Ben “Swamp Donkey” Brenner performs during the 23rd annual Hot Springs Blues Festival at Hill Wheatley Plaza in downtown Hot Springs in this Aug. 31, 2019, file photo. (The Sentinel-Record / Tanner Newton)HOT SPRINGS — The 24th annual Hot Springs Blues Festival has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but a digital event is planned and the festival will return next year.
Bert Clevenger, president of Spa City Blues Society, said Thursday that after watching several other community events get postponed or canceled, organizers made the decision to cancel the festival that was set for Sept. 5.
“We didn’t want to put our patrons, our sponsors or our performers at risk,” Clevenger said.
He said organizers are already working on the 2021 festival and that both headliners for this year’s events have signed on for next year. Larry McCray and B.B. Queen, who were scheduled to co-headline this year, will headline the event next year, Clevenger said.
“This would have been an excellent year if covid hadn’t come along,” he said, noting McCray is well-known and would have attracted a large crowd.
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Clevenger wouldn’t go into specifics about what organizers are working on in place of the festival this year, but he said it will be free and digital. More information will be made public on the society’s website and Facebook pages, he said.
The society already had canceled its annual gumbo festival and annual craft beer festival because of the pandemic, noting it would be “challenging” to hold such outdoor events while adhering to Arkansas Department of Health guidelines related to the pandemic.
“We are trying [to not let] disappointment seep in,” Clevenger said. “I know [the festival] will come back.”