As the age-old saying goes, the children are our future. Unfortunately, this sentiment has not quite penetrated the field of festival programming. Ironically, just as many of the legacy music events have grandfathered in audiences, year after year, they are also run by a salt-and-pepper club. Well, Malcolm Linnehan-Herring, more popularly known online as Malcolm Charles, is looking to toss those senior gatekeepers into the fountain of youth.
On August 16, Malcolm Charles made good on a viral promise with his self-produced festival, Lost Together. Last month, Malcolm Charles took to TikTok to prove that Gen Z is capable of taking over the music programming reins in New York City. Within Malcolm’s 30-day countdown, he brought followers behind the scenes of the Industry City takeover in Brooklyn.
Although the Pace University – Lubin School of Business graduate’s experience is anchored in club promotion, with Lost Together, Malcolm took things up a notch, backed by 212 Group and Dragonfly Hospitality Group. Supported by a $100,000 seed investment, Malcolm was able to spread the budget between big names Trippie Redd, Bobby Shmurda, Slim Jxmmi of Rae Sremmurd, and a host of rising acts (i.e., Outr Limit, Dilly Rowe, Madds).
In our chat after the festival, Malcolm Charles opened up about his vision for Lost Together as its co-founder.
“Lost Together was born from our vision to create a safe space where youth, music, and entertainment could unite,” said Malcolm.
He went on to push back against the negative attention his initial viral video sparked around his age and its timeline.
“In just 30 days, we proved that being young and ‘lost’ isn’t a limitation,” he chimed. “When community is at the forefront, the sky’s the limit.”
Ageism was not the only thorn in his side while publicly planning Lost Together. Along the way, Malcolm fought off naysayers comparing his ambitious undertaking to the 2017 Fyre Festival fiasco spearheaded by Billy McFarland.
Following its conclusion, Malcolm returned to his social media platforms to dismiss the doubters.
“Proof of concept complete,” wrote Malcolm on Instagram, recapping the festival.
View some of the images from the Lost Together festival provided by Malcolm Charles below.
