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The Make A Difference Charity (MAD) have today announced that Xavier Rudd, The Dreggs, Emily Wurramara, Mama Kin Spender and Round Mountain Girls will all hit the picturesque beachside stage next year for the 2024 Ride the Sound Wave.

Building a reputation for curating line-ups that feature some of the best-loved folk, roots stars in Australia, the MAD team are excited to bring another powerhouse line-up to Port Macquarie for the fourth iteration of Ride the Sound Wave on April 6th, 2024.

The event raises much needed funds for MAD, a not-for-profit volunteer run charity, who support a growing number of families and individuals in need across the Hastings region having served meals to over 5000 adults and 1000 children in 2023.

Headlining the event is ARIA award winning multi-instrumentalist and passionate environmentalist Xavier Rudd, who said, “I am stoked to be part of this event on Birpai country Port Macquarie.  Great line up and location right on the beach, it’s set to be a deadly little celebration of good vibes and good intentions.  Every cent raised is going to the homeless and disadvantaged on the Mid North Coast so this gig is extra special. Get along and support this people.”

Joining Rudd will be indie-folk duo The Dreggs, rising star Emily Wurramara who will bring her own brand of cultural storytelling and mesmerizing voice to the event and the dynamic duo of Mama Kin Spender who along with Round Mountain Girls are set to deliver high energy performances.

For the first time the Ride The Sound Wave event will include a new children’s concert Ride The Sound Wave Kids – Pre-show entertainment for the mini-festival goers that will feature a separate line up of ARIA Award-winning children’s music group the Teeny Tiny Stevies and a range of fun kids’ activities including face painting, Pony rides and a jumping castle.

Set on one of the most picturesque festival locations on the East Coast, tickets to the all-ages, fundraising Ride The Sound Wave main event as well as Ride The Sound Wave Kids are on-sale from 10am on Monday December 18th from Ticketebo.

“We’re so excited to have Xavier Rudd, The Dreggs, Emily Wurramara and Round Mountain Girls all joining us next year.  Our tickets are on-sale just in time for Christmas gift giving and we’re really hoping that people will buy loved ones – or themselves – a gift that will keep on giving to those in need this Christmas.  This year’s events raised more than $100,000 that’s being used to support people in need in the Hastings – and we’re hoping we can do even better in 2024,” said Erin Denham, Director M.A.D & RTW Event Coordinator.

The hugely popular Ride the Wave festival will deliver a day of music, culture, and community at the Ride The Sound Wave event which sold-out in 2023, as well as three days of surf with a Ride the Wave Junior Pro Surf competition that is run in conjunction with Surfing NSW and sells out nearly as soon as entries are opened, and a Ride The Wave skate competition – all staged at the beautiful Town Beach site.

Last year more than 4,000 people attended the events across the three days it ran – with these number set to rise in 2024 with the addition of a new schools-based surf competition as part of the Ride The Wave Surf Pro that will now run across five days including the RTW Schools Surf Pro.

“For the first time in 2024 the Ride the Wave surf competition will also be one of only two independently operated surf comps that give groms points that count toward qualifying for the WSL Junior State Finals.  We’re excited that Surfing NSW and the WSL have recognised the calibre of our event and added this element – as a result we’re expecting an even bigger run-on entries for next year.  And with skate added to the line-up for the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane we’re also expecting more interest in the skate competition,” said Erin Denham.

Gates will open to Ride The Sound Wave Kids from 10.15am on Saturday April 6th with the Teeny Tiny Stevies on stage from 10:30am until 11:30am. Tickets to this new addition for young festival goers are only $35 adults and $25 kids from Ticketebo.

Gates will open for the main Ride The Sound Wave event at 2.00pm on April 6th, with tickets to this event $100 adult, $55 youth 15-17, $40 for 6 – 14 with 5 and under free.

“We’ve kept the ticket prices at an affordable level – as we want the event to be as accessible as possible.  While also raising funds for MAD to help those in need in our community.  We’re building a reputation for putting together a lineup that would rival bigger events but at a more affordable rate,” added Erin Denham.

The Ride The Wave festival will run across three days from Tuesday, 2nd April to Saturday April 6th, 2024, with a huge day of music at the Ride The Sound Wave Festival on Saturday April 6th – market and food stalls will once again run alongside the events.

“The cost of living is really hitting hard, and we’ve got more families than ever teetering on the brink of homelessness – and for some it’s the meals that MAD provide that are the difference between having to choose between housing or feeding their kids.  The face of homelessness has really changed, and there’s a growing number of families in the Hastings who desperately need our help,” said Erin Denham.

The 2023 Ride the Sound Wave featured renowned artists such as Boy & Bear, The Waifs, Busby Marou, Mitch Tambo and Tullara on the line-up.

The inaugural Ride The Wave festival was staged in 2021, with the events growing significantly in 2022 and 2023 with support from the NSW Government, Port Macquarie Hastings Council and the generosity of many local businesses.

The Ride the Wave event and Ride the Sound Wave Music Festival events this year have been estimated to deliver more than $2 million in tourism revenue for Port Macquarie.  With the extended surf competition timing, and organisers aiming to sell more tickets to Ride the Sound Wave it is hoped this figure will grow again in 2024.

Event information and ticket purchasing details follow:

What:                               Ride The Wave Festival – including the Ride the Sound Wave event and surf and skate competitions

Where:                              Port Macquarie Town Beach Park, Alban Place

When:                              Ride the Wave Schools Surf Pro Tuesday – Wednesday

Ride the Wave Surf Pro Competition – Thursday – Saturday 

Ride the Wave Skate Competition – Saturday 6th April

Ride the Sound Wave Kids – Pre-show entertainment for the mini-festival goers – Saturday 6th April – gates open 10.15am

Ride The Sound Wave – Saturday 6th April – gates open 2.00pm

 More info & tickets:        www.ridethesoundwave.com.au – tickets will go on sale from Monday December 18th, 2023 from Ticketebo.