Goldstock pumping up the volume on big Fort Wayne stage

During its first three years, the Goldstock music festival grew steadily, but this year's fourth annual event is leaping onto one of Fort Wayne's bigger stages. Presented by Purdue University Fort Wayne's Gold Top Music Group, Goldstock 2024 on Friday is moving to The Clyde Theatre, 1808 Bluffton Road.

Since opening in 2018, the performance and event venue has become a Fort Wayne mainstay and a showcase for national and international acts, so this is an opportunity for Gold Top performers to introduce themselves to a broader audience and maybe pick up a few more gigs around the city.

"It just legitimizes Gold Top and the event to be at such an iconic Fort Wayne venue," said Jason Lundgren, clinical assistant professor of music recordings and technology. "It's just going to bring an energy and life to the event we haven't had yet."

Previously, the event had been held at the Sweetwater Performance Theatre stage, near where the Gold Top Music Group is housed at the Purdue Fort Wayne Sweetwater Music Center. When the usual dates were unavailable, Sweetwater officials suggested The Clyde as a possibility, and that helped shift the event from a weekday to a prime weekend spot.

The doors open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m. with a variety of performers playing on two stages. Tickets cost $10 in advance and $15 on the day of the show.

This year's main stage performers include The Namby Pamby, Noah Sties, Augmentasia, Sun.Dyle, and Remington Hill, leading up to headliner Man of the Flood. Some of the performers include PFW students and some are artists potentially auditioning for spots with Gold Top. Noah Sties and Man of the Flood are already Gold Top artists. There will also be eight acoustic performers playing on a side stage while the main stage resets between acts.

"We've never done a side stage, so that is unique," Lundgren said. "The whole idea is to give people constant entertainment and no dead space. It's meant to be just kind of intense and fun and always moving."