Americanafest Comes Back After Year Off With A Leaner Lineup for 2021

Like every other responsible festival held after February last year (I'm looking at you, Sturgis Superspreader Fest), The Americana Music Festival and Conference had to take 2020 off. This year, as vaccination rates climb (and the Delta variant hopefully doesn't derail us. Get vaccinated folks!), they're back, albeit in a scaled back version that is an indicator of the realities of working with multiple venues. In recent years, Americanafest has ballooned from the 80 or so bands and 5 venues over 4 days to over 300 and dozens of venues spread across 6 days. This year, they are back to 4 days, Sept. 22-25, with 3 nights of showcase performances.

Americanafest has always been split into two portions, the Conference, which includes panels aimed at professional musicians and compelling conversations. The Conference tickets, always considerably more expensive, also granted priority access to the evening showcases. You can also expect focus on AMA's new Inclusivity Initiative.

Prices for the Conference and Festival run $399 ($299 for members of the AMA). The Festival, which only includes the evening showcases but this year has same priority for shows as the Conference are $199, an increase that reflects the priority parity.

While the lineup for the showcase portion of the festival has not yet been announced, Americanafest has revealed some of the cornerstone Conference artists. Artists participating in panels this year include Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jackson Browne, in a keynote conversation moderated by the Grammy Museum's Scott Goldman; Valerie June, who will lead a guided meditation before discussing her new album with NPR journalist Ann Powers; and Aoife O'Donovan and Joe Henry, who will discuss their upcoming collaborative and distanced project recorded during COVID-19 with award winning producer Darren Schneider.

Along with the lineup, participating venues have also not been announced for the festival (the Conference will take place in its usual home of the Westin Hotel), though a look at regular festival venues show Americanafest-sized holes in the schedules of 3rd and Lindsley, City Winery, the three venues of the Cannery Complex, and Station Inn.

If you'd like to attend Americanafest 2021, you can keep up with the latest developments and purchase tickets here.

Check out this gallery of pictures from Americanafest 2018 and 2019 for what to expect.