Sloss City Festival Responds To Criticism From Birmingham EDM Community

Some new EDM festival drama just dropped. This time, it’s in Birmingham, Alabama. This past January, Veritas Social announced Sloss City Festival, set to take place at the city’s historic Sloss Furnaces on September 18, 2026. The new festival is not to be confused with Sloss Fest, another diverse music festival that was held at the Furnaces before ending its four-year run in 2018.The festival’s marketing over the past several months has stirred up controversy. For starters, its tagline is “Birmingham Isn’t Borning Anymore.” It’s a risky move to build a campaign around a slogan that seemingly insults the entire city, as well as the underground communities that have been working to keep its music scene alive.Then there’s the festival’s website, which advertises Sloss City Fest as “the relaunch of a legendary Alabama music festival.” However, Sloss City Fest has no affiliation with Sloss Fest.The festival has also faced criticism over its lack of diverse marketing and its compensation structure for local DJs. According to contracts shared online, local DJs are paid “15% of the face value [of] tickets that have their specific discount code,” with their slots contingent on how many tick...