Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival

What Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival does

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival is an annual three-day music and cultural festival held at The Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, Tennessee, operated by Pilgrimage Presents, LLC since its founding in 2015 (with the 2020 edition skipped due to COVID-19). The event is anchored at a National Register of Historic Places venue bordered by the Harpeth River and runs during the third week of September each year, featuring multi-stage programming across Americana, folk, rock, and indie genres, alongside craft and food vendors, arts experiences (The Bazaar, Fender Art Barn), and family-oriented programming under the Lil' Pilgrims banner. Pilgrimage Presents also operates The Pilgrimage Foundation as its non-profit arm, which channels a portion of every ticket sale to charitable partners including Friends of Franklin Parks, MusiCares, the American Red Cross, Dark Horse Institute, and 80+ other non-profits.

The underlying technology stack is conventional event-management infrastructure rather than a proprietary software platform: RFID-enabled wristbands issued for entry, re-entry, and access control; Bluetooth proximity beacons deployed for location tracking and targeted messaging; a dedicated mobile application providing schedules, maps, and interactive features; on-premise public WiFi with email-based access gating; and integration with Front Gate Tickets for ticketing, order management, and wristband fulfillment. The website is built on SpaceCraft, with Mailchimp powering email/SMS subscriptions and Google Analytics providing traffic measurement. There is no public API, SDK, or developer-facing integration surface.

The business model is event-driven and primarily transactional. Revenue streams include tiered general-admission and VIP festival passes (Tier 1/2/3 GA tiers differ only in price, not access), parking passes including ADA-accessible options, merchandise sold through a dedicated online store, craft and food vendor application/participation fees, and brand sponsorships — most notably National Seating & Mobility (flagship ADA sponsor providing accessible viewing platforms) and Fender (audio equipment and stage naming rights), with secondary sponsorships from George Dickel/Kimbro's, City Winery Nashville, and ASCAP. Tickets are sold direct-to-consumer and through Front Gate Tickets, and a defined portion of each pass purchase is allocated to charitable partners, taxes, and fulfillment costs. Marketing is executed via organic social, email/SMS, and content (photo galleries and video archives dating back to 2015) rather than paid acquisition at scale.

Name

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival

Legal name

Pilgrimage Presents, LLC

Website

https://pilgrimagefestival.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival is an annual three-day music and cultural event held each September at The Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, Tennessee. Operated by Pilgrimage Presents, LLC since 2015, it serves regional music enthusiasts and families through tiered ticketing, sponsorships, merchandise, and a foundation-supported charitable giving program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Music Festival Entertainment

NAICS

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Concerts & Music Festivals (THAJAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Cultural & Community Festivals (Ticketed) (THAJAFAI)

Keywords

• Music festival events
• Live entertainment programming
• Festival ticket sales
• Cultural event production
• Community festival experiences

Headquarters

HQ city

Franklin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Festival Ticket Sales: Primary revenue stream from selling festival passes at tiered pricing levels (Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3). Tickets sold through Front Gate Tickets platform with fees supporting charitable partners and operational costs.
2. Parking Passes: Sale of parking passes for venue access including ADA accessible parking passes.
3. Merchandise Sales: Festival merchandise including apparel and memorabilia sold through official merchandise store.
4. Vendor Fees: Revenue from craft and food vendor applications and participation fees.
5. Sponsorships: Partnerships with sponsors and brands including National Seating & Mobility (ADA sponsor), Fender (audio equipment), and others.
6. Charitable Donation Portion of Tickets: Portion of each pass purchase directed to charitable partners including Friends of Franklin Parks and Harlinsdale Farm.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival produces and operates an annual three-day music and cultural festival held each September at The Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, Tennessee. The festival sells tiered GA and VIP admission passes, parking passes, official merchandise, and vendor booth opportunities, while supporting charitable partners through a portion of ticket revenue.

Product overview

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival is an annual music and cultural festival that serves as the company's primary product. The festival operates through multiple integrated offerings: core festival admission passes (available in GA and VIP tiers), parking passes with ADA-accessible options, craft and food vendor opportunities, official merchandise, and travel packages through a hospitality partner. Digital content offerings include archived photo galleries and video content. The festival is held at The Park at Harlinsdale in Franklin, Tennessee, and is owned and operated by Pilgrimage Presents, LLC.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival Annual three-day music and cultural festival featuring multiple stages with diverse Americana, folk, rock, and indie lineups; craft and food vendors; family activities including Lil' Pilgrims children's programming; arts and crafts experiences (The Bazaar, Fender Art Barn); on-site merchandise; and accessible accommodations. Held each September at The Park at Harlinsdale in Franklin, Tennessee, and produced by Pilgrimage Presents, LLC.
• Festival Passes (GA and VIP)

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Friends of Franklin ParkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary non-profit partner focused on preservation of Franklin Parks including Harlinsdale Farm. Receives charitable donations from ticket sales and supports festival's community mission. The festival is held at Park at Harlinsdale which Friends of Franklin Parks helps maintain.
• MusiCarescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGRAMMY-affiliated non-profit providing resources and support for musicians in need. Receives charitable support from Pilgrimage Foundation to assist musicians with health, emergency assistance, and recovery programs.
• Pilgrimage FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe festival's non-profit entity that raises funds from donors, ticket sales, and activities benefiting Harlinsdale Farm, musicians, and artists. Foundation is the vehicle for the festival's charitable giving program.
• National Seating & Mobility (NSM)flagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerNorth America's largest provider of comprehensive mobility solutions serving as the festival's official ADA sponsor. Provides ADA Accessible viewing platforms with unobstructed views of the two main stages for guests with disabilities.
• Fender Musical InstrumentscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPremium audio equipment sponsor providing sound systems for festival stages. Stage named 'Fender Gold Record Road' and 'Fender Art Barn' reflect partnership. Brand visible across festival audio infrastructure.
• George Dickel / Kimbro'sminorGTM or Marketing PartnerTennessee whiskey brand sponsoring the Harpeth River stage area, providing branded beverage service at the venue.
• City Winery NashvilleminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNashville-based venue presenting the ASCAP Shady Grove Stage, supporting local music industry connections.
• ASCAPminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAmerican Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers sponsoring the Shady Grove stage, supporting songwriter and composer community.
• Dark Horse InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal music engineering school receiving scholarship support from Pilgrimage Foundation for music education programs.
• American Red CrossminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHumanitarian organization receiving charitable support from Pilgrimage Foundation for disaster relief and community assistance.
• City of FranklincoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMunicipal government partner supporting festival operations and receiving charitable contributions. Festival contributes to local economy and community development.
• Front Gate TicketscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary ticketing platform handling all ticket sales, order management, customer support, and wristband fulfillment. Platform processes transactions and manages attendee data.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival: Tennessee-based multi-genre music and camping festival with overlapping roots/rock/indie programming. Both target similar Nashville-sourced audiences and compete for the same sponsor and artist pools in the Southeast.
• Hangout Music Festival: Gulf Shores-based boutique music festival of comparable scale featuring multi-genre headliners, food vendors, and curated on-site experiences. Directly comparable in size, format, and sponsor mix to Pilgrimage.
• Austin City Limits Music Festival: Multi-stage fall music festival held annually in Austin with diverse genre lineups similar to Pilgrimage. Comparable structure (multi-day, multi-stage, family-friendly) though larger in attendance scale.
• Telluride Bluegrass Festival: Long-running festival held in a scenic, iconic venue with strong Americana/roots leanings matching Pilgrimage's musical focus and intimate historic setting positioning.
• Newport Folk Festival: Heritage folk/Americana festival with curated roots-music programming directly aligned with Pilgrimage's genre emphasis. Comparable format, charitable mission, and boutique positioning.
• Forecastle Festival: Kentucky-based boutique music festival comparable in regional roots positioning and multi-day boutique format. Similar reliance on geographic anchor venue and lifestyle brand identity.

Emerging players

• Memorial Park Music Festival / Pilgrimage-style regional festivals: Comparable smaller-scale regional roots and Americana festivals emerging across the US that compete for sponsor dollars and touring artists within the same Nashville/Tennessee talent ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival: Massive multi-weekend festival with broader commercial reach and significantly larger sponsor base. Operates in the same ticketed multi-genre festival category but at substantially greater scale.
• Lollapalooza: Flagship multi-genre destination festival owned by Live Nation. Anchors the same broad live-event category as Pilgrimage but at incomparably larger scale and geographic footprint.

Others

• Ryman Hospitality Properties: Nashville-based hospitality company operating the Ryman Auditorium and other live-event venues. Anchors the same Nashville live-music ecosystem that sources Pilgrimage's talent and audience.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pilgrimagefest
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCZTtDfS1GQU8mrT3COUm6EQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/pilgrimagefest
• Instagraminstagram.com/pilgrimagefestival
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pilgrimage-festival

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival