At its quarterly board meeting held last Friday, January 8, 2021, The Activities Council of Thomson reluctantly decided to postpone the 27th Annual Blind Willie McTell Music Festival, held each year in Thomson, GA. The scheduled 2021 date was Saturday, May 1. The new date will be sometime in early fall and will be decided and announced in the next month or so.

“It appears to us that, given the uncertainty we continue to live in regarding COVID-19, planning a festival to be held in May is pretty risky,” said Don Powers, on behalf of the Board. “Our artists, staff, volunteers, our loyal fans, and the entire community have an expectation, regarding the high quality we strive for at each year’s festival. That festival experience is paramount in our minds, and one of the main reasons we are still at it through almost three decades. With so many protocols and safety precautions still necessary, and likely in place on into the spring, it seems logical just to wait a few months. By early fall, our hope is that things will be settling down, relative to the pandemic, and that will allow us to present as normal of an event as we can. “

Organization, development of the lineups, and preparation for a fall event will be ongoing. Additional information will be released as soon as it becomes available. Additional questions can be answered at the Forward McDuffie office in Thomson, phone 706-597-1000

The Activities Council of Thomson (ACT), a non-profit organization founded in 1974, seeks to foster education, appreciation and promotion of American arts, particularly those that draw from Southern history, culture and the American experience.