The Midwest Music Festival Where You Could Leave With a Job | Josh Cecil, HamCo Live

On today's show I sat down with Josh Cecil, a Noblesville creator and event producer, founder of HamCo Live, and host of the HamCo Live Hot Ticket podcast, about the depth of Hamilton County's live music scene and his mission to make Noblesville a premier Midwest live-music destination anchored by Ruoff Music Center. Cecil explains how HamCo Live began as a centralized calendar and grew through grassroots promotion, then expanded into the Homegrown Music Concert Series to showcase original local artists by removing financial risk for bars. Cecil previews TradeUp Fest on Saturday, Sept. 19 at the Riverview Health Arena at Innovation Mile: a free outdoor festival from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. with two stages, eight bands, and a "Trades Village" featuring hands-on trade experiences, followed by an indoor ticketed concert headlined by Larry Fleet with openers Norah Reese and The Wilder Blue. He also covers the value of skilled trades, Hoosier community, and favorite Indiana memories. If you like this episode and want to hear more Get IN. episodes where I interview Hoosiers making a difference, visit getindiana.com/podcast. You are going to learn about: - How HamCo Live Originated - Why Noblesville Is a Legit Midwest Destination for Live Music - The Homegrown Music Concert Series - The Inaugural TradeUp Fest in Noblesville Check out these great clips from the show: 00:00 Crazy Idea Spark 00:26 Guest Introduction: Josh Cecil, HamCo Live 01:34 Building the Music Calendar 02:46 Best Venues Rundown 04:05 Noblesville Music Vision 05:43 Downtown Music Density 07:46 Grassroots Growth Playbook 09:41 Homegrown Originals Series 12:43 Networking Local Artists 13:49 TradeUp Fest Origin Story 20:19 Festival Daytime Blueprint 22:41 Trades Village Experiences 26:37 Booking the Headliner 28:16 Larry Fleet Lands 29:48 Live Music Economics 32:40 Settlement And Costs 33:50 Deposits And Big Swings 34:11 Booking Fees And Set Lengths 35:45 Festival Profit Math 36:42 Advice For Event Hosts 37:40 Trade Up Fest Details 38:47 Outdoor Lineup Highlights 41:07 Indoor Headliners 43:14 Tickets And Family Pitch 44:42 Why Indiana Home 46:02 Hamilton County Music Gems 46:46 Best Deer Creek Show 47:47 Garth Brooks Energy 49:54 Indiana Hidden Gem 50:40 Hoosier To Watch 52:19 Favorite Indiana Memory Get IN. is brought to you by our friends at Sweetwater. Whether you are looking to start a podcast or level up your current show you need to hit them up.