Imagine Dragons' Dan Reynolds To Host 3rd Annual LOVELOUD Festival

Dan Reynolds, lead singer of Grammy® Award-Winning band Imagine Dragons, today announced the third annual LOVELOUD Festival Powered By AT&T. The festival seeks to progress the relevant and vital conversation about what it means to unconditionally love, understand, accept, and support LGBTQ+ youth in our communities. Through music, performance and an inspiring message, LOVELOUD and AT&T share vision of a future where LGBTQ+ youth are wholly connected to love and acceptance.

LOVELOUD Festival will take place at USANA Amphitheatre in West Valley City, UT on Saturday, June 29, 2019; a significant date that coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. On the day of the event, LOVELOUD Festival will be live streamed in its entirety on AT&T's social media handles. The festival will feature a headlining performance by Grammy® Award-nominated, multi-platinum selling pop star, and advocate for equality Kesha, as well as a star-studded lineup of other artists that includes Martin Garrix, Dan Reynolds, Tegan & Sara, Daya, Grouplove, K. Flay, PVRIS, and Laura Jane Grace. Additional performers and speakers will be announced in the coming weeks.

"LOVELOUD is back again this year and stronger than ever," said founder and Imagine Dragons front-man Dan Reynolds. "We are excited to celebrate our LGBTQ youth through music and spoken word. My hope is that they feel loved, accepted and perfect just the way they are. I invite all the political and religious leaders of Utah to join us as we show our LGBTQ youth that they are not just loved, but truly accepted and appreciated."

LOVELOUD tickets will go on sale Friday, March 15th at 10AM MST, and an exclusive presale offer for previous attendees of the festival will be available today at 10am MST. Festival goers can purchase tickets HERE. The LOVELOUD Foundation will again aim to raise more than $1,000,000from this year's event, a goal that was surpassed at last year's festival. Proceeds will benefit past beneficiaries The Trevor Project, GLAAD, the Human Rights Campaign, Tegan and Sara Foundation, and Encircle, as well as other vital organizations that proudly serve our LGBTQ+ youth.

"I'm truly honored and humbled to be headlining LOVELOUD this year. I stand with my talented friend Dan Reynolds and Imagine Dragons in this fight for equality," said Kesha. "We need to make sure that all LGBTQ+ people feel accepted and supported and that families have the support that they need. It's important to try to keep families together and having positive open minded conversations and, for me, to be a part of something that can continue building the bridge to create a safe space for everyone sounds like a beautiful opportunity. A place that supports all people and all love. This festival has done so many wonderful things to help the LGBTQ+ community over the past few years, is a wonderful loving fun safe space, so I hope to see you all come out for LOVELOUD this summer!"

"We at the Tegan and Sara Foundation are honored to be a major benefactor again this year at LOVELOUD. We see this event already affecting great change not just in Utah, but also around the country," said Tegan Quin of Tegan and Sara. "By partnering with LOVELOUD, the Tegan and Sara Foundation is able to reach more young LGBTQ people, continuing our work to better the lives of the women in our community. As a member of the LGBTQ community and the music community myself, I couldn't be more proud to be involved with LOVELOUD as both a board member and performer at this year's event. Taking part in last year's festival was the highlight of my 2018. The positive energy was unlike anything I've ever experienced as an LGBTQ person or as a musician. That feeling is still crackling around inside my heart, eight months later."

LGBTQ+ teen suicide, often caused by a lack of communication or an absence of acceptance, is one of the most troubling issues in the community. LOVELOUD provides a place of affirmation and security for LGBTQ+ youth and raises money for mental health and health services for them. This is something that is desperately needed, given how staggering the numbers are:

• Suicide is the second leading cause of death in the US among young people ages 10 to 24 according to the Center for Disease Control.[i]
• LGBTQ+ youth who come from families that do not accept them are more than eight times more likely to attempt suicide than those that do.[ii]
• Each episode of LGBTQ+ victimization, such as physical or verbal harassment or abuse, increases the likelihood of self-harming behavior by 2.5 times.[iii]

Last year, LOVELOUD presented its second annual festival at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on July 28th, 2018. The sold-out event reached its goal of raising $1,000,000 and featured live music from Imagine Dragons, Zedd, Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda, Grace Vanderwaal, Neon Trees' Tyler Glenn, A.W. and Vagabon, as well as impassioned and uplifting speeches and performances from Apple CEO Tim Cook, singer and dancer Julianne Hough, Ellen Show star Kalen Allen, Tegan Quin of Tegan and Sara, Grammy-nominated songwriter Justin Tranter, musician WRABEL, singer Mary Lambert, Olympic Freeskier Silver Medalist Gus Kenworthy and many more. July 28, 2018 was declared "LOVELOUD Day" across the entire state of Utah by Governor Gary Herbert and Lt. Governor of Utah Spencer Cox, and The Salt Lake Tribune proclaimed that "LOVELOUD [has] illustrated the generational shift on LGBTQ issues, and shows us our future."

Dan Reynolds founded the LOVELOUD Foundation in 2017 as a catalyst to bring communities and families together to help ignite the vital conversation about what it means to unconditionally love our LGBTQ+ youth. The LOVELOUD Foundation is a 501(c)(3) and offers hope to young people, letting them know they're not alone and encouraging acceptance in the home and community. It all begins with talking about, sharing and showing the realities of what LGBTQ+ teens face daily. Additionally, as part of this quest, Dan Reynolds created a documentary centered around LOVELOUD, calledBeliever. The film received runner up for the "Festival Favorite Award" at Sundance Film Festival 2018 and premiered on HBO last June.

Kesha is an animal rights crusader as the Humane Society International's first Global Ambassador and a passionate advocate for equality, being honored with the 2016 Human Rights Campaign Visibility Award. In 2016 she won Billboard's Women in Music Trailblazer Award, and was also part of Time Magazine's Time 100 list in 2018 of their most influential people in the world.

AT&T's commitment to equality and inclusion for the LGBTQ+ community began in 1975, when the company became one of the first American corporations to adopt a policy prohibiting discrimination against employees based on sexual orientation. AT&T also has a long-standing commitment to fostering an inclusive workplace. LEAGUE at AT&T (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Allies Employee Organizations of AT&T) is one of the oldest LGBTQ Employee Resource Groups (ERG) in the nation. In 1998, AT&T adopted one of the first domestic partner benefits programs for LGBTQ employees. In 2006, AT&T was one of the first U.S. corporations to offer transgender-inclusive health care benefits. At AT&T, diversity and inclusion will always be top priorities.

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