Expect to see a lot of happy high school seniors.

Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office announced Friday that 2022 graduates of D.C. public and charter high schools will get free passes to Pharrell Williams’ Something In The Water festival.

“We are excited to take part in celebrations with families across the District to recognize the accomplishments of the graduating class of 2022,” Bowser wrote in a letter to DC Public School families.

Graduates will receive one free non-transferrable pass to the festival. DCPS students should check their email address for a message from the mayor and Chancellor Lewis Ferebee that will explain how to secure their pass. Students must redeem the offer by Thursday, June 16, and will be required to present their student ID when they pick up their wristband.

In a letter to students, Bowser and Ferebee wrote: “As the end of your senior year approaches, it is important that you know that all of DC is proud of you. You have reached an important milestone in your life, and you have done it during tough times.”

Kicking off June 17, the three-day Something In The Water festival will take place on Independence Avenue, between 3rd Street SW and 9th Street SW, so expect road closures. Williams himself will headline the festival with an ensemble called Pharrell & Phriends, which includes Clipse, Justin Timberlake, N.O.R.E, Q-Tip, and SZA. Other standout artists on the lineup include Anderson.Paak & The Free Nationals, Ashanti and Ja Rule, Chloe x Halle, Pusha T, Run The Jewels, Tyler The Creator, and Usher.

Something In The Water is in part supported by the Bowser administration and Events DC, the city’s quasi-public convention and sports authority.

The news comes after local activists publicly denounced the festival for being unaffordable. Per Something in the Water’s website, 3-day general admission passes started out at $300 but now cost nearly $400. “When I saw the prices, I knew that Something In The Water couldn’t be for us, because the people I serve can’t afford $300 tickets,” Nee Nee Taylor, a former core organizer with Black Lives Matter DC who later co-founded the Black abolitionist group Harriet’s Wildest Dreams, told DCist/WAMU.

Taylor and others then planned a competing concert at Freedom Plaza, so locals could celebration Juneteenth and Black liberation without spending an exorbitant amount of money. They had hopes of featuring an all-local lineup, as well as hosting an open-air market so local artists can vend their work. The status of the alternative festival is unclear at this time.

Students from Ballou High School had already scored free tickets to the festival because Williams announced the details of his festival at the school in April. Ballou High School Majestic Knights Marching Band even performed a rendition of his hit “Happy” at the announcement.

Upon learning about Ballou, Taylor questioned why Williams couldn’t offer free passes to more local students. Local activists told DCist/WAMU they believe Williams and D.C. government coopted local Juneteenth celebrations, many of which are usually free, to make a buck.

Virginia Beach did turn a profit when the city hosted Something In The Water. Williams moved the festival from his hometown to D.C. because he believed Virginia Beach’s local government to be full of “toxic energy.” Williams criticized the city for failing to adequately address the police shooting of his 25-year-old cousin, Donovon Lynch. In March 2021, a Virginia Beach police officer shot and killed Lynch.

Martin Austermuhle and Elliot Williams contributed reporting.