Luna Honey (Photo courtesy Blight Records)

Parklife DC today announces the best in DC concerts with our annual awards program, named for our mascot, DC’s own state bird — the Wood Thrush. Our Thrushie Awards salute bands and venues in line with our mission to review live music concerts.

Congratulations to the 2019 Thrushie Awards winners, several of whom took their top spots from polling ran by Parklife DC over the first half of December.

Without further ado, the winners of the 2019 Thrushie Awards, along with the percentage of the vote they took:

Who is the best local band in DC?

1. Luna Honey, 38.5%
2. Broke Royals, 15.4%
3. Lightshow, 12.1%

Congrats to Luna Honey, who have earned their share of buzz this year! What a treat to see last year’s winners, Broke Royals, place second. And Lightshow is a rising artist who is surely going to be huge soon.

Stream Peace Lives by Luna Honey on Spotify:

What is the best concert venue in DC?

1. 9:30 Club, 23.9%
2. Pie Shop, 21.7%
3. Black Cat, 14.1%

Congrats to 9:30 Club, which has roundly received top honors from many sources this year. The small but mighty Pie Shop made a fantastic showing! And the beloved Black Cat remains popular and relevant even though it shrunk its footprint last year.

What is the best music festival in DC?

1. HERAFest, 49.7%
2. Appaloosa Festival, 29%
3. Kingman Island Bluegrass and Folk Festival, 8.3%

HERAFest, produced by ProjectHERA, serves to showcase female artists and raise money to support women in the arts. It *RAN AWAY* with our poll this year. Check out our festival coverage.

The ever-popular Appaloosa Festival, our 2018 winner, made a strong showing as well! And the much-adored Kingman Island Bluegrass and Folk Festival took third place.

Congrats again to our winners, and Parklife DC looks forward to recognizing more excellent bands and venues in 2020!