Good Things Are Happening Fest returns August 12 to Scranton's Iron Furnaces

Jul. 27—SCRANTON — Good Things Are Happenings Festival gets ready for its second year on August 12 at Scranton's Iron Furnaces. Be there to witness a good thing happening in your neighborhood with live music and local vendors all day.

Music acts include Petal, Wild Pink, James Barrett, Alyssa Lazar, The TRIBE, Little Hag, and many more. Attendees can also enjoy food, drinks, art, and other vendors from all around NEPA. The doors open at 12:00 p.m. Tickets are $25 pre-sale and $30 the day of the show.

James Barrett founded this event after posting an idea on Facebook in May of last year. He polled his friends about hosting a music event for the community, by the community, and the spontaneous thought grew into something more.

"I didn't anticipate it being what it turned into," remarked Barrett. "The response was incredible."

From that point, Barrett teamed up with friend James Jaskolka to create a lineup. Together they pulled together the first-ever Good Things Are Happening Festival in just a couple of months. The music festival made its debut in August of 2022 and took off from there.

"It was one of the best days of my life, said Barrett. "It was something the people needed, the band needed, the vendors. Everybody."

The first run inspired Barrett to do it again. With a lot more prep-time this year and one event already under their belt, they aim to double what they accomplished last year. Barrett hopes to see Good Things Are Happening Fest become an annual tradition.

Locals may recognize the festival name as a relic of NEPA culture. Named after the famous local news station segment, "Good Things Are Happening" is the culmination of what makes the city great. It's a day to celebrate the arts, food, and entertainment in our community.

"Funny enough, as long as I can remember, every time I had a show or something going on, my instinct is always to turn it into a bit and share the good things are happening logo. I've made that joke for so long that when I was putting together this festival — it seemed like the perfect fit," said Barrett.

And, WNEP approved of Barrett using the "Good Things Are Happening" catchphrase for the community festival. "It's to pay homage to their news segment, said Barrett. "WNEP is an iconic thing in our area, it's NEPA culture. It just felt right!"

The name matches right up with the mood of this event. Barrett and his team aim to make worlds collide and allow friends and strangers to come together for support their own community's artists, creatives, and vendors.

"I want to have everyone feel included and everyone feel like they belong there. Everyone should be able to exist for the day and have no worries," said Barrett.

Matt Kester Productions also helps organize the event and ensures the entire production goes smoothly. They're in charge of the stage while James Barrett and James Jaskolka, who have been long-time friends and long-time musicians, handle the rest. Barrett is not only an organizer of the event, but is also on the 2023 lineup!

"I think the bands are going to be amazing," said Barrett. "I'm looking forward to playing for sure. We haven't played since March. I'm excited for my own band to play, excited for my friends' bands to play, and excited to see the responses from the people that go. Hopefully, like last year, it will be a ton of positivity."

Many of the artists on the bill are right out of NEPA. Headliner, Petal is from Scranton and has been a big band out of our area for a long time. James Barrett said he distinctly remembering buying their album back in 11th grade from Gallery of Sound in Scranton!

The TRIBE, Channel 65, Esta Coda, are all from Scranton. Glass Mask and Brendan Brisk Band are from Wilkes-Barre. Then, We're From Antarctica well they're not actually from Antarctica, they're from the Lehigh Valley. There are also a few names from the greater Northeast including Little Hag from Asbury Park and Wild Pink from New York.

Good Things Are Happening Festival will also be a homecoming show for The Voice contestant and local singer, Alyssa Lazar. She and James Barrett actually went to high school here together. He says she's sure to bring her own crowd as well.

"This year's changed a little bit as far as the mix of genres because there's definitely alternative rock bands, but also some groove bands like The TRIBE. Brendan Brisk Band is funky, Wild Pink is indie folk," said Barrett.

There's sure to be a performance for every individual's music tastes. This is a concert literally made for everybody in NEPA.

It was important to Barrett to host this festival right in the heart of downtown Scranton.

"I needed to find a space where I could put it at and the first place I thought of was the Iron Furnaces. That was one spot I'd never seen but I heard all about. I got the contact information for the Anthracite Museum and talked to them about having a festival there. I hadn't even seen the spot before I confirmed," explained Barrett.

He took a chance having Good Things Are Happening Festival at the Iron Furnaces and to his delight, the setting completed the whole concept of the Scranton festival. There's culture ingrained into this historic venue. The four gigantic stone blast furnaces that once produced tons of iron represent the area's role in the nation's industrial revolution. To think, we are still gathering here for a new purpose over a hundred years later.

Barrett hopes to continue hosting the festival there and show people this beautiful landmark right here in town.

"I think there's so many places in this area that — people don't even know they're there. That's something I hope to change in the coming years," said Barrett. "There's so much potential I see in Scranton."

In addition to the great lineup of music and indulgence into local history, there will also be 25 vendors signed on for art, clothing, jewelry, etc.

There will be four food trucks, a beer and alcohol tent, as well as Grateful Roast Coffee. Vegan options will be available. Food trucks signed on include La Olla de doña, Hog Farm BBQ, Umami Gorilla, and Ray's Porketta.

Last year, the festival gave away as much free water as possible and intend to do the same for patrons once again.

Second annual Good Things Are Happening Fest goes on Saturday, August 12 at Scranton's Iron Furnaces. Learn more about this summer music festival and buy tickets online at https://goodthingsfestpa.com/. Re-entry is allowed.