The city will host two concerts on Friday July 2 and Saturday July 3 at World’s Fair Park. Friday’s concert will end with a fireworks display.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The City of Knoxville will not be having its usual big festival on its fourth this year, but will be hosting a more modest celebration to mark Independence Day.
The city will host two events leading up to July 4, on Friday July 2 and Saturday July 3, with live music at World’s Fair Park. Friday’s concert will end with a small fireworks display.
“We were disappointed to have to cancel the festival on month 4, while many COVID-19 precautions were still in place,” said Kyndra Brewer, director of the municipal office of special events. “But we’re happy that we can have a patriotic, family-friendly way to kick off the holiday weekend.”
On Friday, the 572nd Air National Guard Band of the South will perform on the Randy Tyree performance lawn at World’s Fair Park. The group is based at the McGhee-Tyson Air National Guard Base and, as the only one of 17 Air Force groups in the world, has performed across the country. The evening will include performances by the Concert Band, jazz band Blue Groove and rock band Sound Barrier.
Their performance begins at 6:30 p.m. with follow-up performances from two other groups.
After the concert, LaFollette-based PyroShows will present a brief fireworks display at 9:30 pm The best place to watch the fireworks will be on the performance lawn near the stage.
On Saturday, the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra will perform a free concert at the Tennessee Amphitheater. The time and program will be announced later.
The concert will air on WBIR on July 4 from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m., followed by the Macy’s Fireworks special on NBC.
Both events will be family events. The city encourages everyone to bring chairs, blankets, and food, but asks you to leave alcohol and pets at home. There will be no food or drink to buy on site, with the exception of bottled water.
Restrooms will be available and parking is free at all garages around town as well as the nearby 11th Street garage.
“We look forward to celebrating together at this year’s scaled-down celebration and producing a full festival on the 4th in 2022,” said Mayor Indya Kincannon. Next year marks the 40th anniversary of the 1982 World’s Fair.
