The world’s largest bluegrass festival will jam out in Oak City for the last time on Friday, Sept. 27 and Saturday Sept. 28. Don’t miss all the fun of IBMA Bluegrass Live!'s last stand in Raleigh.
Bluegrass Live! has been held in Oak City since 2013 and has amassed 223,000 attendees from 2017 to 2023. The festival partners with PineCone, the Piedmont Council of Traditional Music to continue uplifting traditional bluegrass, Americana, gospel, and folk music in central NC.
What to expect
The main stage at Red Hat Amphitheater will host big acts like Steep Canyon Rangers, Sierra Ferrell, Chatham County Line, and more — one-day tickets start at just $10 for lawn seats.
If you’re not feeling up to spending your day at Red Hat, peruse Fayetteville Street’s fun for free. Attendees can shop the art market + street vendors and listen to live bluegrass from the five stages along the street, including a dedicated gospel stage.
Before the fun on Fayetteville Street + Red Hat begins, check out smaller bluegrass Rambles Tuesday through Friday at venues like the Lincoln Theatre and Jimmy V’s Osteria.
And one more thing — IBMA will hold its annual awards ceremony on Thursday, Sept. 26 hosted by Missy Raines and John Cowan at the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts honoring the best in bluegrass music.
What’s next
During the festival’s 10th year in the City of Oaks in 2023, IBMA announced that World of Bluegrass + Bluegrass Live! would leave Raleigh for Chattanooga starting in 2025.
Earlier this year, Piedmont-based music nonprofit PineCone announced a new bluegrass festival called Raleigh Wide Open. The new fest will take center stage Oct. 3-4, 2025 and is named in honor of the original Oak City bluegrass festival.