We wonder if Jay Sweet knew that he’d be returning to Newport every summer, sitting backstage overseeing what’s become one of the best music festivals around when he was just a lad attending St. Georges School in Middletown, RI. It must have been in those sweet years of youth that Jay fell in love with Newport, surrounded by good buddies, traveling to Dead shows, that he harvested his intrinsic appreciation for music. Flash forward to today, Jay Sweet is the Producer of the ever-so-famous Newport Folk Festival which graces Fort Adams each summer. Over the years, Jay and his team have built impressive line ups including bands like Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros, Emmy Lou Harris and The Avett Brothers. The Newport Folk Festival has been gaining traction year after year with this summer’s show selling out 3 months in advance! Jay has been known to avoid bringing in fad bands but rather investing in bands that will ultimately invest back into the festival, returning to the Fort even after they become world-famous. Jay considers folk music as an evolution of music that is built to last; music that transcends generations, music that brings people together. A devoted husband and father of 2 darling little boys, we welcome Jay and his crew to Newport this weekend and wish another feather in his cap of success for this year’s festival.
