Summerfest, which concluded its nine-day, three-weekend run on Saturday, brought 624,407 people to the lakefront grounds for the music festival’s 55th anniversary, according to Milwaukee World Festival Inc.
The attendance figure marked a 40% increase over 2022 (445,611), with about 17% of this year’s patrons gaining access to the festival through a free admission promotion.
Milwaukee World Festival also announced that the three-weekend format for Summerfest will return again in 2024. Dates for next year’s festival are June 20-22, June 27-29 and July 4-6.
Summerfest drew 409,386 patrons in 2021, when the festival moved to late summer due to ongoing concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic and with a shift being made to a three-weekend format as opposed to the traditional run over 12 consecutive days, with a single day closure.
Organizers canceled the festival in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Despite the big boost in the crowds at this year’s festival, Summerfest’s attendance remains far off pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, the year before the outbreak of COVID-19, more than 718,000 people attended the festival. Nearly 832,000 people attended Summerfest in 2017, the high-water mark since 2015.
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The American Family Insurance Amphitheater on the grounds hosted capacity crowds for Zac Brown Band, Zach Bryan and Imagine Dragons at this year’s festival.
Highlights across the festival stages included performances by Noah Kahan, Earth, Wind & Fire, Santa Fe Klan, Lord Huron, Yellowcard, Lauren Daigle, Japanese Breakfast, Smokey Robinson, Styx, Soul Asylum, Collective Soul, Cypress Hill and the Regrettes, among a host of others.
Summerfest benefitted from mostly good weather, although a brief heavy downpour on June 29 had crowds scrambling for cover. Light rain fell Friday night with little effect.
Milwaukee World Festival Inc. also reported a record number of sponsorships in 2023, with 15 new sponsors joining Summerfest and 17 new sponsors becoming part of Summerfest Tech.
Ticket sales increased year-over-year in several categories, with double the number of UScellular nine-day Power Passes sold.
“These are fantastic results for Summerfest’s 55th anniversary. We are thrilled our fans turned out to enjoy Summerfest’s unique brand of music, food, and fun,” Milwaukee World Festival CEO Don Smiley said. “As I look back on my 20 years of leading Summerfest, this year’s festival is a highlight, as our team continued to deliver a world-class experience in a world-class setting.”
Adding to the overall festival experience, Summerfest featured several additional programming elements including the new Sound Waves Stage, enhanced performances at the American Family Insurance House, American Cornhole League Pro Shootout and Superhole competitions that were broadcast live on ESPN2, the Alumni Charity Challenge Shoot-out, Latin Music Day and the Summerfest BIG WIN.
“Summerfest’s 2023 results allow our organization to continue to position the festival for future success,” Milwaukee World Festival President Sarah Pancheri said. “The Summerfest experience remains one of the best in the business and our team looks forward to enhancing that experience in the years to come.”
The festival also provided 50,000 free tickets throughout Milwaukee. In addition, as part of admission promotions, patrons provided more than 27,000 pounds of food donations for Hunger Task Force, more than $18,000 worth of hygiene products that will be donated to Milwaukee and Waukesha County schools through the United Way, and more than 3,500 books for Next Door’s community literacy initiatives.
The festival also integrated over 70 local community organizations into the festival through performances and events such as Direct Supply Seniorfest Day and Children’s Fest Day.
