Pharrell Williams introduced his very own music and cultural festival back in 2019. Despite Something In The Water being something he created; it made it all the more special that it was in his hometown of Virginia Beach. In its inaugural year, folks who attended were very pleased with everything down to the minute details. With the hype now live for it, Pharrell was building tons of momentum going into the next installment. Unfortunately, COVID-19 pandemic shut it down not only for 2020, but 2021 as well. '21 was also the year in which the producer's cousin, Donovon Lynch, was fatally shot in the festival's host city.
This led to Lynch's family suing Virginia Beach for a staggering $50 million. After seeing how things were playing out, Pharrell Williams decided to shift the festival to Washington D.C. "I wish the same energy I’ve felt from Virginia Beach leadership upon losing the festival would have been similarly channeled following the loss of my relative’s life," Pharrell said in a statement. Virginia Beach City Manager Patrick Duhaney implored him to keep it here, but the rapper and singer felt the city had been run by "toxic energy" for too long. However, both sides eventually would agree to bring it back to Virginia in late 2022 with a settlement over the Lynch's lawsuit potentially helping matters.
Pharrell Williams Festival Has Not Had The Easiest Path
Unfortunately, though, the return did not go too smoothly. Poor weather dampened the 2023 rendition, and it led to the 2024 getting pushed back past its normal April start. The city and Pharrell agreed to it rebooting in October. However, "it just [wasn't] ready yet" according to the SITW host. This led to several issues on the festival's side. Eventually, Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer gave Pharrell an ultimatum at the beginning of 2025. They were given five days to get things in order, per WTKR.
If they didn't "then the city will terminate the festival and reclaim the advance funding provided to the organizers." Additionally, they would find something else to fill the slot in place of SITW. Well, it seems that Pharrell and his team couldn't pull through because Virginia Beach is terminating the agreement, per WAVY TV 10 reporter Brett Hall (via Uproxx). He tweeted, "#BREAKING @CityofVaBeach Will be terminating the @sitw agreement. Festival will not happen in Virginia Beach this year." He boosted his claim with a screenshot of an internal announcement to local media. You can find the official message above. Pharrell has yet to comment on the cancellation.
