Harmony in the Heart of Athens: Historic Athens Celebrates Six Years of Porchfest and Athens’ Rich Music Culture 

By Sofia Yaker 

Historic Athens Porchfest will celebrate six years of rich musical culture, highlighting a variety of music tastes from  folk to R&B by inviting 209 diverse artists to perform across seven historical neighborhoods in Athens from noon-8 p.m. on Sunday, making this year the largest edition of Porchfest.

Historic Athens is a non-profit that celebrates the rich history of Athens and works to find ways to help immerse the community in its heritage. They take pride in their largest event, Porchfest, which will celebrate its sixth year on Sunday. 

Porchfest has grown from an event of about 57 concerts to now over 200 concerts on porches around Athens in which the community can gather and celebrate music and history in the heart of Athens.

“I think hosting them is a great reflection of Porchfest’s power to introduce people to different types of music and to make people aware of all the varieties of music that are happening in Athens right now,” said Alison Miller, a fourth-year porch host. “My hope is that it has created more community within the community.” 

Denise Sunta, the engagement coordinator for Historic Athens, said that the goal of Porchfest and inviting a wide variety of artists and musical culture is to make sure the event is as inclusive as possible.

“Part of that is looking at the genres,” said Sunta, “and spacing them out across neighborhoods, so that wherever you are, you can catch a little bit of R&B, you can catch a little bit of folk, you can catch a little bit of rock.” 

Tommy Valentine, the executive director of Historic Athens, said that during the artist selection process they never dismiss a performer based on personal musical tastes, taking “virtually anyone who wants to perform.” 

Porchfest’s diversity not only allows for the community to explore new music for personal enjoyment, but it also helps artists gain more exposure and allow them to express their music to a large crowd. 

SJ Ursrey, an artist who will be performing in two bands, Honeychild and Dragana, at Porchfest, said that she likes the versatility of Porchfest and how “word of mouth gets you a lot of gigs.” 

To accommodate for the growing attendance of Porchfest, Historic Athens is now partnering with Athens Trolley Tours to help attendees travel throughout the neighborhoods. Attendees will now be able to enjoy free trolley rides throughout the neighborhood, making transportation easier and allowing for people to enjoy more music and explore historic Athens. 

Porchfest also will introduce new vendors throughout the Indie South Porchfest Vendor Market and a new SoundCloud Zone that will be handing out swag bags and providing insights about local artists.