Community News

BETHLHEM, PA--Reba McEntire, Jerry Seinfeld, Snoop Dogg, Darius Rucker, Culture Club, Cracker and Kristian Bush among the 325-plus artists who will perform when Musikfest, the nation’s largest free music festival, celebrates its 32^nd year Aug. 7-16 in Bethlehem, Pa. The festival will offer free music on 15 of its 16 stages, with 550 free music and art performances, the most in the event’s history.

Headlining performances at the festival’s Sands Steel Stage include the Flaming Lips Aug. 7, Culture Club Aug. 8, O.A.R. with Allen Stone Aug. 9, Jerry Seinfeld Aug. 10, Reba McEntire Aug. 11, ZZ Top Aug. 12, 3 Doors Down and Collective Soul Aug. 13, Darius Rucker Aug. 14, Snoop Dogg Aug. 15 and Alice in Chains Aug. 16. This year’s event will also include a special preview night Aug. 6 that’s headlined by two-time GRAMMY winners Duran Duran, returning to Musikfest for the first time in 15 years.

On Aug. 12 at Aetna Americaplatz, Musikfest welcomes Kristian Bush of platinum-selling country duo Sugarland.  The GRAMMY Award-winning singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist made his solo debut in 2013 with the song “Love or Money” and recently released the album Southern Gravity, which debuted at No. 16 on the Billboard country airplay charts in April. 

Cracker, which performs Aug. 14 at Volksplatz, has been rocking audiences for nearly a quarter-century with hits such as “Low,” “Euro-Trash Girl,” “Get Off This” and “Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out With Me.” The group has produced ten studio albums and presented thousands of live performances since coming together in the early 90s.  

Among the many other artists taking the stage during Musikfest are two-time Blues Music Award ‘Band of the Year’ winners Lil’ Ed and the Blues Imperials Aug. 13, acclaimed New Orleans trumpet player Glen David Andrews and his band Aug. 14-15, popular Celtic and folk act Scythian Aug. 11-12, New Orleans-based R&B sensations Mississippi Rail Company Aug. 15, ‘Mardi Gras Indian Funk Band’ Cha Wa Aug. 11-12 and Chilean superstar Manuel Garcia Aug. 9. In addition, Love Canon, which serves up bluegrass versions of ’80s hits, will perform Aug. 14, while bachata star Karlos Rosé will headline a night of Latin music Aug. 15.

Admission to all Musikfest stages is free with the exception of Sands Steel Stage performances; tickets for all Sands Steel Stage concerts are on sale now at www.musikfest.org and 610-332-3378. The list of the more than 325 performers coming to this year’s festival is available at musikfest.org/lineup.

In addition to hundreds of free music performances, Musikfest features 60 food vendors, 40 artisans and a diverse array of family programming including artists-in-residence like Australian contemporary theater company Polyglot Theatre, talented street performers and a special children’s venue called Kinderplatz. To stay up to date on all of the festival news and announcements, follow Musikfest at facebook.com/musikfest or twitter.com/musikfest.

About Musikfest
Musikfest, presented by the nonprofit ArtsQuest, is made possible thanks in part to the support of more than 150 corporate partners, 2,000 volunteers and 2,200 supporting ArtsQuest Members. The festival takes place throughout Bethlehem’s Historic District, as well as the SteelStacks arts and cultural campus located on the site of the city’s former Bethlehem Steel plant.   Through a unique public-private partnership, this industrial site, one of the largest Brownfields under redevelopment in the nation, has been transformed into a dynamic destination for music, art, festivals and cultural events throughout the year.  Public and nonprofit partners working together to bring new life to the former steel mill include the Bethlehem Redevelopment Authority, City of Bethlehem, Bethlehem Area School District, Northampton County, ArtsQuest and PBS39. For more information on SteelStacks, visit www.steelstacks.org.