4th annual Life is good fest another big success

Kids jump in a giant parachute during the festival on Saturday afternoon. (Kait Erickson photo)

It was a weekend of music and optimism, just as promised, when Boston-based apparel company Life is good descended on Prowse Farm in Canton September 21 and 22 for its fourth annual festival fundraiser.

The two-day, “one of a kind” celebration attracted thousands of festival goers and featured several noteworthy musical acts, including Jack Johnson, Daryl Hall and John Oates, Amos Lee, the Roots, and many more.

Sunday kicked off with Lance Robertson (“DJ Lance Rock”) dancing with some of his friends from the popular children’s television show Yo Gabba Gabba. The rest of the day offered a diverse mix of musical performances, live entertainment, activities, games, and plenty of good vibes — all while raising more than $1 million for kids in need through the Life is good Kids Foundation.

The festival once again lived up to its billing as an all-ages event, attracting legions of families along with lots of adult music fans and Life is good supporters.

Rachael Wolff, a 2011 Canton High graduate and a student at Berklee College of Music, has been volunteering at the festival since it first came to Blue Hills in the fall of 2010.

“Our mom works for the Playmakers, the [action arm of the] Life is good Kids Foundation,” said Wolff. “We’ve been doing it ever since they’ve held it in Canton. It’s really nice here. It’s a nice family vibe and it’s really fun and happy all the time. That’s why we like coming here because it’s so awesome.”

The hopefulness that is expressed in Life is good apparel mirrored the mood of the festival. Leo Reardon, a paramedic from the Canton Fire Department, commented that the festival seems to bring out the best in people.

“Everyone seems to be getting along really well,” he said. “It’s a good place to be. There’s always good music every year that we’ve been here. There’s almost never trouble here, honestly. Everyone’s family oriented and just kicking back and enjoying the music.”

Sam Biggers and James Carstairs, two 2010 CHS graduates, were both working and enjoying the music at the festival. “I needed money for school at first, and then we found a job here and got paid pretty well,” said Carstairs. “I kind of didn’t work today, but I came anyway because I had such a good time.”

“I’m a big fan of Jack Johnson,” added Biggers. “It’s really local, that’s probably the best part. It’s about a five-minute drive from my house. I’ve just heard good things, my whole family’s been, and I just really wanted to see some good music.”

Life is good was founded in 1994 and is based out of Boston. Much of the apparel features a smiling stick figure named Jake, along with slogans that promote optimism and love. In 1989, brothers John and Bert Jacobs began selling their t-shirts at colleges and street fairs across the East Coast in a van. However, for the Jacobs brothers, life was good even before their company took off.

“It absolutely was,” said Bert. “Sometimes people think now that the business has grown that life is good, but I think they miss the point. Life was good when we were zipping in the van.”

Bert said the idea of starting a festival came when he and his brother received letters from families that were facing difficult situations.

CHS students Peter Koplik and Michael Reese (Kait Erickson photo)

“I’d love to say we started out thinking we’ll have a foundation,” he said. “We really didn’t. We were just trying to make a living, and then people sent us some pretty meaningful mail.”

In 2003, the brothers decided to hold a small festival in Maine in response to the mail they were receiving. The brothers, however, did not anticipate how many people would show up that year.

Over the next several years, the company held single-day festivals at various locations before partnering up with renowned concert promoter Superfly Presents in 2010 and putting down roots at historic Prowse Farm.

As for the musical lineup, Bert said they try to choose artists whose values align with their own, such as this year’s festival headliner, Jack Johnson, whose unique brand of acoustic folk is both soothing and upbeat.

“Jack and his wife were really down to earth people,” noted Bert. “We were fortunate to meet them over the last couple of years.”

At the end of Johnson’s performance, much of the festival goers headed for the exits; however, the remaining ones decided to migrate over to the Life is good Coffeehouse, where music fans were able to unwind and enjoy the musical styles of Session Americana, including their rendition of the hit Beastie Boys song “Fight for Your Right.”

The Jacobs brothers praised the citizens of Canton for welcoming them into the town, as well as the Canton Police and Fire departments for their “fantastic” support and cooperation.

“If you haven’t come out to the event, don’t think this is a ‘kiddie’ festival,” said Bert. “If you have young kids, it’s a great place to come and it’s family friendly, but it’s also great if you’re 23 years old and love music. We have rock, jazz, funk, soul, hip-hop, every genre of music. Come on out and join us; you won’t be disappointed.”

By John McCabe

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Posted by Canton Citizen on Sep 26 2013. Filed under News. Both comments and pings are currently closed.