Photo credit: Kelly Thompson
The 2024 Amplify Decatur Music Festival, presented by Lenz and produced in partnership with Eddie’s Attic, raised a total of $50,000 for Decatur Cooperative Ministry (DCM) and the Decatur Education Foundation. DCM is a Decatur-based nonprofit organization that works to prevent and alleviate poverty and homelessness in Decatur and DeKalb County, and the Decatur Education Foundation is a non-profit working with the City Schools of Decatur, Decatur Housing Authority, and City of Decatur to bolster community efforts and ensure that ALL students have the resources, opportunities, and experiences in order to foster their growth and ensure their academic success.
As the presenting sponsor, Lenz donated its comprehensive marketing and communication services for the festival, held April 13 on the Decatur Square, featuring performances by Melissa Etheridge, Dawes, Blind Boys of Alabama, Run Katie Run and Jitterbug – as well as additional events including a Thursday night comedy show, Friday night performances at various stages around Decatur, and a Bruce Springsteen tribute show Sunday night at Eddie’s Attic.
To date, Amplify has donated more than $625,000 in unrestricted gifts to locally oriented anti-homelessness and poverty-focused organizations – including more than $410,000 in Decatur.
Amplify was founded by Lenz President and CEO, Mike Killeen, who remains an Amplify board member. Christine Mahin, Lenz Marketing’s Vice President, again served as festival director. Lenz’s Media Director, Rachel Cushing, also serves as an Amplify Decatur board member. Several others from the Lenz team also contributed to the marketing and production of the event, including the remaining members of the Lenz management team, Scott Sanders and Ricky Patillo, as well as Annice Wyatt, Frank Robertson, Casey Meyer, Emily Giordano, Rae Steinberg, and Lizzi Skipper. Jon Waterhouse, Lenz’s Media Relations Manager, served as emcee of the event.
“It’s great to see the festival continue to grow year after year,” says Drew Robinson, Board President of Amplify My Community. “Amplify wouldn’t be what it is without Christine, Mike, and the incredible folks on the Lenz team.”
Amplify My Community was founded in 2010 and is based in Decatur, Georgia. Its mission is to leverage the universal love of music to fight poverty at the local level. To date, Amplify has produced more than 120 concerts, and raised and donated more than $625,000 in unrestricted gifts to locally oriented anti-homelessness and poverty-focused organizations — including more than $410,000 in Decatur. Amplify has held concert series in Atlanta, Athens, Decatur, Suwanee, and Duluth, Georgia; Asheville and Charlotte, North Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee; and Charlottesville, Virginia, and featured acts such as Indigo Girls, Lucinda Williams, Ben Harper, Jeff Tweedy, Mavis Staples, Blind Boys of Alabama, Old Crow Medicine Show, St. Paul and the Broken Bones, Rodney Crowell, The War & Treaty, Patty Griffin, James McMurtry, John Paul White, Son Volt, Justin Townes Earle, Bruce Hornsby, Milk Carton Kids, Ricky Skaggs, Julien Baker, Drivin’ N Cryin’, Junior Brown, Amanda Shires, Bobby Bare, Jr., Lucero, Colin Meloy, The Mavericks, Shawn Mullins, The Lone Bellow, The Jayhawks, Jay Farrar, and Harold Holloway & Co.