KIMBERLY GUNN is ready to show some love for Savannah.

As a co-founder of The Love & Soul Experience, an uplifting social gathering featuring music, visual art, culinary art, and spoken word, Gunn knows we all need some positivity in our lives. Now, The Love & Soul Experience is growing, and Gunn is ready to unveil the newest chapter: The Love & Soul Family Fest.

The free event in Forsyth Park will serve the community by offering eclectic performances, activities, and educational opportunities for everyone. At the heart of the festival is an assortment of live entertainment spanning R&B, soul, country, jazz, hip-hop, and beyond.

“Usually with our events, we are able to highlight two or three independent or local artists,” Gunn explains. “However, this festival gives us the opportunity to highlight and showcase artists from all over Southeast Georgia.”

The Love & Soul Experience was founded in 2011 and catered to music lovers and couples 18 and up.

“I’m a recording artist,” says Gunn. “So I’ve been on national platforms and have been featured in several different festivals. I just got a little discouraged about the things I saw in the process and what it took to actually get on those platforms, and I wanted to create my own thing where it would be a platform for independent artists. It started with me wanting to showcase my music and went from there to providing the platform for other independent artists.”

At the free festival, audiences can enjoy up-and-coming talent like the band Drauker, artist Timothy Leon, and Los Angeles-based El’Messeh. For performers like El’Messeh, the fest is a chance to connect with new audiences.

“I’ll primarily feature my new hit release single, ‘Material Girl,’” the hip-hop artist shares. “I wanted to come up with something clean and appropriate for people of all ages, genders and creeds, and have the kind of R&B, conscious music that is appropriate in this type of setting with children and elders.”

Gunn will act as the festival headliner, sharing her own unique mixture of jazz, soul, and gospel.

“I’m just really excited that this is an opportunity for the grassroots people who have been trying to get out there, and I’m excited to have this opportunity to showcase their talent,” she says.

While enjoying the music, kids can play a variety of games, have their faces painted, and even play baseball. Youth dance groups will perform, a DJ will spin tunes, and there will be plenty of giveaways and food trucks.

Health has always been a focus of The Love & Soul Experience, and the festival has partnered with CareSource to assist attendees with open enrollment.

“CareSource is new to the state of Georgia, but it’s been around for quite some time,” Gunn says. “Being able to do this festival provides parents with more information about the healthcare and Medicaid. They can sign their kids up as well.”

The Love & Soul Experience has grown and evolved since its inception, and Gunn looks forward to bringing this new iteration to Savannah’s beloved park and enriching the local community.

“I’m a soul artist, and my mission is to bring love into anything that I do,” she shares. “It’s my inspiration. The mission is spreading love, and you can never get enough.”