Memphis In May (MIM) attendance fell to a 20-year low this year, yielding a record-setting financial loss, officials said Wednesday, “as a result of being held outside of the traditional riverfront home Downtown in Tom Lee Park.”
Combined attendance for Beale Street Music Festival and the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest fell below 115,000, officials said. The figure was 178,478 in 2018, and 175,330 in 2019.
Low attendance brought a record-setting financial loss of $1.9 million for 2022 festival operations. The previous record loss of $1.8 million was set in 2020 when the festival was canceled due to Covid. Smaller festival events were presented in 2021 due to ongoing concerns on Covid.
“Our fans were pleased we presented the full-scale festival in 2022, for the first time in three years,” said James Holt, MIM president and CEO. “We knew we would experience a significant decline in attendance because of our displacement from Tom Lee Park.
“The ongoing Covid pandemic, inflationary environment, and artist cancelations at Beale Street Music Festival also partially contributed to the decline in attendance.”
However, MIM said its 2022 programs were a “boon” to local hotels. Occupancy rates across the city peaked at 88.8 percent during Music Fest and Barbecue, according to MIM.
The 46th edition of MIM is slated to return to Tom Lee Park next year.