Visionary recording artist, producer, songwriter, philanthropist, fashion designer, and entrepreneur, Pharrell Williamsannounced additional artists and activations that will take place at SOMETHING IN THE WATER, a multi-day music festival and cultural experience on the beach in his hometown of Virginia Beach, Friday, April 26-Sunday, April 28.
Newly added artists to the sold-out festival include, Timbaland, N.E.R.D, Busta Rhymes and Fam-Lay, who will join Pharrell on stage, plus sets from Kap G, Chris Brown, Charlie Wilson and Amber Mark.
On Sunday, April 28th a special Pop-Up Church Service will be held on the beach and will feature performances by John P Kee, Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary, Tye Tribbett, Israel Houghton and The Warryn Campbell Band. This inclusive celebration is a free event for the community, which will unite & uplift, offer hope, victory, fun and faith. The revival-style experience will include gospel choirs, dance ministry, local and national worship leaders sharing the gospel and prayer offerings for our communities.
The weekend will also feature special programming from partners including Trap The Vote, who will create an interactive space that allows people to engage, consume, interact, and create around civic engagement, social change, culture, and information at 15thStreet and Pacific Avenue.
With the mission of continuing to engage the community and offer platforms for growth, More Than The Music Powered by Cox Communications will host conversations across a variety of topics ranging from Tech, Entrepreneurship, and Education, to Women’s Issues, Spirituality, and Inclusion. Confirmed speakers include Deepak Chopra, Geoffrey Canada, Jon Platt, Mimi Valdés and Sylvia Rhone.
SOMETHING IN THE WATER with the support of Seatack Secondary School and Virginia Natural Gas are excited to share the news about the new community food garden at Seatack Elementary School. The food garden will augment the school’s culinary initiative changing the way food is prepared in schools. The program is about integrating scratch cooking as a more sustainable food system within the schools including a teaching garden.
Timberland is planting its roots on the corner of 17th and Pacific with the Timberland Pop Up Park, inviting festival goers to relax and recharge, learn how Timberland is a hero for nature and pledge to be one themselves. Timberland will match each pledge made by planting a traceable tree in Haiti and is committing to plant 30,000 trees throughout the festival. The greenery used at the Timberland Pop Up Park, all locally sourced, will be given a new life in the vibrant Vibe District in Virginia Beach. Timberland will also be partnering with community organizations to revitalize the Seatack Elementary School community garden ahead of the festival.
Located in the heart of the ViBe Creative District will be the Old Beach Markets, an expanded eco-friendly market featuring Virginia Beach favorites – with local food, art, music and more on Saturday, April 27 in three walkable locations across the festival footprint. The special edition of these existing markets will include new local vendors.
Visitors will also be able to explore diverse expressions of public art through the SOMETHING IN THE WATER Art Walk made possible by American Express. Twelve local artists will come together to create murals themed around Virginia Beach, Hampton Roads, and SOMETHING IN THE WATER. New Orleans visual-artist Brandan Odums also known as @BMIKE2C will contribute to the landscape as well as curate the program which will be spread out throughout Virginia Beach and the SOMETHING IN THE WATER festival programming.
Verizon Up, Verizon’s customer loyalty program, will offer members expedited venue entry through the Verizon Up Members Lane and 1,000 Verizon Up ticket holders will get access to an exclusive experience within the Verizon Up Members section.
adidas will take over the 24th Street beachfront with a tailor-made basketball court, a customized adilette slide station and adidas #TLKS sessions. They will join forces with celebrity choreographer Jaquel Knight to bring the hottest dance competition to the city, giving local dancers the opportunity to win a spot on stage with Pharrell at SOMETHING IN THE WATER. As part of adidas’s legacy for Virginia Beach, they will redevelop Pharrell’s neighborhood basketball court and launch the adidas ACCESS program, an initiative intended to engage HBCU students and unlock their future in the sports industry by connecting them with adidas employee mentors
Sony has teamed up with SOMETHING IN THE WATER to bring the best of Sony technology, music, movies, and gaming to the heart of Virginia Beach, including intimate live performances with Sony Music artists; meditation sessions set inside a 360 Reality Audio music dome; the hottest dance party in the galaxy with aliens from Men In Black: International; and the opportunity to discover the immersive cinematic features of the Xperia XZ3 and Xperia 10 Plus smartphones.
Uber Eats is bringing the best bites of Virginia Beach and beyond to SOMETHING IN THE WATER. The Uber Eats Window will be serving up complementary bites and beverages from beloved local restaurant partners to fans and festival-goers throughout the performances. With dishes served right on the beach all festival long, the Uber Eats Window will be open for select hours to all badge-holders.
XQ SUPER SCHOOL LIVE is a new, one-of-a-kind, immersive storytelling tour celebrating the everyday heroes transforming America’s high schools and they are kicking off the SOMETHING IN THE WATER festival on Thursday, April 25, at The Z Theater in Virginia Beach with a special one-night-only performance. Combining journalism, film, art — from tour creative chair Hebru Brantley — music, and photography, it’s an unforgettable night that’s inspiring communities to reimagine high school so all students succeed. “From Homer to hip-hop, storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to connect people to possibilities,” said Russlynn Ali, CEO of XQ. To learn more and purchase tickets, visit xq.live.
The first annual SOMETHING IN THE WATER is produced by Live Nation. The stage will be set on the beach and will feature previously announced weekend performances by Pharrell & Friends (Diddy, Missy Elliott, Usher, Gwen Stefani and Snoop Dogg), Travis Scott, Migos, Dave Matthews Band, Missy Elliott, J Balvin, Teddy Riley, Janelle Monae, SZA, Lil Uzi Vert, Diplo, Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals, Pusha T, Kaytranada, Ferg, Jhené Aiko, Rosalía, Maggie Rogers, Mac DeMarco, Masego, Virgil Abloh, DRAM, Leikeli47, Radiant Children, John-Robert and more.
SOMETHING IN THE WATER’S mission is to unite the community and celebrate the diversity and magic of Virginia Beach. It is an opportunity to bring the best of what Pharrell has encountered around the world back to his hometown. The weekend celebrates opportunity and the chance to empower everyone from the youth to the small business owners.
Festival partners include Verizon, adidas, Sony and the City of Virginia Beach. Charitable partners include From One Hand to AnOTHER and An Achievable Dream. SOMETHING IN THE WATER is also made possible by: Uber Eats, Uber, Netflix, Array, Timberland, COX Communications, AMEX, Trap The Vote, RED HYDROGEN, Virginia Natural Gas and BILLIONAIRE BOYS CLUB.
