On Aug. 10 and 11, tens of thousands of music fans will descend on the grounds of Keeneland for the inaugural Railbird festival. They’ll groove to the sounds of A-list acts such as The Raconteurs, Hozier, Brandi Carlile and Kentucky’s own Tyler Childers. They’ll sample a variety of food and beverages from local producers and perhaps a tipple or three of the state’s signature spirit in The Rickhouse bourbon tasting area. They’ll learn the techniques of some of Lexington’s top chefs during culinary demonstrations, and some festival-goers will venture out into the countryside for a morning tour of one of the region’s top horse farms. Thanks to simulcast racing from Del Mar and Saratoga racetracks, fans can even glean tips from experts in the Lucky Day Plaza and place off-track bets onsite as well as via a mobile app.
Nearly 60 percent of attendees are coming to Railbird from somewhere within Kentucky; from all throughout the state and not necessarily just the Lexington area, festival organizers say. Forty-nine of the 50 states are also represented among ticket buyers, as well as six foreign countries. Fans will come for the music, the thinking goes, and while here enjoy an immersive experience that showcases the best of what Central Kentucky has to offer and what makes our patch of the world unique. While they’re having all this fun, however, it’s unlikely that more than a handful of Railbird attendees will pause to consider the immense logistical efforts required to put on an as-yet-unproven event of this magnitude, much less the funding required to do it right.
Emma Delevante
Homegrown favorite Tyler Childers is among the headlining acts at Railbird. The lineup also includes The Raconteurs, Hozier, Brandi Carlile and many more.
David Helmers is keenly aware. As originator of the Railbird concept and co-producer of the festival along with AC Entertainment, the Lexington entrepreneur, who is himself a huge fan of live music, is deeply invested in putting on a top-notch experience that will resonate with fans, stand out in a crowded field of summer festivals and have the staying power to become a signature annual event for the city.
“There’s a lot of risk involved in these festivals and a lot of financial outlay to make it happen in the first year, but the response has been really strong and people seem really excited,” Helmers said. “This is very much a start-up. It’s a brand-new brand. You’re introducing someone to a name and a concept that they have not heard before, you’re inviting them in and then you’re hoping that you will have return customers.”
David Helmers with daughter, Laney, at Bonnaroo.
The roots of Railbird trace back to the Moontower Music Festival, in which Helmers was a partner during the last couple years of the event. Although Moontower ceased operation after its August 2017 edition, Helmers walked away from the experience with the germ of an idea for a multi-day music festival featuring a roster of national acts that also represented elements of Lexington’s unique identity. “What I learned from Moontower, which was an independently run festival with a very small group of people financing and producing that event, was that it takes strategic partnerships to make it happen,” Helmers said.
To see if the idea had legs, Helmers invited VisitLEX President Mary Quinn Ramer to meet him for coffee and a conversation in the fall of 2017. His timing was spot on. VisitLEX had recently received the preliminary synopsis of a destination development study it had commissioned from consulting group Convention, Sports and Leisure International. The report identified seven key areas of focus in further developing tourism for Lexington, Ramer said, and one of those suggestions was to create a signature event. Others were to further leverage the bourbon and equine industries, as well as Lexington’s burgeoning culinary scene. The concept for Railbird, as the festival would come to be called, fit the bill.
“What I love in the way Railbird has come together is that the music is the headliner, if you will, but we are checking those other boxes as well. The goal all along ... has been that you are deeply entrenched in Lexington as part of this experience.” — VisitLEX President Mary Quinn Ramer
“What I love in the way Railbird has come together is that the music is the headliner, if you will, but we are checking those other boxes as well,” Ramer said. “The goal all along with this particular festival has been that you are deeply entrenched in Lexington as part of this experience.”
Helmers says infusing the festival with local flavor also distinguishes the event from the competition, as well as helps combat “festival fatigue” among potential attendees faced with a growing number of music festivals within driving distance. “A lot of festivals popped up a few years ago … and the festivals were very similar to what was going on 200 miles down the road in every direction—similar lineups and the same basic setup—and I think it got a little oversaturated and you saw a withdrawal in the market,” he said. “My notion was that you differentiate yourself in a dense market of music festivals by embracing what’s local, what you have right here that’s unique.”
In addition to live music, the inaugural Railbird festival will offer a variety of Central Kentucky-related experiences for patrons.
Keeneland Racecourse is perhaps the most uniquely “Lexington” venue in town. It’s also a beautiful, wide-open property with more than 1,000 acres surrounding the grandstand and clubhouse and with the infrastructure, parking, staff and experience to accommodate large crowds. Helmers and Ramer initially met with Keeneland Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Vince Gabbert to pitch him on the idea of hosting a major music festival on the grounds. After a number of logistical discussions and assurances that the event would align with Keeneland’s brand standards, the track was all in. “After we did Breeders’ Cup in 2015, it really tested our limits,” Gabbert said. “We felt like, from a team perspective, that we were well equipped to help plan and execute [a large, multi-faceted event like Railbird].”
With an ideal venue secured, the organizing committee then sought a national concert production and promotion company with the resources and experience to realize the scale of event that they envisioned. “It was like recruiting a business to open up an operation in Lexington,” Helmers said. “We’re talking about a multi-million-dollar annual expenditure to produce an event and to share in that risk.”
After hosting representatives from several major production companies—walking the grounds at Keeneland and showcasing Lexington’s unique appeal—the organizers unanimously agreed to partner with AC Entertainment in branding, booking, marketing and running the festival. Part of the Live Nation umbrella, the world’s largest concert promoter and producer, AC Entertainment has a long track record of producing successful music festivals throughout the Southeast, including the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, Forecastle Festival and many others.
“When they brought AC to us as [producer and promoter], we very much aligned,” Gabbert said. “They do a lot of boutique festivals, and we felt like it was a good match for the type of experience and the type of crowds that have been so supportive of Keeneland. It seemed like a great marriage between the brands.”
AC had also been eyeing Lexington for an event and had watched the city’s growth over the past several years, said Jeff Cuellar, vice president of strategic partnerships with AC Entertainment. Cuellar also cites the presence of a large university and a base of young professionals in Lexington, the city’s proximity to interstates and airports, its healthy mix of amenities and lodging, as well as the success of past events in the regional market as reasons for choosing to partner in Railbird.
“We’re looking for markets that have a healthy, vibrant music scene, a vibrant arts scene and just kind of this energy.” — Jeff Cuellar, vice president of strategic partnerships with AC Entertainment.
“We see the same type of thing with Chattanooga, where we do Moon River, and in North Charleston, where we do High Water,” Cuellar said. “We’re looking for markets that have a healthy, vibrant music scene, a vibrant arts scene and just kind of this energy.”
It’s not a decision the company makes lightly. AC Entertainment views its investment in and involvement with the festival as an ongoing relationship, Cuellar said. “Anytime we produce an event—as you can imagine from the time, the capital and all of those things that go into it—we have to come at it from a standpoint of we’re in this thing for the long haul. We want to see this festival succeed in five, 10, 20 years down the line,” he said. “Railbird is one of the most exciting things that we’re producing right now, because it has the capacity to grow.
“It’s also part of our mission to have people get out there, to explore and try different things,” Cuellar said. “Go see a horse farm. Go to a late-night show at another venue. Take a tour of Keeneland. Experience the bourbon scene, the beer and the food. We want people to get out and see what a treasure Lexington is.”
Jonathan Palmer
Hand-picked selections from several local distilleries will be featured in The Rickhouse area of Railbird.
Especially since Railbird’s programming is scheduled to run from early afternoon through the evening and there’s no official camping area offered at the festival, many area businesses, hotels and restaurants will also likely see a boost from the fest. Railbird organizers have also partnered with numerous local businesses, distilleries, restaurants and nonprofits, many of which will have a presence at the festival.
While the full economic impact of Railbird won’t be known until after the event, Ramer said Lexington’s hospitality industry in particular “will feel the impact over the course of the weekend by virtue of needing things like hotel space, food and beverages and gas,” she said. “We are feeling very positive about how things are shaping up for an inaugural year.”
“This should be an economic engine and a driver for the community—you’ve got to spread that around locally so folks can see and feel the benefit,” Helmers said.
“Some people may have a notion that you just print money, but there are a lot of expenses involved to make these kinds of events happen. It’s not necessarily wildly lucrative,” he continued. “Yes, it should be good business, and I think it will be, but my primary motivation is to put on an excellent event and to celebrate all of the great things we have to offer here. If we do that and cater to our audience, I think we’ll have a good result.”