It looks like the annual Made In America Festival, held in Philadelphia during Labor Day weekend, isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Earlier this year, the Jay Z-backed festival faced pushback from the city of Philadelphia after city officials announced that it would no longer allow the music event to take place on the extensive and famed Benjamin Franklin Parkway—a strip that is host to some of the city’s most famous museums, statues, and monuments.
The announcement presumably confirmed that starting in 2019, festival organizers would have to find somewhere else in the city of Brotherly Love to set up shop, but in conjunction with The Carters’ On The Run II tour stop in Philadelphia on Monday, Philly’s Mayor Jim Kenney uploaded a photo of him and Jay-Z taken during a meeting in which the two were to discuss the future of the festival after announcing last week that MIA would stay in Philadelphia after all.
“We are happy to announce the Made in America festival will continue at the heart of the Philadelphia, the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for many years to come,” said ROC Nation chief operating officer Desiree Perez in a statement. “After a candid and constructive discussion with the Mayor, we are confident any miscommunication is corrected, and we are proactively addressing any concerns. We are committed to bringing the best experience possible to Philadelphians and all music lovers as well as the continuing prosperity of the city.”
Previously, Jay-Z and Roc Nation released a statement, challenging city officials’ original stance in doing away with the festival: “Is this an accurate representation of how [the mayor] and his administration treat partners that economically benefit his city? Do they regularly reject minority-owned businesses that want to continue to thrive and grow alongside his city’s people?”
Mayor Kenney confirmed that while a final contract has not been completed, most details for the future of MIA on Philly’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway have been worked out.
