World Mental Health Day, celebrated Oct. 10, aims to raise awareness of mental health issues around the world and to mobilize efforts in support of mental health. A focus on building community while supporting fans struggling with mental health or addiction can be seen in action at Danny Wimmer Presents’ Bourbon & Beyond and Louder Than Life festivals
1 Million Strong is an initiative launched by nonprofits The Phoenix and Stand Together Music, Sports, and Entertainment that began with an emphasis on supporting addiction recovery by creating inclusive sober spaces and has evolved over the years to also champion overall connection and mental health.
The initiative’s first festival partnership took place at 2022’s Bourbon & Beyond in Louisville, Kentucky, as fans were craving connection more than ever following the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic, which exacerbated challenges with mental health and addiction recovery for many people.
“Our partnership with Stand Together really began in 2022, when Bourbon & Beyond returned after the pandemic. Coming back together after that time apart, we were very conscious that people were carrying a lot with them, and we wanted to make sure there was a safe, welcoming space within the festival where fans could step away, reset and find support if they needed it,” says Chamie McCurry, general manager and chief marketing officer at Danny Wimmer Presents.
She adds, “We worked with Stand Together and 1 Million Strong to create that space, and what started as a relatively focused activation quickly showed us there was a much bigger opportunity. The response from fans made it clear that this wasn’t simply a nice addition to the festival experience—it was something people genuinely valued and needed. That became the foundation of the partnership. From there, we began looking at how we could expand the program across more of our festivals, reach more people, and make mental health, wellness can be things that are isolating by nature and that community and connection is actually the key to long-term recovery in those instances.”
Traditionally, festival attendees who were struggling with mental health or addiction were directed to seek help at a pop-up tent at the perimeter of the event – away from the music and community. While acknowledging that it’s still important to offer crisis intervention, Weintraub notes that if this is the only option, it can unintentionally reinforce a message to fans that those who are struggling with mental health or addiction are broken and deficient.
“Danny Wimmer Presents are such a great partner because they put the wellness and well-being of their fans, their artists and their teams at the heart of everything they do. They were really open and we collaborated and came up with this idea of actually turning that model on its head,” Weintraub says.
And so 1 Million Strong set out to do things differently. With its first sober-supportive space at 2022’s Bourbon & Beyond, the retreat was located at the center of the festival grounds, equidistant from every stage and merch booth, and offered fans a chance to enjoy mocktails and connect with other like-minded folks.
The feedback was so great that the DWP team asked 1 Million Strong to stay the next weekend for its Louder Than Life festival, also held in Louisville.
“What was really fun to see at Louder than Life was once fans realized that this 1 Million Strong retreat was here and they started to connect with each other, they realized how many other people there who were like them … they started to meet up to go do mosh pits together and that has remained a tradition that happens at Louder Than Life,” Weintraub says.
No matter their backgrounds, most fans are craving connection and community. Stand Together points to Ticketmaster’s State Of Play 2025 study that found that almost 1 in 3 fans have attended a festival alone and that among solo festivalgoers, 31% said meeting new people was one of their main motivations. Another statistic of note – a report from Crisis Text Line and Common Good Labs Gen Z found that the resource young people use most to cope with mental health crises is “opportunities for social connection.”
The 1 Million Strong space at DWP festivals have featured activities that encourage people to connect with each other in meaningful ways including a photo booth, a community wall with special prompts, and this year’s tattoo drawn-on tattoo booth – an instant conversation starter. Plus, Danny Wimmer Presents has rolled out elevated mocktails to every food and beverage point of sale so fans no longer just had to go to one or two places on the festival grounds. Signature mocktails on the 2026 menu at Bourbon & Beyond included nitro cold brew, strawberry mango lemonade, strawberry lemonade & bourbon barrel smoked sugar, and local elixir kombucha.
