Innovation Arts & Entertainment (IAE) has hired music industry veteran James Macdonald to oversee all of its festival and live event operations. Macdonald comes to IAE with more than two decades of experience producing and promoting live entertainment events including the Life is Good Festival. Macdonald will oversee all of IAE’s festivals on Martha’s Vineyard and beyond including Beach Road Weekend Presented by Black Dog, Vineyard Campout, MV Oyster Festival, and the MV Food and Wine Festival. Macdonald will also help develop new events and experiences as IAE continues to grow its operation across the country.
Macdonald brings over two decades of music industry, marketing and festival production experience to Innovation Arts and Entertainment. Over the course of his career, he has developed festivals, events and marketing programs for The Life is Good Company, Virgin Records America and many others.
In his time working for The Life is Good Company, Macdonald directed and oversaw all aspects of the brand's entertainment marketing initiatives, developing The Life is Good Festival into a Pollstar-nominated brand positioning statement, raising $4 million for charity and featuring over 80 artists in partnership with Superfly Productions, creators of the iconic Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival.
In 2016, Macdonald founded Six Chair Productions, a Boston-based entertainment company specializing in festival development, music marketing and event consultation supporting events such as the Levitate Music and Arts Festival, Guster's On The Ocean Weekend and Boston Calling Music Festival, working with Northland Design of Waitsfield, VT. Six Chair's signature event, "Festival at the Farm", located in Canton, MA, carved out a unique identity by combining nationally-known musical artists alongside a one-of-a-kind farmer's market atmosphere and vibrant programming for all ages.
“James is the perfect addition to what we are doing at IAE. At Life is Good, he proved he knows how to build a successful event that can draw a crowd from across the world, while still giving back to a community,” said Adam Epstein, President and CEO of IAE. “What we are doing on Martha’s Vineyard is just the beginning; James will help us enhance our existing portfolio of events and develop original experiences across the country.”
"I am thrilled to join Adam Epstein and the team at Innovation Arts and Entertainment in this new role developing and producing events and festivals. Throughout my career, I have been passionate about bringing people together through great music, amazing food and a true sense of community. I cannot think of a more exciting opportunity than producing one-of-a-kind events that bring everything Martha's Vineyard has to offer to life."
Beach Road Weekend presented by Black Dog will feature three-days of some of the biggest names in music playing on two stages in Veteran’s Memorial Park August 26-28. The festival has already been approved by the town of Tisbury to continue through 2024. The Vineyard Campout is a new festival created by IAE that will run September 9 + 10 on the Vineyard. The Oyster Festival and MV Food and Wine festival both have long traditions on the island and will now be owned by IAE and run by Macdonald.
