Farm Aid Festival returns to Noblesville Saturday
It will take place Saturday, Sept. 23 at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville. Gates open at noon.
NOBLESVILLE, Ind. — Farm Aid's annual music and food festival is returning to Indiana for the first time in more than 20 years.
It will take place Saturday, Sept. 23 at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville. Gates open at noon.
The festival will feature performances by Farm Aid board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds) and Margo Price.
Also scheduled to perform are Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Lukas Nelson, Allison Russell, The String Cheese Incident and Particle Kid.
Besides the iconic performances, there will also be a big focus on the food as part of the Homegrown Concessions.
All the food comes from family farmers, raised with an ecological standard, and the farmers are guaranteed a fair price.
“Since January, we have been site-walking, speaking with farmers, finding out what the sourcing community looks like,” said Sonya Dagovitz, the culinary director for Farm Aid. “One cow only has so much brisket, for example, we need a lot of brisket, so you need to reach out to many different farmers.”
To watch live online, click here.
Anthonie Lardiere, the general manager for Legends Hospitality, is one of the people that is helping bring the menu to life. It features many Indiana favorites.
“Because we are in Indiana, we have the pork tenderloin sandwich, and it’s from a local farmer here,” Lardiere said. “We have sliced, breaded and pounded those pork tenderloins, and the chefs are in the back right now preparing those for tomorrow, so they are ready to fry.”
RELATED: Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Neil Young to perform at Farm Aid in Noblesville this fall
This is the third Farm Aid concert in Indiana, with Farm Aid IV happening at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis in 1990 and Farm Aid 2001: A Concert for America in Noblesville in 2001.
The festival highlights the work of family farmers to address climate change through regenerative, organic and sustainable farming practices.
"Family farmers have the solutions to some of our toughest challenges," said Willie Nelson, president and founder of Farm Aid. "As we face a changing climate, farmers in Indiana, across the Midwest and all over the country are farming in ways that create more resilient farms to build healthy soils and protect our water."
According to Farm Aid, Indiana is the eighth largest farming state in the nation, generating $31.2 billion annually.
“It’s great to be back in Indiana where agriculture means so much to everyone,” said Jennifer Fahy, the spokesperson for Farm Aid. “This is the one day where farmers can become the rock stars and you see it happening here where people walk up and say, ‘Hey you are a farmer, can I shake your hand? Can I meet you?”
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This year, the festival is sold out.
You can find the lineup schedule by clicking here.
Farm Aid 2023 will stream live in HD at farmaid.org, starting at 11:30 a.m. ET. You can also watch the webcast on Farm Aid’s YouTube channel.
For more information about the festival, click here.
