Wilco, Jon Batiste, Chaka Khan, Bleachers, Tanya Tucker, Old Crow Medicine Show and others to perform
The Roots N Blues Festival, the only entirely women-owned major music festival in the United States, has unveiled its full lineup for 2022. Headliners include Grammy Award-winning artists Wilco, Chaka Khan, Bleachers, Tanya Tucker, Old Crow Medicine Show, and Academy Award winner Jon Batiste, who has 11 nominations – the most of any artist this year – for this Sunday’s Grammy Awards. The Roots N Blues Festival, presented by Veterans United Home Loans, is set for Friday, October 7th through Sunday, October 9th at Stephens Lake Park in Columbia, Missouri. Festival passes and single-day tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster.
The three-day festival will also feature performances on two stages from a wide range of established and up-and-coming Americana, roots, blues, R&B, country, bluegrass, soul, folk, and rock acts including Hippo Campus, Larkin Poe, Tank and the Bangas, Houndmouth, Cautious Clay, Jackie Venson, Steeldrivers, Jaime Wyatt, The Dip, Brittney Spencer, Liz Cooper, Kassi Ashton, The Heavy Heavy, as well as five Missouri-based artists.
The Roots N Blues Festival made headlines last year for its historic, diverse, all women-led lineup during its first incarnation under new co-owners Tracy Lane and Shay Jasper. In keeping with their pledge to create a new Roots N Blues space where everyone feels that they are seen and heard, this year they have curated a lineup that is balanced with regard to gender and generation. Lane and Jasper were recently celebrated in Pollstar’s Women of Live special issue for their commitment to inclusivity in all aspects of their festival.
Lane and Jasper’s first festival as co-owners of Roots N Blues in 2021 was a success: the festival attracted a younger, more diverse audience than it had in years past. More 18-24 and 25-34-year-old music fans attended than in previous years. They also noted that 60% of festival-goers were women — the first time women made up a majority of the Roots N Blues audience.
In a change from previous years, Roots N Blues is not offering a VIP package for purchase this year. Instead, music fans will have the option to make a $200 donation to Friends of the Festival in addition to purchasing their three-day festival pass for access to lounges and up-front viewing at both stages. Friends of the Festival was formed during the pandemic as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to sustaining the Roots N Blues Festival. A tax-deductible donation helps further the legacy of the Festival, employs hundreds of Missourians, and provides access to music literacy and history programs to children throughout the state.
