2022 line-up: BE Social festival, Airlie Beach Fest and arts program
Remember those times when live music felt like a distant memory? Well shrug it off because these Mackay and Whitsunday festivals are exactly what you will be wanting. Get your tickets now.
Mackay
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One of the most successful festivals to hit Mackay is coming back with a bigger line-up and venue to take things to the next level.
Be Social will take over Harrup Park on August 6, expanding its capacity and welcoming its biggest acts to date.
Presented by triple J and with Queensland Tourism, Mackay Tourism and council backing, Be Social acts include Hermitude, Middle Kids, Thundamentals, Mashd N Kutcher, Peach PRC, KLP and more.
Festival director Michael Delaney said last year’s event in Mackay was “one of the worst yet best experiences” of his life.
“It was hard with so many one step forward two step back moments but when we opened the gates in crazy weather and the crowds flooded in I couldn’t have been happier,” he said.
Mr Delaney said Be Social gave Mackay music lovers a chance to see big-name acts that would normally be out of reach in their own city, but also opened up networking avenues for artists in the region.
He said as well as driving tourism and economic growth across Mackay and the Whitsundays, the triple J partnership also put the city on the “music map”.
“We could not have done it without the Mackay Regional Council and Mackay Tourism support,” he said.
Mr Delaney said the secured acts were “carefully hand picked” to be those with new albums and singles coming out that are “in high rotation on the largest radio station in Australia”.
“(We have) carefully picked artists that are not on other line-ups such as Spilt Milk and Listen out which gives us a point of difference and growth for the event,” he said.
“(It is) very exciting as we can see the support from the community already and we have the vision of growing this into a very large tourist attraction in the years to come and to show off beautiful Northern Queensland and its hot, clear-skied winters near the reef.”
Despite Covid changes and Mother Nature’s unpredictability, the inaugural BE Social festival in December 2021 was a smashing success at the showgrounds, a last-minute change to ensure the gig could go ahead.
Mr Delaney this year will leave fewer things to chance, organising the festival for August.
Tickets are on sale now at besocialfest.com.au
Flickerfest
For film lovers with short attention spans, it is impossible to go past Flickerfest
Australia’s largest short film festival has hit the road with its haul of the best shorts from world screenings, the best of which is heading to the Central Queensland Conservatorium of Music in Mackay on Friday, July 1.
The Best of Australian shorts features the quirky black space comedy The Home Team starring Tara Morice and Paul McDermott, and the moving and intimate sibling drama You and Me, Before and After, starring Emily Barclay and Yael Stone from Orange is the New Black.
Rising young Queensland actor George Pullar’s neighbourly drama Stonefish, which he wrote, produced and stars in, will round out Friday night.
The Short Laughs Comedy program on Saturday features clever comedies from Australia and across the globe.
Highlights include UK/French animation Affairs of The Art, recently nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film, screening alongside Nash Edgerton’s hilarious black comedy Shark starring Nash and Rose Byrne.
Tickets are $15 or $10 concession.
Airlie Beach Festival of Music
It is the most anticipated event for music lovers wanting to explore paradise, etched into social calendars over the past 10 years with increasing success.
And while the Airlie Beach Festival of Music has taken on brand look, its line-up for 2022 still packs the same impressive musical punch.
It is the continued realisation of organiser Gavin Butlin’s dream that started a decade ago, proving those who said it could not be done wrong.
This year’s line up features acts such as Ben Lee, Rogue Traders, the Badloves and Mi-Sex, and will take over Airlie Beach on November 4-6.
"It doesn’t get any easier but to get to 10 years is pretty amazing,” Mr Butlin said.
“I’m proud of what we’ve been able to build over the years and eternally grateful to everyone who’s been a part of it.”
The festival has achieved critical acclaim including being named the 2022 Queensland Music Awards ‘Festival of the Year’ and was featured at the 2022 Australian Women in Music Awards, where one of its key organisers, Ellie Hanlon, was one of just eight regional delegates from across the nation invited to attend.
Its partnership with Tourism and Events Queensland has also been extended with $175,000 funding support for the 2022-24 season under the Queensland Destination Events program.
State Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the Airlie Beach Festival of Music was one of the Whitsundays’ favourite annual events.
“Significant events like the Airlie Beach Festival of Music bring extra visitors to the Whitsundays who contribute to the region’s economic recovery,” Mr Hinchliffe said.
“Music fans living it up in paradise represent a bounty for accommodation providers, restaurants, cafes and the Whitsundays’ world-famous tourism operators.
“This year’s festival line-up is predicted to deliver more than $2 million for the visitor economy, and support for local jobs.”
Tourism Whitsundays CEO Rick Hamilton said his team was committed to supporting existing, and growing new events, in the Heart of the Great Barrier Reef.
“The positive impacts and interest in a community that a successful regional event can provide pays dividends both socially and economically,” he said.
“For this reason, I encourage all our members and the business community as a whole, to support the Airlie Beach Festival of Music in its 10th year and beyond, recognising this is an event which in turn supports businesses and the destination.”
As a visual celebration of all its landmark accomplishments, the Airlie Beach Festival of Music will be moving toward its 10th anniversary incarnation with a fresh, new look.
Unveiled at the May 2022 Tourism Whitsundays networking night, the rebrand includes a new logo and modernised artwork, marrying the elements of music and place, and symbolising the event’s uniqueness as the Heart of Live Music at the Great Barrier Reef.
For tickets and more information, see airliebeachfestivalofmusic.com.au
Legends on the Lawn
Mackay will play host to a number of legends of the Aussie music industry in a spectacular live music event.
Jimmy Barnes will be the headline act but he will be joined by a stellar line up including The Living End, Jon Stevens, Vanessa Amorosi, Busby Marou and Christine Anu for Legends on the Lawn.
Originally slated for May, the massive festival was postponed to August 27.
Festival of Arts
The iconic Festival of Arts this year celebrates 35 years with its biggest program to date.
An impressive 27 events are packed into the program that will take over Mackay from June 30, including the city’s favourite Wisely Wine and Food Day, Daly Bay Illuminate and Friends of the MECC Jazz Brunch.
“To mix things up this year, Daly Bay Illuminate is moving to Queens Park to provide a more spacious setting for mass displays and installations,” Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson said.
“As for new events, there’s something for everyone – from the Festival Hub at the Bluewater Quay with Ballistic Whitsunday craft beer, roving entertainment and live music; to Just Saying Project’s ‘Bare’, a burlesque-style show in the Wonderland Spiegeltent which talks about taboos and female pleasure.”
Acting manager MECC and Events Jemma Carey said the team had been blown away by how much interest there had been in the Festival Fringe program this year.
“We’ve got 18 amazing fringe events that will appeal to diverse audiences,” Ms Carey said.
“If live music is your passion, then we’ve got everything from electronic to classical,” she said.
“For those 15 years and up, the B Social Music Festival is back and bigger in 2022.
“For those who like their music a little more classical, there’s the Mackay Chamber Music Festival and Mingle at Melba, complete with live opera.
“If jazz is more your thing, then The Bluewater Big Band is back for the Friends of the MECC Jazz Brunch.
“Or, if you are more into Aussie Rock, then don’t miss Goanna when they play all their hits, like Solid Rock and Let the Franklin Flow, at the MECC on July 1.”
Mr Williamson encouraged residents to deep dive into the program.
“There’s a lot to choose from, so grab your calendar and start marking dates now,” he said. “I’d also recommend getting in and booking some early-bird tickets – we fully expect sellouts for some events and VIP experiences.”
Sugardrop Festival
Mackay-bred songstress Tia Gostelow has organised the Sugardrop Festival at Harrup Park to give regional musicians the chance to recognise that a life in music can be a reality.
“I think it will make them feel like it is accessible and it can be a reality to do that,” she said.
Gostelow got her start playing in pubs throughout Mackay and knows about the struggle for recognition confronting regional musicians.
“I’ve always kind of wanted to put on an event in Mackay and bring bands from outside of Queensland, mostly to give local bands an opportunity to play at the same festival as some of these amazing Australian bands.”
The festival is booked for June 18 and Gostelow hopes for a strong crowd to support the event.
The event is open to all those aged 15 or older.
Bands from Mackay, Cairns and Brisbane will play as well as Canberra outfit Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers.
“I’m getting very excited,” Ms Gostelow said.
“I feel weirdly calm.
“I feel everything’s planned and sorted, but who knows?
“I’ve never run an event before, this is my first time, I’m sure something will pop up, but I’m feeling really good about it.”
“I feel like it’s going to be a great day, great venue.
“It’s going to be really fun.”
Gostelow added she chose the word ‘Sugardrop’ to reference Mackay’s heritage.
“I wanted to obviously implement something that represented Mackay, but also in a fun and modern way,” she said.
Alongside the altruistic spirit that led her to put on Sugardrop, Ms Gostelow continues to pursue her own musical career.
She has just returned from a three-week stint in America, where she worked with writers in New York, Nashville and Los Angeles to compile material for a new album.
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