WASHINGTON, DC, September 21, 2023 — The Adams Morgan Partnership Business Improvement District (AMPBID) is excited to announce the return of Adams Morgan Fall PorchFest on Saturday, October 14th from 2-6pm! With approximately 100 bands, this event will showcase some of DC’s best local musical talent featuring nearly every musical genre, including classic rock, funk, go-go, rap, reggae, blue grass, classical, and pop. Twenty porches, business patios, parks, and the closed 18th Street will become stages for the day, drawing music-lovers from around the region into the tree-lined streets and small businesses of Adams Morgan. And for the first time during PorchFest, 18th Street NW (between Columbia and Kalorama Roads NW) will be closed to vehicular traffic creating additional safe space for people, performances, and fun! This road closure is part of an ongoing initiative, the Adams Morgan Pedestrian Zone funded by the DC Office of Planning’s Streets for People grant program. 

Event patrons can pick up a music map and wristband at two different event headquarters locations. The first location is in the plaza in front of Truist Bank at the corner of Columbia and Adams Mill Roads NW. The second location is in front of 2424 18th Street NW inside the road closure. Event wristbands are FREE and provide attendees with dozens of discounts at various Adams Morgan businesses. After picking up a wristband and event map, guests can stroll through the neighborhood for nonstop musical performances from 2-6pm, enjoy lunch, dinner, or drinks at a neighborhood hangout, and shop for unique gifts at local boutiques. 

Each PorchFest location will host up to four 45-minute sets, all of which are free and open for all to enjoy. Due to overwhelming success over the last few years, we are excited to announce that we will have TWO main stages this year  – the Plaza Main Stage (in front of Truist Bank) and the Aetna Main Stage (in Hoffman Alley next to Van Leeuwen Ice Cream). And, that’s not all! More stages means more extra-special local talent including headliner, Mark Bryan of Hootie & The Blowfish with the Screaming Trojans. Lead guitarist of the wildly successful 20 million-album-selling, two-time Grammy®-winning rock band, Hootie and the Blowfish, Mark Bryan, is from nearby Montgomery County, MD and plans to deliver a stellar performance featuring original songs off his solo albums plus classic Hootie and the Blowfish songs that we all know and love.

Additional main stage performers include The Experience Band & Show, Airport 77s, Controlled Chaos, Flex Matthews Band, Ari Voxx, Jordan Curls, and a DJ courtesy of Le Mont Royal. The full lineup of performers can be found at AdMoPorchFest.com. 

The Adams Morgan Partnership BID is currently recruiting volunteers to assist with staffing Fall PorchFest. Volunteers will receive a free t-shirt, Adams Morgan swag, and complimentary food and beverages the day of the event. Click here to sign up.

“We’re so excited for our Fall edition of PorchFest! This past Spring, we had more than 40,000 people attend the event,” said Kristen Barden, Executive Director of the Adams Morgan Partnership Business Improvement District. “We anticipate another big turnout in October which will ultimately support our neighborhood businesses. We hope the community will join us for this incredible event. We also appreciate our incredible porch hosts, bands, sponsors, volunteers, and small businesses for their contributions – we couldn’t do it without them.”

Adams Morgan PorchFest is brought to you by the Adams Morgan Partnership BID. This event is generously sponsored by Aetna, a health care company that is working to build a healthier world and is contributing to all of the fun, healthy ways to move throughout the pedestrian zone. Aetna is committed to providing individuals, employers, health care professionals and producers with innovative benefits, products and services. Additional supporting Fall PorchFest sponsors include Events DC, Tattoo Paradise, Colonial Parking, Gifted Curators, Lars Etzkorn Law PLLC, and Catoctin Creek.

For performance locations, neighborhood discounts, and more event details, visit AdMoPorchFest.com. Be sure to tag your fun event photos on social media using #AdMoPorchFest and @admobid!

About the Adams Morgan Partnership BID

The Adams Morgan Partnership Business Improvement District is a nonprofit organization focused on enhancing the quality of life for businesses, commercial property owners, residents, visitors, and employees in the District of Columbia’s most vibrant and eclectic neighborhood. The Partnership provides daily street cleaning, fun neighborhood events, and creative marketing and economic development initiatives. Adams Morgan is world-renowned for its fantastic restaurants and nightlife, colorful retail stores and historic, tree-lined residential streets. The American Planning Association named Adams Morgan one of the top 10 neighborhoods in America. 

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Inquiries:

Kristen Barden

kbarden@admodc.org 

202-997-0783