LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A Monday night Facebook post brought unfortunate news for fans and participants of Lakeside Live. Over the past few years, Lakeside Live at Lexington Green has become a popular musical event for artists and fans.
The free summer series had its opening night on May 10, and a full schedule stretching from May to September.
“We were pretty excited because Lakeside Live has become a pretty popular event for Lexington,” said Brian Spangler, guitarist and lead vocalist for the band Vinyl Richie. “When we put the event out on Facebook for everybody to advertise that we were playing, we had a huge response.”
This excitement ended when the cancellation went public on Facebook. Many artists learned the news on social media just like everyone else.
“Our saxophone player Jacob O’Donnell, I guess saw it on Facebook where they had posted that they were canceling the entire summer series,” Spangler said, “so he sent it out to the band and that’s how we found out.”
“We’re disappointed that it got canceled, but, you know, I’m sure they had their reasons why they canceled it. We respect those reasons and we hope that they get the series maybe going again at a future date or next year or something,” Spangler added.
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Stopping the series meant canceling 18 more concerts throughout the summer.
“I’m sure the organizers are more devastated than the bands,” Spangler said. “Life moves on for us, we get to go to other venues and play, but all their work and effort is just gone for this year.”
Though bands may be able to find other places to play, Lakeside Live’s absence from the summer schedule will certainly be felt in Lexington’s music industry.
“Any time you take something off of the table like Lakeside Live, it does leave a little bit of a void because we need as many of these events and venues to get in front of Lexington to share our music,” Spangler said.
Vinyl Richie, the 2024 LMA Cover Band of the Year, has already found a venue to fill in their August 17 date. Their next Lexington concert comes on June 29.
Event organizers have not yet released details as to why Lakeside Live has been canceled.
