numbers to back that claim up.
“DWP is committed to giving back to the communities in which its festivals are hosted and firmly believes in the transformative power of music to bring people together to foster positive social impact and cultural growth to entire communities,” said Doris Sims, SVP of Business Development for Danny Wimmer Presents.
It is in this spirit of giving that Danny Wimmer Presents created The DWP Foundation, which is “a nonprofit public benefit corporation whose purpose is to enrich communities in which various live events are hosted, to enable underprivileged people to attend live events and to facilitate education in the arts in such communities and among such people. Funds are raised to further the festival’s educational and charitable mission in the local communities,” per their mission statement.
Beneficiaries include local visual and performing arts programs, non-profit community-based music education programs, local parks and food banks.
And it is through The DWP Foundation that over $1,000,000 in charitable donations have already been made across Kentucky in the past ten years, according to Sims.
In 2023 alone, The DWP Foundation was able to contribute $110,000 to local charities by partnering with Louisville Tourism’s “Leave the Legacy” program. Recipients included Dare To Care, AMPED, Louisville Visual Art, Sweet Evening Breeze, and the Preston Area Business Alliance. “This positive impact goes way beyond the 8 festival days” said Cleo Battle, president and CEO of Louisville Tourism. In addition, “DWP also contributed over $500,000 in passes to bolster fundraisers for local organizations in 2023. Notably, $170,000 of this support was provided for youth programs,” said Sims.
The DWP Foundation’s 2024’s confirmed charity partners are Dare to Care, Fund for the Arts, Muhammad Ali Center, Louisville Academy of Music, Preston Area Business Alliance, and more to be determined, according to Sims.
The contributions are raised through a $.25 charity fee on all festival passes sold, sales of Lawn Chair Passes, and direct donations from DWP.
And past the charitable donations, the amount of money brought into the Louisville economy by these two festivals is staggering. According to Louisville Tourism, Bourbon & Beyond and Louder Than Life are two of the three top income-generating events for Louisville as a whole, following only the Kentucky Derby. More than 270,000 fans turned out in 2023, creating over $30 million in local economic impact.
And with a projected 350,000 people attending both festivals this year, an estimated $40M in local revenue is expected for 2024!
For more information, visit dannywimmerpresents.com and dwp-foundation.com
