A Look at the Impact of Charlotte SHOUT!

In Partnership with Charlotte SHOUT!

Over 17 days in April, Charlotte SHOUT! brings a celebration of arts, culture, and community to Uptown Charlotte through more than 200 events and attractions. Last year’s edition of the annual festival saw record engagement, with more than 642,000 attendees; $650,000 paid to local creatives; and 1,200 CMS students participating in educational and arts activities—including 300 produced artworks. This year’s festival, presented by sponsors Atrium Health and Bank of America, continues to build on that energy. Below, we’ll take a look at how each pillar has evolved over the past few years:

Luminous Lane was born in 2023, when dozens of artists banded together to inject vibrancy into a previously nondescript stretch of Uptown Charlotte.

ART
This year, you’ll see several favorites return within the festival’s visual art pillar, from the Eggs on Parade sculptures crafted by 13 local artists to a reimagined Queen’s Greens, the 9-hole mini-golf course also designed by local creatives. This year’s new offerings include EdgeFest, a First Ward Park event with live mural artists, musicians, dance, spoken word, and more.

Meanwhile, a walk down Luminous Lane shows how the impact of SHOUT! goes beyond just the 17-day festival. Around 52 muralists have contributed to this alley of major works, curated by artists Sydney Duarte and Treazy of the Piece For Peace Movement. Jason “JBIRD” Parker, one of the participating artists, says that Luminous Lane “is bigger than a single event, it is a beacon of light and love, inspiration, creativity, hard work, artistry, and community.”

You’ll find live music throughout Uptown Charlotte during SHOUT!

MUSIC
Live music has been a vital part of SHOUT! since its inception. Last year, music comprised much of the 145 live performances held across Uptown. This year, the two most prominent spots that you’ll find music are the main stage at Victoria Yards and the beloved Pianodrome. The latter, the first amphitheater in the U.S. made out of 40 recycled pianos and a SHOUT! staple, is now housed inside the Wells Fargo Atrium.

Regional live acts can be found throughout the 17 days of the festival, with a few offerings that show off the city’s young talent. One example: April 4 brings CMS Performing Arts Day, with elementary, middle, and high school performers that include choirs, drama clubs, dancers, concert bands, and more. Elsewhere, genre-specific events include The Americana Rockin’ Country Experience (April 13); Soul Junction at SHOUT! (April 17); and gospel music sessions (April 8 and 20).

Aside from all of the bites, Charlotte StrEATs Festival includes live demos, cook-offs, and cocktails.

FOOD
Sponsor: Compass Group

Two of the festivals-within-a-festival this year are based in food. Charlotte StrEATs, hosted by Unpretentious Palate and Carben Events, highlights chefs and restaurants that are staples in Charlotte’s culinary scene and arrives April 12-13. As part of the festival, StrEATs Uncorked celebrates North Carolina wine on April 4. At Victoria Yards, the Carolina BBQ Festival has 17 pitmasters ready to show you different sides of barbecue culture in the Carolinas, including a Whole Hog BBQ display on April 4. Lewis Donald of Sweet Lew’s BBQ worked with Let’s Meet CLT to put on the event, and the team says that a ticket gets you 5 pounds of food from the event’s tastings. That’s a lot of Carolina barbecue. 

Elsewhere, you’ll find food trucks on Levine Avenue of the Arts throughout the weeks of SHOUT!, as well as pop-up events at The Market at 7th Street, Victoria Yards, and the CFT Market Culinary Showcase at Disc Plaza. Last year’s event saw the participation of 20 restaurants and 34 food trucks, along with 11 chefs and 8 mixologists at demos and cook-offs. And this year, SHOUT! shows no signs of slowing down in highlighting the diverse and vibrant tastes of Charlotte.

Noelle Russell is one of this year’s featured speakers.

IDEAS
Sponsor: UNC Charlotte

The Charlotte Ideas Festival, curated by The Charlotte Center for the Humanities and Civic Imagination, is the other festival-within-a-festival at SHOUT! This events showcases leading thinkers and innovators discussing today’s pressing topics. This year’s featured speakers include award-winning technologist Noelle Russell on the future of AI; restaurateur Jamie Brown with “Savoring History: Preserving Charlotte’s Past Through Food & Hospitality”; and bestselling authors Ann Patchett and Kevin Wilson for a special evening conversation.

Speakers in recent years included designer-author Ingrid Fetell Lee; comedian-activist-writer Baratunde Thurston; and CBS New Sunday Morning correspondent and writer David Pogue, among others. The Charlotte Ideas Festival runs for 5 days within SHOUT!: April 3-8.

And that’s just a taste of what SHOUT! holds for 2025. Explore its many facets and events now  at charotteshout.com.