Macy's 4th of July Fireworks: A Spectacular Celebration
On Saturday, July 4th, thousands of spectators will claim a spot along New York City’s East River in midtown and in the South Street Seaport district; millions more will gather around their screens to tune into NBC. Their common goal will be to watch one of the most enthralling pyrotechnic displays in the world and the largest Independence Day display in America—the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks, an annual event that Macy’s has sponsored since 1976. This year’s event is called “Brave.”
Macy’s has long celebrated American traditions and holidays by staging large-scale public events, and this one is among the most popular and anticipated—in fact, it’s hard to imagine the July Fourth holiday without it. This year, the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks marks the culmination of American Icons—a multi-faceted Macy’s campaign celebrating the people and places that make America great. Given the extraordinary creativity the fireworks display showcases and it majestic tribute to American heroism, it couldn’t be a more fitting end note.
The stunning shapes and colors that will light up the sky and the rousing music accompanying them are sure to spark deep sentiments. In support of the bravery theme, every detail of the spectacle has been carefully designed to inspire awe and patriotism in commemoration of Independence Day and the democratic freedoms it stands for.
A Brave New Show
Months in the making, this year’s Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks—the 39th since the store began sponsoring the event —is the result of a carefully orchestrated collaboration between pyrotechnics firm PyroSpectaculars by Souza, the United States Air Force Band and some of today’s most prominent musical artists. The 25-minute fireworks display will be choreographed to new arrangements of classic patriotic music as well as original songs created specifically for the event.
A particular highlight of the show: the debut of a new anthem—“America”—by multi-Grammy Award-winning superstar Gloria Esteban. She and her husband, producer Emilio Esteban, wrote the song to express their deep appreciation for the many opportunities this country affords. As immigrants from Cuba who made it big, the couple experienced the unique benefits of the American way of life firsthand. Esteban will perform with children from VH1 Save the Music Park Place Community School Choir from Brooklyn.
A recording of the song will be available as a free limited-time download on macys.com/fireworks from July 1-5, along with soulful new recordings of CMA award-winning artist Rodney Atkins’ performance of “America the Beautiful,” and Grammy Award-winner Cece Winans’ rendition of “My Country ‘tis of Thee.”
Be sure to also catch performances by top stars Dierks Bentley, Kelly Clarkson, Flo Rida, Brad Paisley and Meghan Trainor who’ll lend even more star power to the event.
Explosive Effects, Dazzling Hues
This year, the show will feature 50,000 spellbinding shells and effects shot from two locations—four barges situated between 23rd and 37th Streets in midtown Manhattan, and one double-barge situated below the Brooklyn Bridge. Some of the luminous shapes folks will see overhead: multi-colored transformation ghosts, blue and red octopi, crescent moons, patriotic stars, double hearts, roaring dragons, screaming banshees, purple rain and spider webbed-shaped shells. 22 different colors will paint the sky, including new neon highlighter yellow, green and pink. Talk about starting the month off with a bang!
Other Ways to Experience the Music and Fireworks
Our nation’s good fortune, so hard-won, is worth celebrating in a big way. Fortunately, there are ways to enjoy the Macy’s July 4th Fireworks festivities, even if you can’t make it to New York to see the event in person. You can watch the two-hour show on NBC, starting at 8 PM ET/7PM C. Or, tune in to radio station 1010 WINS-AM.
Have a great Fourth!
To learn more details about the event, access information about public viewing areas and see behind-the-scenes videos about the show soundtrack check out the dedicated website.
