Each year, A Capitol Fourth is broadcast live on PBS in celebration of America's birthday. The concert takes place on the West Lawn of the US Capitol and the National Mall, the nation's front yard. The concert is a celebration of the American songbook, her history, and concludes with the national fireworks at the Washington Monument. The blend of military traditions, pop culture celebrations, and the history that comes along with celebrating the founding fathers and their boldness and bravery in July 1776, the concert is an institution. The social team works tirelessly to provide backstage access and fun shout outs to the wonderful ways Americans celebrate the nation's birthday in order to build excitement about the concert and fireworks.
The social team used Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat to give the public a backstage pass during the rehearsals and live show. Using Facebook Live, the social team interviewed host John Stamos, The Blues Brothers, Trace Adkins, Kellie Pickler, and Chris Blue about their own July 4th traditions, the meaning of performing on the West Lawn of the Capitol, and what being an American means to them personally. Through Instagram Stories and Snapchat, the team gave the public a behind the scenes look at the fun, patriotic flavor, and rush of the many important people it takes to put on such a masterful show! The live tweet during the broadcast gave facts and trivia about the patriotic standards, the history of America, and fun gifs of the live performance. This builds excitement around the show, creates and nutures a community of people who love the concert and it's place in the traditions of July 4th.
A Capitol Fourth was the Top Trending Program on Nielsen Specials and Series TV Social Media Rankings. The campaign garnered over 50 million impressions. Total engagement rose 105% to over 6.1 million. Over 7.9 million impressions on Facebook - up 104% from 2016. Facebook Livestream was viewed by over 400 thousand people, up 141% from 2016. Video views on the A Capitol Fourth Facebook page totaled over 1.1 million - up 151% from 2016. The livestream of the concert was a top 5 trending video on YouTube with over 188 thousand views - up 97% from 2016. A Capitol Fourth was a #1 Twitter tending topic in Washington, DC and #2 trending topic in the United States.
