By Tavon N. Thomasson
AFRO Intern
Baltimore, mark the calendar. The Love Groove Festival returns to West Baltimore on Sept. 13 with a new venue and renewed mission. The free event will run from 12 to 8 p.m. at 1374 W. North Ave., a full city block that will be transformed into a cultural showcase of music and art.
The festival, now in its ninth year, was founded by Emmy-winning composer and Baltimore native John Tyler in 2017.
“It was dedicated to being a platform for emerging artists because there weren’t really any platforms at the time. I wanted to create a space and a grand production for the artists I thought were dope,” said Tyler during an interview. “Over the last eight years, it’s grown to be way more impactful to the community, especially in the area we throw the festivals in, which is in the Black Arts District.”
This year’s festival is shaping up to be the most collaborative and expansive yet, blending national headlining artists with Baltimore’s upcoming talent. Attendees can expect live music performances, visual art, activities and even a pop-up skate park—paying homage to Tyler’s early passion for skateboarding.
Skateboarding is just the beginning—this year’s festival will be packed with interactive activities and experiences. A community run organized by 13 different running groups from across Maryland will take participants down North Avenue. In addition, a citywide bike ride to the festival is being coordinated in partnership with Bike Party.
Despite the festival’s growing success, Tyler – now 25 – reflected on the struggles of building this festival from the ground up as a teenager.
“There were times where it was dark—where there were no community partners, artists didn’t believe in it, and I was constantly being told to let it go. No one else had really built it from the ground up, and a lot of it was just me being very optimistic,” said Tyler. “It very much felt like, for years, that it wasn’t gonna work out, and that nothing was gonna come from it. And I was just wasting my time.”
Despite the challenges, Tyler remained committed to his vision for the festival, driven by a desire to uplift both himself and the community around him. He said attending events across Baltimore made it clear how much more access and opportunity certain neighborhoods needed and that realization became his motivation to move forward.
Nowadays the festival continues to expand each year, backed by major partners like Smartwater, the Mellon Foundation, Jubilee Arts and many others. With the progress made, Tyler sees a larger vision unfolding. He now envisions launching smaller festivals across the country and internationally, while keeping the main event rooted in Baltimore.
“Even though I have bigger ambitions now for where I want to take things, I do step back and look at it like, ‘Wow, this is what I wanted when I was 17, and it’s happening right now,’” he said. “So that excites me—especially getting to share that with the young kids.”
For more information, visit lovegroovefestival.com.