Oxford’s first walking festival will be held on Saturday, July 11 from 6 to 8 p.m.

The Tunes Around Town festival will feature mini-performances at Spring Street Cigars and a Pop Up Art Show, live music at the Plaza next to City Hall, a Walk-By Art Show at Southside Gallery, Pop Up Art and Porch Concert at Visit Oxford, a Pandemic Playlist at End of All Music, Street Magic and Music at the Breezeway by Uptown Coffee and The Growler, and a sidewalk concert at Snackbar.

The event is an opportunity to support local artists and businesses by providing opportunities for local artists to perform and showcase their work while engaging with the community.

“I’ve been here since the start of the pandemic and, basically, I’ve just been so upset that things haven’t been the what they used to be,” Danielle Smith, who recently moved back to her hometown of Oxford after living in New York, said. “I saw how dead Oxford was. I was like ‘I would love to bring life back into Oxford through music’ because I feel like there’s so much culture in Oxford.”

The event will have pop up performances of various music styles from jazz to pop.

It is free to the public, but organizers Tim Burkhead and Smith said they hope those in attendance will donate to help support local musicians.

“It’s very easy to get away from the fact that at the end of the day, we are a collective of genius people who have talents,” Burkhead said. “It’s kind of our calling. It’s what we do. We go out and do other things in the industry, or we support a craft. Either way, we find refuge in the fact that we are local and what we do locally is create.”

In order to prevent clustering, each artist will perform short sets. There will be a live performance every 20 minutes at each location. As soon as a small solo or duo performance ends, the next one down the block will begin. 

This allows participants to walk the square, grab some ice cream, listen to a soundtrack while shopping or be entertained while waiting on a table.

For more information go to visitoxfordms.com.