Pilgrimage Music Festival's Founders, At ACL 2017
Texas Chapter had the unusual cross-festival pleasure of interviewing Brandt Wood and Kevin Griffin, the founders of the Pilgrimage Music Festival while they were attending Austin City Limits Music Festival 2017. In Franklin, Tennessee, Pilgrimage kicked off in 2015 based on a combination of factors that were basically a business opportunity plus a few people who were crazy about music concerts and festivals. Griffin addressed the arguments that go on about headliners and who should be on the lineup. From Justin Timberlake to choosing less well known acts, debates are intense over who best fits what Pilgrimage is trying to bring to life. "If you make it to our lineup it's been juried, debated, tense," said Wood. "But ultimately, that band made it through the gauntlet of us wanting to be true to the Pilgrimage brand, which is … authentic, killer live, fitting a niche in the firmament of a multi-genre festival." Griffin said the regional quality and variety of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival was their "inspiration from day one." Wood added, "Being at ACL, it's poignant to be here talking about Pilgrimage, at ACL. It's super-humbling."