Roots N Blues Festival

Meet Rochara Knight and the Honey Doves, another Columbia-based group whose soulful sound will help you get you through these last few weeks of winter!

Huge thanks to @womeninmusic for having Roots N Blues Festival co-producers, Tracy Lane and Shay Jasper, speak at this year's Women In Music Virtual Summit. For those of you who didn't catch the full conversation, here is a snippet about the decision to feature an all-female lineup in 2021, as well as the festival's ongoing commitment to approach booking from an equitable standpoint.

Meet River Ghost Revue, an acoustic group based in Columbia. Read the full story below.

Brittney Spencer blew us away when she performed at RNB 2021. Did you miss it? She's back at Rose Music Hall this Friday, February 11, with Abbey Cone - come give her a warm welcome! Grab your tickets here: https://bit.ly/brittneyspencer-rmh

It's time for another installment of our Local Music Love series! Today, get to know singer-songwriter Meredith Shaw Music

Brittney Spencer blew us away when she performed at RNB 2021. Did you miss it? She's back at Rose Music Hall this Friday, February 11, with Abbey Cone - come give her a warm welcome! Grab your tickets here: https://bit.ly/brittneyspencer-rmh

In this week's installment of our Local Music Love series, get to know Kansas City-based Nicole Springer.

We were happy to host so many great local vendors of BBQ and more at last year's festival. Which one was your favorite?

In honor of Valentine's Day, we're spending the month of February showing Missouri-based musicians a little love. We're kicking things off with Springfield-based folk-pop duo, The Shandies. Click the link below to read the full story.

One of our favorite things about running this festival is getting to show off our wonderful town and its food, drinks, art, music, and of course, its people!

Two-time Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter and Roots and Blues alum, Patty Griffin, is coming to The Blue Note! Don't miss her live Jan. 22nd. Get your tickets here: https://thebluenote.com/event/patty-griffin-2/

We were happy to host so many great local vendors of BBQ and more at last year's festival. Which one was your favorite?

One of our favorite things about running this festival is getting to show off our wonderful town and its food, drinks, art, music, and of course, its people!

The full summit runs from January 19-21st and will feature conversations with women creating positive change in the music industry. To learn more about the event and/or to register, click here: https://womeninmusic.wildapricot.org/event-4601624

Two-time Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter and Roots and Blues alum, Patty Griffin, is coming to The Blue Note! Don't miss her live Jan. 22nd. Get your tickets here: https://thebluenote.com/event/patty-griffin-2/

Who spied one of these little guys up in the trees at this year's fest?

The full summit runs from January 19-21st and will feature conversations with women creating positive change in the music industry. To learn more about the event and/or to register, click here: https://womeninmusic.wildapricot.org/event-4601624

This cold snap has us dreaming of long days, warm nights, and feeling the Missouri late-summer sun from the top of the ferris wheel

Who spied one of these little guys up in the trees at this year's fest?

This cold snap has us dreaming of long days, warm nights, and feeling the Missouri late-summer sun from the top of the ferris wheel

Happy pride month! Pick up a Roots N Blues t-shirt and support our friends at The Center Project at the same time! Browse our pride mech here: https://rootsnbluesfestival.com/merch/

Grab your passes and get WILD with us in September! http://bit.ly/RNBTickets2021

The Roots N Blues merch store is open! All merch sales benefit Friends of the Festival, a 501c3 that supports Missouri small businesses and the individuals that make RnB happen! Browse our range of apparel and accessories here: https://rootsnbluesfestival.com/merch/

Every day we get a little bit closer to September! Do you have your passes to see Sheryl Crow on the EquipmentShare stage? Grab ‘em here: bit.ly/RNBTickets2021

The Roots N Blues Festival experienced a halt in revenue for over a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We continue to wait on the SBA's decision to fund our Shuttered Venue Operators Grant application. We're grateful for the opportunity to safely return to Stephens Lake Park for the 2021 Festival. Due to increased costs for enhanced public health measures, and the slow return of the industry, Friends of the Festival was formed as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to sustaining the Roots N Blues Festival. Your 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: https://rootsnbluesfestival.com/become-a-friend/

So much love to The Kay Brothers

We miss y’all. We miss the crisp autumn temps each morning out at Stephens Lake Park. Right now, the tents would be up and the smell of straw bales and the chatter of our hard-working crew and volunteers would fill the grounds. Tomorrow, we’ll miss the buzz of energy right before we hear gates open! over our radios. We’ll miss the lights coming up on the stages when the sun is almost gone and the weekend has just begun. We’re grateful for your support over these 14 years. We’ve got another spin on this Ferris wheel before we see you in 2021. Until then, stay healthy and safe, and love one another.

Congress: Now is not the time to abandon independent businesses. While big corporations have financial options, millions of American workers and families NEED you to reach a deal on a stimulus for survival. #DoNotAbandonUS, please act NOW to #SaveOurStages.

The live events industry employs over 12 million people in the US and contributes nearly $1 trillion into the US economy annually. We need you to take action and push Congress to pass the #RESTARTAct and the #saveourstagesact. Time is running out. Head to SaveOurStages.com to send a message to your legislators today.

COVID-19 has all but decimated the live music industry. Professional musicians have been scrambling to adapt and live music industry professionals have been forced out of their career for the foreseeable future. All the while, congress has done nothing to assist the arts. MO Music Aid aims to right this wrong. A coalition of promoters (The Blue Note, Rose Music Hall, Roots and Blues Festival, and Off Track Events) have joined forces with KBIA-FM and the Voluntary Action Center to create a grant program for professional musicians and live music industry professionals. 100% of the net proceeds from this event will go to support this fund. PLEASE DONATE and SHARE this event with your friends! Together, we can make a difference.

Join us for a chat all about Missouri Music Aid (HAPPENING TOMORROW) and how you can make a big impact for live music industry professionals across the state! DONATE EARLY at www.momusicaid.com

We applaud the new bipartisan Save Our Stages Act introduced this week in Congress. The SOS Act would provide Small Business Administration grants for independent live music promoters affected by COVID-19. We NEED the #SaveOurStagesAct and #RestartAct passed in order to keep events like us from closing permanently. Please share and send in the new letter to Congress at SaveOurStages.com

The health and safety of our community has always been our highest priority. Because of this, we have been carefully deliberating whether or not to hold the Roots N Blues Festival in 2020. The exact timing for when it will become safe for us to operate still remains unclear. Today, we have reached the conclusion that it is in the best interest of our staff, volunteers, artists, crews, and patrons that we postpone the Roots N Blues Festival to 2021. We have been communicatin...g with other entertainment industry professionals across the country about the state of live music events as we all navigate our way through this time of unprecedented uncertainty. In alliance with our fellow festival promoters, we are choosing to postpone our event until a time when it is safe for the return of the communal experience of live music. We have successfully retained 95% of our planned 2020 lineup for 2021 and are hopeful that the remaining artists will confirm soon. More lineup information will be available later this summer. We're excited to gather with you for the Roots N Blues Festival on September 24-26, 2021. All passes purchased for the 2020 festival will be honored for the 2021 event and no action is needed on your part. Your wristbands will be shipped to you next summer. We are partnering with LYTE to provide a service for those that are unable to attend the dates in 2021. More information can be found at rootsnbluesfestival.com The Roots N Blues Festival is unique to the industry, as it is not owned by a larger entity. Instead, it is owned by three middle-class Missourians who recognize the importance of community and what live music contributes to the human experience. Despite a global pandemic, we continue to uphold these values. Sincerely, Shay Jasper, Tracy Lane and Jamie Varvaro, owners of Trio Presents, promoter of the Roots N Blues Festival

Thank you to Vox for creating this video explaining Juneteenth and why we must honor and celebrate it each year.

We’ll be watching. Will you?