#featured

Feb 7, 2018

Tom Tom & The Bridge PAI Call for Solo-Exhibit Proposals!

Tom Tom Founders Festival and The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative announce a call for artists for their inaugural artist-in-residence partnership. The two organizations are seeking proposals for a solo-exhibition incorporating the theme of “innovation and technology.” Artists are encouraged to explore the concepts of disruption, inclusion, community, and the intersection of people and ideas. Submissions are open to all mediums. Artists are encouraged to stretch the concep

Feb 2, 2018

Tom Tom Announces 2018 Block Party Lineup

Charlottesville, VA (February 2, 2018) — Tom Tom Founders Festival has announced the music lineup for the seventh annual Tom Tom Founders Festival block parties. The series of free concerts will span three days and feature rock, pop, indie, psychedelic, bluegrass, funk, jazz, soul, and ethnic genres. The concerts will take place Friday April 13 – Sunday April 15 in Emancipation Park in downtown Charlottesville. “Every year the block parties just get bigger and better, and bec

Jan 31, 2018

Applied Machine Learning Conference 2018

Tom Tom Founders Festival announced today that the second annual Applied Machine Learning Conference (AMLC) will take place on Thursday, April 12 from 9:30am-7pm at the Violet Crown theater in downtown Charlottesville. This day-long conference will convene researchers, entrepreneurs, and practitioners who use big data and machine learning applications on a wide variety of topics. At the sold-out 2017 conference, speakers presented on projects ranging from predicting internet

Jan 23, 2018

Bill Kristol joins Miller Center for “Presidency at a Crossroads”

Bill Kristol, the editor at large of The Weekly Standard a regular on ABC’s This Week and leading political pundit, will join UVA’s Miller Center for an exclusive discussion on “The Presidency at a Crossroads” on Wednesday April 11 at the Paramount Theater. The program will explore the notion that the American presidency faces an historic inflection point. Leading a polarized democratic system, whose institutions confront unprecedented challenges, presidents must still lead—n

Jan 23, 2018

John Cleese Gallops to Tom Tom with UVA DOPS

In a special engagement with UVA’s Division of Perceptual Studies, meet the man behind Monty Python in a two-night series. You may know him best for his warning about “The Killer Rabbit” in Monty Python: The Holy Grail, but John Cleese has more to his portfolio than being a parody of Sir Lancelot the Brave. Cleese, born in 1939 (yes, he’s old and so are you), has found great success in black humour (he’s British, leave us alone): he has been an actor, voice actor, comedian, s

Jan 15, 2018

Acclaimed Journalist Dan Rather to Keynote Tom Tom Founders Festival

Tom Tom announced today that news icon Dan Rather will speak at the seventh annual Tom Tom Founders Festival, offering a keynote address at 8pm on Thursday, April 12 at the Paramount Theater in downtown Charlottesville, VA. Rather, whose storied career includes 24 years as anchor of the CBS Evening News, has captured the fascination of a new generation with a Facebook page followed by millions. His talk will cover themes of his recent book, What Unites Us, a meditation on pat

Nov 28, 2017

City Art Bus Finalists Announced and Public Voting Open

Charlottesville, VA – Tom Tom Founders Festival, Charlottesville Area Transit (CAT), and JAUNT have opened the public voting process for finalists of the City Art Bus Competition. The 2018 Art Buses will transform a 35’ clean diesel CAT bus and a 28’ JAUNT bus into moving murals that will be seen by hundreds of thousands of people. Public voting opens today and closes Friday, December 15th at 11:59pm. The winner will be chosen from among the 10 designs by combining the resul

Nov 22, 2017

First Round of Speakers Announced for 2018 Tom Tom Founders Festival

Tom Tom Founders Festival Announces First Round of Speakers for 2018 Summits Innovators from Honest Tea, Raheem AI, the Obama White House, Buzzfeed, and the Aspen Institute join hundreds of leaders at the Founders Summit and Hometown Summit, April 11-14 Charlottesville, VA (NOVEMBER 22, 2017) — Today Tom Tom Founders Festival offered a sneak peek at its 2018 lineup, which spotlights inclusive innovation in small cities this April 9-14 in Charlottesville, VA. With 25,000 atten

Sep 25, 2017

Tom Tom Concludes Most Successful Fall Festival to Date

Charlottesville, VA (September 25, 2017) — This weekend, Tom Tom Founders Festival welcomed 14,000 visitors to the Tom Tom Fall Festival, which included two days of free concerts at Tomtoberfest, the sold out inaugural Tom Tom Fall Forum, the fourth annual Founding Cville project, and a street fair on the historic Downtown Mall with over 45 participating restaurants and retailers. Tomtoberfest, hosted in Emancipation Park in Downtown Charlottesville on September 22 and 23, wa

Sep 23, 2017

6th Annual Tomtoberfest – Saturday Highlights

Charlottesville, VA (September 23, 2017) —Tom Tom Founders Festival announced today highlights for the second day of the 2017 Fall Festival and Tomtoberfest, which include our Artisanal Tom Tom outdoor arts and crafts market, a Saturday Block Party headlined by reggae fan favorites The Movment, and a presentation of the funds raised by the Cville Heart campaign the the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation’s “Heal Charlottesville” fund. Tomtoberfest Saturday Block Party,

Sep 22, 2017

The 6th Annual Tomtoberfest Starts Today

Charlottesville, VA (September 22, 2017) —Tom Tom Founders Festival announced today highlights for the first day of the 2017 Fall Festival and Tomtoberfest, which include the sold out Fall Forum, a block party headlined by No. 1 Billboard Top Reggae Album artists, New Kingston, and a public awards ceremony to honor the nine recipients of the 2017 Founding Cville award. Fall Forum, The Haven, Common House, and CitySpace, 9am-5:30pm – A sold out convening of 600 of Virginia’s b

Sep 21, 2017

Inaugural Tom Tom Fall Forum Launches Tomorrow

Charlottesville, VA (September 21, 2017) — The inaugural Tom Tom Fall Forum will be tomorrow, Friday 22nd, in downtown Charlottesville. This day-long convening of over 600 of Virginia’s emerging business executives, policymakers, and civic innovators will explore opportunities in the Commonwealth’s communities and key industries today, from renewable energy to cultural investment, with an emphasis on inclusion and shared gains. The event will take place from 9am-5pm ET at The

Sep 7, 2017

A Message For Charlottesville

Returning to Emancipation Park and renewing our commitment to building community In recent weeks, the eyes of the nation have been fixed upon the violent events in Charlottesville. A focal point of that gaze has been Emancipation Park. On September 22 and September 23, Tom Tom is returning to this park that has been a stage for many of our events. It has been a venue for the community to come together, a home to concerts and block parties, art installations, awards for creati

Sep 6, 2017

Tom Tom Announces Recipients of 4th Annual Founding Cville Awards

Charlottesville, VA (September 6, 2017) — The Tom Tom Founders Festival is pleased to announce the nine recipients of this year’s Founding Cville Awards, an annual project celebrating artists, entrepreneurs and civic leaders who shape Charlottesville. Starting today and continuing through the month of September, each recipient’s portrait will be featured on a lamppost banner on the Downtown Mall. Their founding story will be published in a commemorative brochure, and they wil

Aug 31, 2017

Tom Tom Founders Festival Announces Lineup for Fall Forum

Charlottesville, VA (August 31, 2017) – Tom Tom Founders Festival today announced its first 40 speakers for the inaugural Fall Forum, a statewide convening of innovative business and community leaders from across Virginia. The organizers anticipate over 60 speakers in total. The Forum will take place in multiple venues across Charlottesville’s historic Downtown Mall on Friday, September 22nd, and will culminate in Tom Tom’s 6th Annual Tomtoberfest block party, a free public c

Aug 16, 2017

Cville Strong

Our hearts are heavy due to the hate-fueled events that occurred this past weekend. Like many in Charlottesville, we at Tom Tom are still struggling to process the violence here and how best to foster positive paths forward that bring our community together. We celebrate the loving, diverse city we know Charlottesville to be, and abhor the display of white supremacy and bigotry seen in the past days. We are inspired by all those who stood up for the peaceful and inclusive val

Aug 4, 2017

Tech Mixer at Tomtoberfest will Showcase Innovative Companies at All Stages

Charlottesville, VA (August, 4, 2017) — Tom Tom’s third annual Tech Mixer will return on Friday, September 22 during the Tomtoberfest Block Party, assembling The region’s hottest firms and most innovative companies. Companies of all stages will mix with investors, entrepreneurs, and top talent from across the Mid-Atlantic. This outdoor pop-up innovation district in the heart of the Block Party and in the midst of a crowd of 5,000 attendees will showcase new technologies, co

Aug 1, 2017

Young Entrepreneurs, Creatives, and Community Leaders to Discuss the “New Virginia” at First Ever “T

Charlottesville, VA (August 1, 2017) — Tom Tom Founders Festival will host the inaugural Fall Forum, a day-long dialogue between young visionaries and established leaders in Virginia, exploring the opportunities faced by the Commonwealth’s communities and key industries today, from renewable energy to cultural investment. The event will take place on Friday, September 22nd, from 10am-5pm ET at The Haven and surrounding venues on Charlottesville’s historic pedestrian mall. Par

Jul 20, 2017

Tom Tom Announces Music Lineup for Sixth Annual Tomtoberfest

Charlottesville, VA (July 20, 2017) — Tom Tom Founders Festival has announced the music lineup for the sixth annual Tomtoberfest, a massive fall block party celebrating local founders, which will take place Friday, September 22, and Saturday, September 23, in downtown Charlottesville’s Emancipation Park. The series of free concerts will span two days and feature reggae, indie rock, R&B, pop, funk, soul, and bluegrass acts. 2017 TOMTOBERFEST LINEUP: The Movement – reggae band

Jun 29, 2017

Tom Tom Announces Sixth Annual Tomtoberfest

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (June 29th, 2017) – Tom Tom Founders Festival announced the 6th annual Tomtoberfest will take place on September 22nd and 23rd. This massive fall block party is two days of free concerts, food trucks, entrepreneurs, and art in downtown Charlottesville’s Emancipation Park. Last year’s festivities drew over 9,000 attendees. “What started off six years ago as a hype event for the spring Tom Tom, has blossomed into a celebration of local founders in the arts,

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