Inaugural HeartSupport Fest Builds Community In Orlando

Words by Johnnie Crow and Photos by Kellye Robinson

The very first HeartSupport Fest took over the Central Florida Fairgrounds in Orlando, Florida on February 18 & 19, 2023. The festival celebrated two decades of metalcore music and benefitted HeartSupport, the mental health charity founded by August Burns Red vocalist Jake Luhrs. Thousands of fans shared music, drinks, and support while enjoying flawless sets from their favorite bands.

Jake Luhrs explained the mission behind the festival. “Since joining the band August Burns Red in 2006, I’ve toured the world sharing a message of hope, struggle, adversity, and things I’ve experienced in my own life. I’ve had the opportunity to spend time after shows connecting with fans over the years. Sharing mutual struggles with addiction, abuse, and forgiveness. Having the opportunity to host a mission-based music festival with some of my favorite fellow musicians is an absolute dream come true. Our goal with HeartSupport Fest is to create a high-energy festival experience and bring the mental health conversation to the forefront of the festival community. There is power in music and power in community. We’re grateful for the opportunity to bring to the wonderful city of Orlando, Florida our favorite artists, and you, our friends and fellow fans.”

Every band took that mission to heart, taking moments to share appreciation for the metal music community, emphasizing how we all help each other through difficult times, particularly when we get to travel to a destination festival and experience the healing power of live music. You could literally feel the shared energy when the entire crowd shouted along with Parkway Drive, screaming “You got one life, one shot, give it all you got!”.

For a first-time festival, everything about it was incredibly well done. It was the perfect size – 2 days and 2 stages, with no overlapping sets. Each set went off on time and attendees could grab food and drink on their way between stages. The ride-share drop-off was very efficient and convenient to the entry point. The Central Florida Fairgrounds has been home to many festivals, such as Vans Warped Tour and WJRR’s Earthday Birthday. The facility is top-notch and the local crews know how to run a show smoothly.

There was a VIP section for each stage, and both were lakeside, had dedicated bars and bathrooms and went right up to the front rail. There was just enough rail access for the amount of VIP ticketholders, leaving plenty of close access for the majority General Admission fans. This gave the GA plenty of room to mosh, circle pit and crowd surf and they took full advantage throughout the weekend.

VIP fans also had access to special limited-attendance events throughout the weekend. There were “Teaching Music” sessions led by Telle Smith – vocalist of The Word Alive, Matt Greiner – drummer of August Burns Red, Jake Luhrs – vocalist of August Burns Red, and Melissa Cross – famed vocal coach of healthy scream techniques. Telle answered audience questions on a variety of topics. Regarding the craft of singing and screaming, he shared advice he had learned from other bands he has toured with – “It’s not a race. You are the only one with your voice. You are the only one with your story. Listen to your body. Don’t try to go from step 1 to step 5.” On the topic of songwriting, he shared “The important this is what you are saying and how you are saying it. Write an emotional story, and then choose the vocal technique to match that emotion.” When it comes to performance advice, he explained the secret to overcoming any self doubt or anxiety is to “Put on the show that you would want to see. Everyone is already there because they appreciate the art and want to see your performance. Be yourself and have fun.”

Vocal coach Melissa Cross gave a 30 minute interactive presentation on how to scream and sing safely. After getting her start in punk bands during the Vietnam era, she noticed how the music bound people together through difficult times. As thrash metal evolved into metalcore, she observed the same community culture building, and decided to offer her services to preserve and protect some of the voices who have since become legends. She gave a quick demonstration and lesson about how to control your vocal folds in the techniques of fry screaming and false cord screaming. Her ultimate goal is to get singers to feel, not think, and to use their voice as an instrument to portray dynamic emotion.

There were also “Meet & Greet” events with Hawthorne Heights, Senses Fail, The Ghost Inside, Rise Against, Underoath, Dance Gavin Dance and Parkway Drive. These intimate meetups were limited to the first 30 VIP fans to sign up each morning, and consisted of 15 minutes of speaking with the artist while autographs were given, followed by 15 minutes of photos taken against a festival backdrop. The photos were done using personal phones, which was perfect for instant gratification and postability.

HeartSupport Fest provided a wide variety of food and drink options. Bars were stationed all over the grounds, offering plenty of beer, seltzer and mixed drinks. You could get any kind of food you want – Hemplade vegan cafe; Arepa Pela Venezuelan street food; Henry’s Kitchen South Florida seafood and bbq; Burger Boyz burgers, cheesesteaks, chicken fingers, corn dogs, turkey legs, kabobs & sausage; Creamy Whip Delight ice cream; Flora plant based cuisine; The Tot Spot; Jimmy Bear’s bbq; Grumpy’s Homemade ice cream, nuts, churros & pretzels; Japanese Flair hibachi grill; and Shadrach’s Fiery Furnace wood fired pizza.

Most of the bands appeared to be as honored and happy to be there as their fans were. Northern bands were overjoyed to be enjoying the warm Florida sunshine in the middle of winter. Silverstein was happy to escape the Canadian cold, and the crowd went wild when they played songs from their earliest albums. Senses Fail ended their great set with a medley of all-timers, including “Chop Suey”, “The Sickness”, “Break Stuff” and “Free Bird”. Hawthorne Heights showed extraordinary gratitude for the fans. Lead singer JT Woodruff said “You guys kept these bands around for 20 years. We all help and support each other, when everyone else told us to go away. We all work together in a community to make our live a little bit better. Being an emo adult is much worse than being an emo kid. We’re all in this together.”

The highlight of the entire weekend was Parkway Drive‘s headliner set on Saturday night. Thousands of people were rocking out, shouting along, jumping up and down and letting their emotions show. Vocalist Winston McCall took time to thank everyone involved, sharing a lesson he and his band have learned over the past few challenging years – “If there is one little thing that we have learned over that time, time itself is the most precious thing every single person gets in their lives. That is the one thing you will never get back. For you guys to bless us with any of your time is an absolute privilege and an absolute honor. Thank you guys so much for this. Thank you for this every single time. Alright, let’s have fun!”

HeartSupport Fest was a huge success and an amazing experience for all who witnessed it. Here’s hoping it continues, as we all need a place to feel like we are not alone, a place we all belong.