The festival, presented by the nonprofit Lovegrass Music Festival Association, runs today through Saturday, bringing nationally acclaimed performers, hands-on workshops, camping, and family-friendly activities to one of Kansas' most scenic destinations. And in true Lovegrass fashion, the event stays accessible to everyone through its donation-based admission model—you register for free, and voluntary contributions help sustain the festival's mission of bringing bluegrass arts to rural Kansas.
This year's lineup features an outstanding stack of talent, including East Nash Grass, Johnny Mullenax, The Matchsellers, Debutants, 80 Proof Alice, Tornado Rose, Shakedown Strings, Tom Pevear, BreAnne Stone, Tequila, Rudy & the Lost Boys, and more.
What really sets Lovegrass apart, though, is how it's built. Organizers intentionally designed the schedule so nobody has to choose between experiences—no sprinting from stage to stage wondering what you're missing. From morning until night, there's something happening, whether you want to learn, play, dance, camp, or just relax by the lake.
Friday's Can't-Miss Moments
Kick things off with workshops from two festival favorites: 80 Proof Alice and The Matchsellers. The Hays, Kansas trio behind 80 Proof Alice fuses bluegrass tradition with modern storytelling and small-town grit, led by Tyson LeSage's dynamic flatpicking and 2022 Kansas State Banjo Champion Jason Riegel. Their name has a great backstory, too—it traces back to the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, where founders Aimee and Jason Riegel spent years camping alongside a colorful cast of festival friends, one of whom was a woman named Alice with a memorable fondness for 80-proof moonshine. The Matchsellers, meanwhile, bring something a little wilder to the stage—the Kansas City duo infuses traditional roots music with a modern, irreverent, art-house twist that could only come out of the heartland. Expect sharp musicianship and a sense of humor in equal measure.
For a change of pace, swing by the interactive leather and blacksmithing workshops happening throughout the day—because at Lovegrass, the "arts" in "art, music, and community" is never just an afterthought. You'll also catch sets from Debutants, Tornado Rose, Shakedown Strings, Tom Pevear, BreAnne Stone, Tequila, and Rudy & the Lost Boys scattered across the day, so there's always a new sound to wander toward.
Then, once the sun goes down, settle in for the Johnny Mullenax Band, a Rolling Stone-featured act known for a genre-bending sound the frontman himself calls a "funky country bluegrass good time" — expect bluegrass standards and jam-band energy from a band that's been packing houses everywhere from Tulsa to France this year.
Saturday Brings Out Some Big Names
Start your Saturday with the festival parade winding through the grounds—a Lovegrass tradition that gets the whole campground moving before the music even starts. From there, don't miss a fiddle workshop with Maddie Denton, the 2025 IBMA Fiddle Player of the Year. If that name sounds familiar by evening, it should—Denton is also a member of Saturday night's headliner, East Nash Grass, a supergroup of rising bluegrass stars nominated for three 2025 IBMA awards including the genre's highest honor, Entertainer of the Year. Rounding out the band are banjo player Cory Walker, mandolin player Harry Clark, frontman James Kee, and bassist Jeff Partin—five musicians who've each made their name backing some of bluegrass's biggest acts before joining forces on their own.
And When the Stages Go Quiet...
The music doesn't actually stop! Campground jams carry on well after the main stages wrap, with an extended acoustic jamming hour running from 11 p.m. to midnight during the festival—so if you're the type who'd rather sit in a circle trading licks than call it an early night, you're among your people here.
If you're planning to camp, Wilson State Park offers showers, primitive and RV camping, cabins, and some genuinely breathtaking views of the lake, and on-site primitive camping is available at the festival's Buffalograss Campground for $75 per unit, running from Thursday at 2 p.m. through Sunday at 2 p.m. Just know that camping permits are first-come, first-served, so if a spot under the stars is part of your plan, don't dawdle. One important note for anyone hoping to plug in: electric camping at Big Bluestem is limited this year to festival staff, crew, bands, and Lovegrass Sustainers Club donors. If you need an electric hookup, your best bet is to book one of the state park's other electric sites directly through reserveamerica.com, rather than counting on one at the festival grounds.
Whether you're a die-hard picker or just someone who loves a good excuse to sit by the water with a cold drink and world-class music drifting across the campground, Lovegrass has a little bit of everything waiting for you tonight, and all through Saturday night!
Event Details:
Lovegrass Music Festival
Thursday, August 6 – Saturday, August 8, 2026
Wilson State Park, Sylvan Grove/Wilson, KS
Free, donation-based registration
More info, schedule, and tickets: lovegrassmusicfestival.com
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