Staff Report
KCBX management has announced that the public radio station’s major fundraiser, the Live Oak Music Festival, will not take place this June. It will instead offer a virtual event.
“We share in your excitement to resume normal life without interruptions, and as a supporter of the Live Oak Music Festival, that includes camping and gathering with friends at Live Oak”, says KCBX General Manager Frank Lanzone. “Unfortunately, however, the situation surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic remains volatile, and it will likely remain volatile for at least the next four to six months.”
The next in-person Live Oak Music Festival is now scheduled for June 17-19, 2022. It was originally slated for late June at San Luis Obispo County’s beautiful El Chorro Regional Park on Highway 1 in the Chorro Valley, but was cancelled in 2020 and now, again, in 2021.
KCBX will again transform Live Oak into a virtual festival, Live Oak on the Radio. Plans for another streaming and broadcast event to take place over the traditional Live Oak weekend on June 18-20 are already in the works, with details coming soon on the festival website, www.liveoakfest.org, and on social media.
The 2020 Live Oak On The Radio virtual event, while hastily planned, was well received by thousands of fans, with live streamed local concerts, radio rebroadcasts of some favorite performances from the last 30-plus years, and many people planning backyard campouts with their immediate family to replicate the “Live Oak vibe” while staying at home during the pandemic. Donations poured in and the station was able to recoup about half of what it usually earns at the live festival, to support public radio on the central coast.
The festival is an important fundraiser for KCBX Central Coast Public Radio, an NPR affiliate that provides local, regional and national news, information and music for San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and southern Monterey counties. Festival organizers thank the community for their continued support. Information about refunds and donation opportunities was emailed to those who purchased tickets previously, and is available at www.liveoakfest.org.
