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Lilith Fair

{{Short description|American female-centric concert tour}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2021}}

{{Use Canadian English|date=December 2021}}

File:jp49819980922-lilithfair.jpg, Mansfield, Massachusetts]]

Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 to 1999, and was revived in the summer of 2010. It consisted solely of female solo artists and female-led bands. In its initial three years, Lilith Fair raised over $10 million for charity.{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128588089 |title=With Sales Lagging, Lilith Fair Faces Question Of Relevance |last=Pellegrinelli |first=Lara |date=July 19, 2010 |publisher=NPR |access-date=May 30, 2015}}

History

In 1996, Canadian musical artist Sarah McLachlan became frustrated with concert promoters and radio stations that refused to feature two female musicians in a row.{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/Music/9807/28/lilith.fair/ | title=Lilith Fair: Lovely, lively and long overdue | first=Donna |last=Freydkin | publisher=CNN | date=1998-07-28 | access-date=2008-07-04}} Bucking conventional industry "wisdom", she booked a successful tour for herself and Paula Cole. At least one of their appearances together—in Vancouver, British Columbia on September 14, 1996—went by the name "Lilith Fair" and included performances by McLachlan, Cole, Lisa Loeb, and Michelle McAdorey, formerly of Crash Vegas.

The next year, McLachlan founded the Lilith Fair tour, taking Lilith from the Jewish lore that Lilith was Adam's first wife who refused to be subservient to him.{{Cite magazine|date=2017-07-05|title=Lilith Fair at 20: Sarah McLachlan & Co-Founders Look Back on the All-Female Festival That Smashed Touring's Glass Ceiling |url=https://www.billboard.com/culture/events/lilith-fair-oral-history-sarah-mclachlan-anniversary-7849320/ |access-date=2021-12-02|magazine=Billboard}}

In 1997, Lilith Fair garnered a $16 million gross, making it the top-grossing of any touring festival. Among all concert tours for that year, it was the 16th-highest grossing. McLachlan followed this success with two more rounds, in 1998 and 1999.

In 2010, Lilith Fair staged a revival with mixed results, as several dates were cancelled and many performers backed out of scheduled performances.

In March 2011, McLachlan declared that the Lilith concept was no longer being considered for future shows, due to changing audience views and expectations.{{cite news | url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/music/sarah-mclachlan-says-lilith-fair-is-over/article569791/ | title=Sarah McLachlan says Lilith Fair is over | first=Marsha |last=Lederman | work=The Globe and Mail | date=2011-03-08 | access-date=2011-03-10}}

Three volumes of Lilith Fair: A Celebration of Women in Music documented the performances.

Performers

=1997=

The artists appearing at Lilith Fair varied by date (with McLachlan and Suzanne Vega the only artists to play all dates). Appearances were organized into three stages. Almost all Village Stage artists performed only one or two dates. Many of them won slots on the bill in a series of local talent searches in their home cities.

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

;Main stage artists

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;Second stage artists

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;Village Stage artists

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;Dates and venues

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class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

July 5

| George

| rowspan="19"|United States

| The Gorge

July 6

| Salem

| L. B. Day Amphitheatre

July 8

| Mountain View

| Shoreline Amphitheatre

July 9

| Irvine

| Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre

July 10

| Phoenix

| Desert Sky Pavilion

July 12

| Winter Park

| Winter Park Music Festival

July 14

| Bonner Springs

| Sandstone Amphitheatre

July 15

| Maryland Heights

| Riverport Amphitheatre

July 17

| Cuyahoga Falls

| Blossom Music Center

July 18

|rowspan="2"|Clarkston

|rowspan="2"|Pine Knob Music Theatre

July 19
July 20

| Canandaigua

| Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center

July 22

| Mansfield

| Great Woods Center

July 24

| Hartford

| Meadows Music Theatre

July 25

| Wantagh

| Jones Beach

July 26

| Holmdel

| PNC Bank Arts Center

July 27

| Camden

| Blockbuster-Sony E-Centre

July 29

| Columbia

| Merriweather Post Pavilion

July 30

| Raleigh

| Walnut Creek Pavilion

{{Col-break}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

July 31

| Charlotte

|rowspan="11"|United States

| Blockbuster Pavilion

August 1

| Atlanta

| Coca-Cola Lakewood

August 3

| The Woodlands

| Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

August 4

| Dallas

| Starplex

August 6

| Antioch

| Starwood Amphitheatre

August 7

| Cincinnati

| Riverbend Music Center

August 8

| Noblesville

| Deer Creek Music Center

August 9

| Tinley Park

| New World Music Theater

August 10

| Columbus

| Polaris Amphitheater

August 12

| Burgettstown

| Star Lake

August 13

| Scranton

| Montage Mountain

August 14

|Ottawa

|rowspan="4"|Canada

|Frank Clair Stadium

August 15

|rowspan="2"|Toronto

|rowspan="2"|Molson Amphitheatre

August 16
August 17

| Montreal

| Stade Du Maurier

August 19

| Milwaukee

|rowspan="2"|United States

| Marcus Amphitheater

August 20

| Shakopee

| Canterbury Park

August 22

| Calgary

|rowspan="2"|Canada

| McMahon Stadium

August 24

| Vancouver

| Thunderbird Stadium

December 16

| West Palm Beach

| United States

| Coral Sky Amphitheater

{{col-end}}

=1998=

The artists appearing at Lilith Fair varied by date (with McLachlan the only artist to play all dates). Appearances were organized into three stages. Though Neneh Cherry and Lauryn Hill were scheduled to play some shows, both had to cancel.{{cite news |last1=Morse |first1=Steve |title=unknown |work=The Boston Globe |date=July 24, 1998 |page=D16}} Almost all Village Stage artists performed only one or two dates. Many of them won slots on the bill in a series of local talent searches in their home cities.

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

;Main stage artists

{{Col-break}}

;Second stage artists

{{Col-break}}

;Village Stage artists

{{col-end}}

;Dates

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

June 19

| Portland

|rowspan="29"|United States

| Civic Stadium

June 20

|rowspan="2"|George

|rowspan="2"|The Gorge Amphitheatre

June 21
June 23

|rowspan="2"|Mountain View

|rowspan="2"|Shoreline Amphitheatre

June 24
June 26

| Del Mar

| Del Mar Fairgrounds

June 27

| Pasadena

| Rose Bowl

June 28

| Phoenix

| Desert Sky Pavilion

June 29

| Bernalillo

| New Mexico Wine Festival

July 1

| Oklahoma City

| All Sports Stadium

July 2

| Bonner Springs

| Sandstone Amphitheatre

July 4

| Noblesville

| Deer Creek

July 5

| Columbus

| Polaris Amphitheater

July 6

|rowspan="3"|Clarkston

|rowspan="3"|Pine Knob Music Theatre

July 7
July 8
July 10

| Canandaigua

| Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center

July 11

| Hartford

| Meadows Music Theatre

July 12

| Saratoga Springs

| Saratoga Performing Arts Center

July 13

| Holmdel

| PNC Bank Arts Center

July 15

|rowspan="2"|Wantagh

|rowspan="2"|Jones Beach Theatre

July 16
July 17

| Camden

| Blockbuster-Sony E-Centre

July 18

|rowspan="2"|Columbia

|rowspan="2"|Merriweather Post Pavilion

July 19
July 21

| Virginia Beach

| GTE Virginia Beach Amphitheatre

July 22

| Raleigh

| Hardee's Walnut Creek Amphitheatre

July 23

| Charlotte

| Blockbuster Pavilion

July 24

| Atlanta

| Coca-Cola Lakewood Amphitheatre

{{Col-break}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

July 26

| West Palm Beach

|rowspan="15"|United States

| Coral Sky Amphitheatre

July 27

| Orlando

| Central Florida Fairgrounds

July 29

|rowspan="2"|The Woodlands

|rowspan="2"|Woodlands Pavilion

July 30
July 31

| Austin

| South Park Meadows

August 1

| Dallas

| Coca-Cola Starplex Amphitheatre

August 3

| Antioch

| Starwood Amphitheatre

August 4

| Maryland Heights

| Riverport Amphitheatre

August 5

| Tinley Park

| New World Music Theatre

August 6

| Cuyahoga Falls

| Blossom Music Center

August 8

| Cincinnati

| Riverbend Music Center

August 9

| Burgettstown

| Star Lake Amphitheatre

August 10

| Hershey

| Hersheypark Stadium

August 11

|rowspan="2"|Mansfield

|rowspan="2"|Great Woods

August 12
August 14

| Ottawa

|rowspan="3"|Canada

| Lansdowne Park

August 15

|rowspan="2"|Toronto

|rowspan="2"|Molson Amphitheatre

August 16
August 17

| Darien

|rowspan="7"|United States

| Darien Lake Theme Park Resort

August 19

|rowspan="2"|Milwaukee

|rowspan="2"|Marcus Amphitheater

August 20
August 21

| Shakopee

| Canterbury Park

August 23

| Greenwood Village

| Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre

August 25

| Park City

| The Canyons/Wolf Mountain Ski Resort

August 26

| Nampa

| Idaho Center Amphitheatre

August 28

| Calgary

|rowspan="3"|Canada

| McMahon Stadium

August 29

| Edmonton

| Commonwealth Stadium

August 31

| Vancouver

| Thunderbird Stadium

{{col-end}}

=1999=

The artists appearing at Lilith Fair varied by date (with McLachlan the only artist to play all dates).{{dead link|date=March 2015}} Appearances were organized into three stages.

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

;Main stage artists

{{Col-break}}

;Second stage artists

{{Col-break}}

;Village Stage artists

{{col-end}}

;Dates and venues

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

July 8

| Vancouver

| Canada

| Thunderbird Stadium

July 9

|rowspan="2"|George

|rowspan="19"|United States

|rowspan="2"|The Gorge Amphitheatre

July 10
July 11

| Portland

| Civic Stadium

July 13

|rowspan="2"|Mountain View

|rowspan="2"|Shoreline Amphitheatre

July 14
July 16

| Chula Vista

| Coors Amphitheatre

July 17

| Pasadena

| Rose Bowl

July 18

| Phoenix

| Desert Sky Pavilion

July 20

| Austin

| South Park Meadows

July 21

| Dallas

| Starplex Amphitheatre

July 23

|rowspan="2"|Atlanta

|rowspan="2"|Lakewood Amphitheatre

July 24
July 25

| Antioch

| First American Music Center

July 27

| Charlotte

| Blockbuster Pavilion

July 28

| Columbia

| Merriweather Post Pavilion

July 30

| Camden

| Blockbuster-Sony E-Centre

July 31

| Hershey

| Hersheypark Stadium

August 1

| Canandaigua

| Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center

August 3

| Mansfield

| Tweeter Center

{{Col-break}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

August 4

| Hartford

|rowspan="12"|United States

| Meadows Music Theatre

August 6

| Wantagh

| Jones Beach Theater

August 7

|rowspan="2"|Holmdel Township

|rowspan="2"|PNC Bank Arts Center

August 8
August 10

|Columbus

| Polaris Amphitheater

August 11

| Cincinnati

| Riverbend Music Center

August 13

| Burgettstown

| Star Lake Amphitheatre

August 14

|rowspan="2"|Clarkston

|rowspan="2"|Pine Knob

August 15
August 17

| Cuyahoga Falls

| Blossom Music Center

August 18

| Noblesville

| Deer Creek Music Center

August 19

| Tinley Park

| World Music Theater

August 21

|rowspan="2"|Toronto

|rowspan="2"|Canada

|rowspan="2"|Molson Amphitheatre

August 22
August 24

| Milwaukee

|rowspan="5"|United States

| Marcus Amphitheater

August 25

| Shakopee

| Canterbury Park

August 26

| Bonner Springs

| Sandstone Amphitheatre

August 28

|rowspan="2"|Greenwood Village

|rowspan="2"|Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre

August 29
August 31

| Edmonton

| Canada

| Commonwealth Stadium

{{col-end}}

2010 revival

File:Lilith Fair in Cuyahoga Falls, OH 2010-07-27.jpg

In an April 25, 2009, Twitter post, Nettwerk founder Terry McBride announced that a Lilith Fair tour through North America would be relaunched for the summer of 2010, with a two-week tour of Europe to follow.

The tour was plagued with financial problems from the beginning. The first seven shows were sparsely attended and the eighth show was the first to be cancelled. Initially, Sarah McLachlan claimed (in an interview posted on the Arizona Republic website on July 9) that the July 8 Phoenix show was cancelled in protest of Arizona Senate Bill 1070, which she strongly opposes.{{cite news | url=http://www.azcentral.com/thingstodo/music/articles/2010/07/09/20100709sarah-mclachlan-lilith-fair-arizona-immigration-protest-cancel.html | title=Sarah McLachlan: Lilith Fair was a protest cancellation | author=Ed Masley | publisher=The Arizona Republic | date=2010-07-09 | access-date=2010-07-10}}

The tour fell apart on the road as headliners Carly Simon, Norah Jones, Kelly Clarkson, the Go-Go's, and Queen Latifah dropped out, fearing that they would not be paid for their performances.{{cite web|url=http://lilithfair.com/artists/index.html |title=Artists |publisher=Lilith Fair |year=1999 |access-date=2010-07-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090330035003/http://lilithfair.com/artists/index.html |archive-date=March 30, 2009 }}

Due to poor ticket sales, thirteen shows (about one-third of the tour) were scratched (two announced on June 25,{{cite web |last=Hudson |first=Alex |url=http://www.exclaim.ca/articles/generalarticlesynopsfullart.aspx?csid1=115&csid2=844&fid1=47614 |title=Lilith Fair Dates Cancelled Due to Poor Ticket Sales |publisher=Exclaim.ca |date=2010-06-25 |access-date=2014-05-29 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130115173624/http://www.exclaim.ca/articles/generalarticlesynopsfullart.aspx?csid1=115&csid2=844&fid1=47614 |archive-date=2013-01-15 }} ten more on July 1,{{Cite web |url=http://www.lilithfair.com/news/2010-lilith-tour-announcement |title=2010 Lilith Tour |access-date=2019-08-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100704062130/http://www.lilithfair.com/news/2010-lilith-tour-announcement |archive-date=2010-07-04 |url-status=dead }} one additional on July 2){{Cite web |url=http://www.lilithfair.com/news/lilith-atlanta-alert |title=Lilith Atlanta Alert|access-date=2019-08-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100705151225/http://www.lilithfair.com/news/lilith-atlanta-alert |archive-date=2010-07-05 |url-status=dead }} and one reassigned to a smaller venue.

The artists appearing at Lilith Fair vary by date (with McLachlan the only artist to play all dates). Appearances are organized into three stages. Below is a list of artists who performed at Lilith Fair in the 2010 revival.

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

;Main stage artists

{{Col-break}}

;Second stage artists

{{Col-break}}

;Village Stage artists

{{col-end}}

{{Col-begin}}

{{Col-break}}

;Dates

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

June 27

| Calgary

|rowspan="3"|Canada

| McMahon Stadium

June 28

| Edmonton

| Rexall Place

July 1

| West Vancouver

| Ambleside Park

July 2

| Ridgefield

|rowspan="13"|United States

| The Amphitheater at Clark County

July 3

| George

| The Gorge Amphitheatre

July 5

| Mountain View

| Shoreline Amphitheatre

July 7

| Chula Vista

| Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre

July 9

| Las Vegas

| Mandalay Bay Events Center

July 10

| Irvine

| Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

July 13

| Greenwood Village

| Comfort Dental Amphitheatre

July 15

| Bonner Springs

| Capitol Federal Park @ Sandstone

July 16

| Maryland Heights

| Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

July 17

| Tinley Park

| First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre

July 18

| Minneapolis

| Target Center

July 20

| Noblesville

| Verizon Wireless Music Center

July 21

| Clarkston

| DTE Energy Music Theatre

July 24

| Toronto

| Canada

| Molson Amphitheatre

July 27

| Cuyahoga Falls

|rowspan="6"|United States

| Blossom Music Center

July 28

| Camden

| Susquehanna Bank Center

July 30

| Mansfield

| Comcast Center

July 31

| Holmdel

| PNC Bank Arts Center

August 1

| Hartford

| Comcast Theatre

August 3

| Columbia

| Merriweather Post Pavilion

{{Col-break}}

;Cancelled dates and venues

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
style="width:100px;"| Date

! style="width:150px;"| City

! style="width:90px;"| Country

! style="width:200px;"| Venue

July 8

| Phoenix

|rowspan="2"|United States

| Cricket Wireless Pavilion

July 12

| West Valley City

| USANA Amphitheatre

July 23

| Montreal

| Canada

| Bell Centre

August 4

| Raleigh

|rowspan="10"|United States

| Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek

August 6

| Charlotte

| Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Charlotte

August 7

| Nashville

| Bridgestone Arena

August 8

| Atlanta

| Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood

August 10

| West Palm Beach

| Cruzan Amphitheatre

August 11

| Tampa

| 1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre

August 12

| Pelham

| Verizon Wireless Music Center Birmingham

August 14

| Austin

| Never determined

August 15

| The Woodlands

| Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

August 16

| Dallas

| Superpages.com Center

{{col-end}}

See also

{{Portal|1990s}}

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

{{Sister project links|auto=yes}}

  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20060428133048/http://www.insidecx.com/interviews/archive/paulacole.html External Connections Paula Cole interview]
  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20100612101617/http://www.sarahmclachlan.com/us/lilith-fair-tickets Sarah McLachlan Official Lilith Fair website] Archived June 12, 2010.
  • [https://www.cbc.ca/music/read/lilith-fair-20-things-you-never-knew-for-the-festival-s-20th-anniversary-1.5043587 Lilith Fair: 20 things you never knew for the festival's 20th anniversary]

{{Rock festivals}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Rock festivals in Canada

Category:Music festivals in the United States

Category:Music festivals established in 1997

Category:Feminist art organizations

Category:1997 concert tours

Category:1998 concert tours

Category:1999 concert tours

Category:2010 concert tours

Category:Women's festivals

Category:Women in music

Category:1997 establishments in Canada

Category:1999 disestablishments in Canada

Category:Sarah McLachlan

Category:Feminist organizations in Canada