VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Virginia Beach is looking for community feedback ahead of the return of the Something in the Water music festival.
The Pharrell Williams-backed event is scheduled for April 28-30, 2023 at the Oceanfront. It hasn’t been held in Virginia Beach since the inaugural event in 2019.
The public comment for the event will happen on November 15 at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 10 days after tickets go on sale to the public on Saturday, November 5.
Though it’s all but certain the event will happen in 2023, the public will be able to weigh in the proposed terms with the organizers.
Virginia Beach has offered a $500,000 advance to the organizers for marketing purposes, along with other city property to help the festival such as parking garages and school buses, a summary of the proposed sponsorship terms shows.
City Council is then expected to vote on the terms at their December 6 meeting.
Williams moved the festival from the resort city to Washington, D.C. in 2022, citing a “toxic energy” in Virginia Beach and the city’s response after Williams’ cousin Donovon Lynch was shot and killed by a Virginia Beach police officer.
After the D.C. festival this summer, which had been criticized for overcrowding issues, Williams met with Virginia Beach leaders in New York City.
Members of that coalition, Councilman Aaron Rouse, City Manager Patrick Duhaney and Deputy City Manager Taylor Adams, were on stage to make the announcement during Williams’ Mighty Dream Forum in Norfolk.
To register to speak at the November 15 event, contact the City Clerk’s Office at 757-385-4303.