IBMA Executive Director Paul Schiminger, speaking at the joint IBMA/City of Raleigh press conference said,
“The outstanding success we’ve all seen with World of Bluegrass here in Raleigh is quite simply more than the sum of its parts. In Raleigh, we have found a city that supports our mission, a motivated team of exceptional professionals – that we’re proud to call our partners – who are invested with us to realize our vision, and the amazing people of Raleigh who have embraced World of Bluegrass with remarkable enthusiasm.
IBMA brings to this partnership a decades-long tradition of delivering musical and professional excellence at a high-powered yearly event, drawing visitors from 50 states and from around the world. It is bluegrass at its best. It is where musicians of all levels gather to experience a vitality and sense of community like no other, from early in the day to the wee hours of the next morning, all week long.
We recognize the significant contribution our event creates in economic impact for the Raleigh area, approaching, as the mayor noted, $49 million over the last 5 years, with $800,000 in local receipts coming directly from IBMA spending each year. And we are gratified by and appreciate the impressive growth our Business Conference, Awards Show and Festival have all seen during our years in North Carolina.
The IBMA is a nonprofit with a mission to connect, educate, and empower bluegrass professionals and enthusiasts. We are tasked as an organization with honoring tradition and encouraging innovation in the bluegrass community worldwide. We take our mission to heart, and strive to put our values to work in all we do.
We have forged a productive, mutually beneficial partnership with our counterparts here on the Local Organizing Committee, and with the City of Raleigh. In light of today’s announcement, we look forward to our future work together, and to furthering our mission by holding the cultural gem that is World of Bluegrass, the biggest bluegrass music celebration in the world, right here in Raleigh this year, next year and right through 2021.”
