FOLK TRADITIONS REKINDLED FOR A NEW GENERATION

Local musos Kay Proudlove and Ben Davies bring their expertise to the volunteer-run 38th Annual Illawarra Folk Festival at Bulli Showground on January 17-19.

The pair wear many hats, even in their free time, giving garden gnomes glitzy makeovers and volunteering over 300 hours to put on music festivals for the community.

Kay is the Illawarra Folk Festival’s co-artistic director and artist liaison, while Ben has also taken on multiple roles as the production manager, site manager and programming coordinator. The couple have been a part of the Illawarra Folk Festival for over 20 years.

Kay began performing at the festival aged 14, and Ben attended not long after to watch her play.

These days, Ben works as an audio engineer, producing for Sydney and interstate bands at his Wollongong studio Silver Sound.

Kay is a full-time musician, theatre maker and writer with a successful theatre show Dear Diary that she toured around Australia in 2024. She will take the show to South Australia for the Adelaide Fringe in February.

“I'm really proud of the Illawarra Folk Festival program and the diversity and the excitement around it this year,” Kay said.

“Folk music in a lot of ways is still seen as an older person's game. It's not seen as something for youth. In a lot of groups we have the core folkies like the young people who go round to lots of festivals and do that. But I think that if no one steps up from our generation, if no one steps up into the shoes of people who have been running it for such a long time, then it's just going to leave,” she said.

“Folk music needs to continue. That style of storytelling, that style of performance, that style of community, it's all really important. And so carrying that forward or doing my part to carry that forward motivates me,” she said.

Ben shares that sentiment, and is looking forward to the lineup and the look of the upcoming festival.

“It's lovely to see people have a great time at the festival and to see young musicians getting a chance, getting exposed to new audiences,” Ben said.

“We've got Olivia Coggan playing this year, the daughter of well-known folk singer Darren Coggan. She's also doing one of our Great Southern Nights concerts a month after for the Illawarra Folk Club,” said Ben.

“My passion for the festival also extends to the site design element and seeing that team of volunteers flourish in building such an amazing structure for people to enjoy. It's fun, but also has a certain element of seriousness and safety, and I really enjoy the challenge of pulling them together.”

There are a few small changes coming to the festival this year, ranging from shower curtains to a new venue.

“We're bringing back an old favourite, Black Diamond Marquee, but in a new location and hence renaming it Black Diamond Pavilion, so it has some sense of familiarity,” Ben said.

‘It will be the second largest venue at the festival this year with 500 seats with ample standing room as well,” Ben said.

“I'm also excited and proud that our accessible venue count has increased to seven out of eight venues, with the Black Diamond Pavillion replacing the old upstairs Restaurant venue. Making the festival more accessible is something that as a team, we’re all striving to improve,” he said.

“We bought a house just before Christmas of 2019, so we just got in before the COVID lockdown round one, which resulted in losing all of our work for a year,” said Ben.

Having faced the challenge of working in the music industry during COVID lockdown is one of the reasons Ben is organising a Folk Festival Charity Concert to raise money for Support Act, a charity that offers crisis relief to music workers.

The Charity concert will be held on Thursday (January 16) at the Heritage Hotel in Bulli, and feature four acts from the festival- Smith and the Devil, Broken Creek, The Water Runners and Zumpa.

“Support Act helped us greatly in that first year of lockdown with bills and mortgage repayments. They also offer counselling and mental health support to musicians and creative workers, so it's a charity that we're both quite passionate about.

“That was the first year of our life living in Unanderra- no work and a lot of help from them, and moral support from Chilli, the dog,” he said.

Unfortunately no pets are allowed at the festival, but you will see Kay and Ben there.

Ben and Kay currently live in Unanderra with their two (not so mini) dachshunds, Chilli and Pepper.

The Illawarra Folk Festival is one of the largest volunteer-run festivals in Australia. With over 85 acts across three days after months of planning, Ben and Kay will be keen to celebrate alongside the other ‘vollies’.

“There's a real magic to the Sunday night final concert when all the volunteers get to let their hair down a little bit, myself included, and celebrate what we've achieved and the experience that everyone's had,” Kay said.

“We’re really grateful for all the volunteers that have given their time. It's not just one person putting this festival together. It’s the many dedicated volunteers that all do their part to piece this monster together. We’re extremely grateful for everyone that's involved. Whether young, older, veterans, or first timers, everyone counts towards the big picture,” Ben said.

You can find Illawarra Folk Festival tickets and program information here.

Story by Illawarra Folk Festival Publicity Officer Skyla Yorke.