How it all began….

In March of 2022, the four founding members of SweetJuice found themselves playing separate shows around Philly and coordinating set times to share our overlapping group of friends and bandmembers. Later that night, we sat in one of our favorite DIY venues, the Pharmacy, commiserating about our frustration with the larger musical events in the area that prioritized profit over musicianship and often overlooked diverse, local artists. Our friend Katie Briggs, of BunnyHopPHL, happened to have a truckload of food leftover from a catering event they had worked earlier that evening. They brought food into the venue, openly sharing with anyone that walked in. A warm feeling spread throughout the room like wildfire. It was that night that we decided to create a diverse and inclusive event that could blend the healing characteristics of live music with excellent hospitality and community outreach to create a unique and immersive experience. We wanted festival goers to leave not only entertained, but excited about being active members in their community.

Three years have passed, and we are proud of the growth and change we have experienced as a core collective as well as a broader community. If you are interested in learning about how you can support our work or join our team, please reach out to us at info@sweetjuicefest.com.

The Sweet Juice Team

  • Director of Content and Outreach

    Sug Daniels is a Delaware born, Philadelphia based, singer-songwriter, story teller, and producer who is using the tools around her to capture the emotions of an era. Daniels’ work is as colorful, vulnerable, and charismatic as her personality. She thoughtfully combines elements of folk, R&B, and soul alternatives to create personal and tender music interlaced with messages of truth and positive change. On top of being an electrifying performer and entertainer Daniels has experience in event production, event hosting, and social media marketing.

  • Director of Music and Artist Relations

    Katie Hackett is a musician and producer based in Philadelphia, PA.
    She started her current project The Lunar Year in 2017 and released her first two albums in the indie folk genre (Herodias, 2017) (katie bird, 2020). The project was reborn in 2022 in its current form: an art rock band exploring queerness, environmentalism and the surreal.

    Hackett has scored for film, having been featured at the London International Animation Festival, Viet Film Fest and MAM Festival. Her songs have been featured on comedian Chris Gethard’s New Jersey is the World, MTV’s Teen Mom and Teen Mom 2.

    In addition to music, Hackett is also passionate about working with families and has studied birth work with a focus in reproductive justice

  • Director of Finance and Partnerships

    When not playing, listening, or dancing to live music, Mel is working with their team at Economy League of Greater Philadelphia; a 'think-and-do' nonprofit working to enhance equity and inclusion in the supply chains of Philly’s regional hospitals and universities. Mel is passionate about democratizing access to capital and fascinated by emerging models for community investment and the solidarity economy.

    They currently reside in West Philadelphia, but are grateful to have a second family in the Germantown community. You can check out their band, Personal Trainer, here! As a founding-member of the Sweet Juice Collective, Mel hopes to synergize their passion for live music and community power by bringing the Sweet Juice mission to life.

  • Director of Art & Design

    Shona Carr grew up in up state New York where she attended old time and folk festivals with her family. She moved to Virginia in 2011 and played in multiple projects, most notably the all woman folk quartet “The Buck Stops Here” as a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. She played all throughout the southeastern United States at festivals such as Merle Fest, Fresh Grass, and Philadelphia Folk Fest, and was also a part of the creation of an all original musical called “Radiant Abundant.”

    Shona has worked on records with John Carter Cash and grammy-winner, Anna Wise, contributing melodies, lyrics, and lending her expertise as a set designer for music video production. She currently plays in Brittany Ann Tranbaugh’s band, and in folk-rock duo, Popcorn Daddy. Shona has new songs in the works, which will be out in the fall of 2024. When she’s not performing or having *Sweet Juice Visions she loves to study tarot and human design, and play fiddle in the woods.