Carolina Music Festivals is a comprehensive calendar and guide to multi-act, daylong or multiple-day music festivals in North Carolina.
Dates and other details may be estimated based on last year's festival until confirmed by festival organizers.
June 1 Carolina Beach Music Festival - Carolina Beach
The show presented on the sands at the home of beach music and shagging is in its 38th year in 2024. In addition to music, Saturday's festivities include a shagging contest with cash prizes, and there are to be other "beach music activities" on the boardwalk Wednesday through Sunday. The festival is held on the first Saturday in June each year.
Artists
Jim Quick and Coastline, Blackwater, The Main Event Band.
Festival Site: On beach near Carolina Beach Boardwalk
11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; gates open at 10 a.m.
$35 in advance, $40 at the gate.
June 6 - 8 Cherokee Bluegrass Festival - Cherokee
A long-running bluegrass festival at the gateway to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a family-oriented festival held at a campground pavilion. Bands play afternoon and evening sets, though headliners may only play once. There's also a "Native American Show / Duck Race" set for noon on Saturday.
Artists
Thursday: Malpass Brothers, Southern Legacy, Carolina Road, Deeper Shade of Blue.
Friday: Rhonda Vincent and the Rage, Nothin Fancy, Backline, Wood Family Tradition.
Saturday: Dailey and Vincent, Larry Stephenson Band, Authentic Unlimited, Retro 78.
Festival site: Happy Holiday RV Village
Noon to 11 p.m.
Three-day pass: general admission $100 advance, $110 at gate; reserved seats $110 advance, $120 at gate; age 7 to 15 $50; younger free with parent.
Daily pass: general admission $45 advance, $50 at gate; reserved seats $50 advance, $55 at gate; age 7 to 15 $20; younger free with parent.
No alcohol.
June 7 - 8 Bluegrass & Old-Time Fiddlers Convention - Mount Airy
The festival dedicated to old-time and bluegrass music and dance includes competitions, jam sessions and workshops in a family-friendly environment. Winners in 15 solo and band competitions are awarded cash prizes. There's a dance after Saturday's competitions. The festival is in its 52nd year in 2024.
Artists
Friday & Saturday: Contestants TBA in old-time and bluegrass bands, and individual bluegrass fiddle, old-time fiddle, bluegrass banjo, old-time banjo (clawhammer), guitar, mandolin, bass, dobro, dulcimer, autoharp, folk song and dance (adult and youth).
Festival site: Veterans Memorial Park
Friday 7 p.m.; Saturday 9:30 a.m., youth dance and awards 5:45 p.m., band performances 6 p.m. followed by adult dance.
$10 daily; younger than 7 free with adult.
$20 for contestants ($10 refunded Saturday after performance).
$20 for campers for entire weekend (in addition to camping fee).
Camping: $10 per day, RVs $35 per day with water and electricity.
No alcohol or dogs on site.
June 7 - 9 Ocrafolk Festival - Ocracoke Island
Ocrafolk is presented by Ocracoke Alive, a nonprofit cultural arts organization that presents student and community arts programs on Ocracoke Island. In addition to music on three or four stages and musicians' workshops, the festival presents storytellers, visual arts vendors and other activities. Click on the photo for more information.
Musical Artists
Kaira Ba, Clements Brothers, Cold Chocolate, Lipbone Redding, Rev. Robert Jones, Cassie and Maggie MacDonald, Jacob Johnson, Donald Davis, Molasses Creek, Saltaire Sounds, Blue Cactus, Beleza, Berto and Vincent, Martin Garrish and the Ocracoke Rockers, Jay Turner and the Swinging Doors, Coyote, Aaron Caswell Trio, mahaloJazz, Brooke and Nick, Bob and Jeanne Zentz, Ana Luisa Chavez, Louis Allen.
Also: Ballet Folklorico de Ocracoke, Paperhand Puppets, Jef the Mime.
Festival site: Berkley Manor
Three-day pass: $80 through May 31, $90 at gate.
Friday: $40 through May 31, $45 at gate.
Saturday: $45 through May 31, $50 at gate.
Sunday: $30 through May 31, $35 at gate.
Younger than 18 free.
June 7 - 9 Cape Fear Blues Festival - Wilmington
The annual festival presented by the Cape Fear Blues Society features local, regional and national acts. The festival will also present a vendor market and a beer garden and have food available.
Artists
TBA. 2023 lineup included The Rev. Billy C. Wirtz, The Rhythm Bones, The Nasty Chaps and five more.
Festival site: The Rusty Nail
6 p.m. Friday 2 p.m. Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday.
Weekend pass: $30.
Friday club show: $10.
June 8 Carl Sandburg Music Festival - Flat Rock
Connemara, the North Carolina home of poet Carl Sandburg, hosts a free gathering of local musicians each year. In addition to music, tours of the house at Connemara, which is a national historic site that includes gardens, an apple orchard, goats raised on-site, trails and more, are available throughout the day for a small fee. The festival was previously a Memorial Day event. This is its 37th year.
Artists
Mac Arnold, Laura Boosinger, Steve and Jean Smith.
Also: Mountain Square Dance Circle with Walt Pickett, Sandburg Out Loud Children's Program.
Festival site: Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site
Free admission.
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
June 13 - 15 Willow Oak Park Bluegrass Festival - Roxboro
Bluegrass promoter Mike Wilson and musician Lorraine Jordan partner to carry on the tradition of "family-style" bluegrass festivals. In addition to stage shows by national and local bands, the festival will present musicians' workshops, storytelling and a jamming tent. Lorraine Jordan and Carolina Road are the festival hosts.
Artists
Thursday: Lonesome River Band, Dave Adkins, Big Country Bluegrass, Larry Efaw and Bluegrass Mountaineers.
Friday: Lorraine Jordan and Carolina Road, Authentic Unlimited, Junior Sisk Band, Kevin Prater Band, Little Roy and Lizzie.
Saturday: Lorraine Jordan and Carolina Road, Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out, The Kody Norris Show, The Gospel Plowboys.
Festival site: Willow Oak Park
Music starts 1 p.m. Thursday, noon Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday after musicians' workshops Friday and Saturday. Most bands play afternoon and evening sets.
Three-day pass: $110.
Thursday and Friday (each): $35.
Saturday: $40.
Age 13-16: $15 per day.
Younger than 13 free with parent.
Camping: primitive camping $10 per day. Sites with electricity are $25 (30 amps) and $45 (50 amps) per day.
No alcohol, smoking or pets in the concert area.
June 14 - 15 Charlie Poole Music Festival - Wentworth
The Charlie Poole Music Festival honors the legacy of North Carolina string bands and roots music with more than 20 musicians' competitions in addition to stage shows Friday and Saturday evening. The festival also presents musicians' workshops, local arts and craft vendors, and the presentation of a lifetime achievement award to the headlining artist. The festival was revived in 2023 for its first edition since 2016, but had been held for more than 20 years prior to the break. See competition categories here, including Grand Champion Banjo Player, which earns a $1,000 cash prize. Click on the photo for more information.
Artists
TBA. 2023 lineup included Dom Flemons, Riley Baugas, Polecat Creek and eight more, plus competitors.
Festival site: Rockingham Community College
Stage shows start 4 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. Saturday; competitions begin 4 p.m. Friday and 9:30 a.m. Saturday.
Two-day pass: $50.
Daily: $35.
Camping: $20. No water/sewer or electrical hookups. No open campfires, alcohol or tobacco are allowed on campus.
June 14 - 15 Boonerang Music and Arts Festival - Boone
The free music and arts festival in downtown Boone presents shows on multiple concert stages, as well as food, beer and crafts vendors, a kids' zone and afterparties. The festival will present a free evening concert and a silent disco Friday. Saturday is a day-long event. Boonerang, which was three days in 2023, is in its third year in 2024.
Artists
The Nude Party, Melissa Reaves, Empire Strikes Brass, Gringo Star, The Tan and Sober Gentlemen, Florencia and the Feeling, Shay Martin Lovette, Ashes and Arrows, Snake Oil Medicine Show, Mac Arnold and Plate Full O' Blues, Jerry's Dead, Lund, Loose Roosters, Tambem, Surefire, Hope Massive, The Karloffs, Setting, Ghost Trees, Dissimilar South.
Festival site: Downtown Boone
5:30-8:30 p.m. Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday.
Free admission.
June 14 - 15 Surry Old Time Fiddlers Convention - Dobson
Two days of activities celebrate the old-time music of Surry County with a Friday night square dance and Saturday competitions for adult and youth (younger than 16) instrumentalists, bands and songwriters, which include cash prizes. Competitions are followed by youth and adult dances, respectively. There will also be luthier displays, jamming, a cake walk and raffles. The 2023 festival was held in June; it was previously in September and at the start of April.
Artists
TBA. 2023 festival featured Twin Creeks String Band and competitors.
Festival site: Surry Community College
7 to 11 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday.
Friday $5, younger than 13 free; Saturday $5, contestants and younger than 13 free.
June 15 Bluff Mountain Festival - Hot Springs
The free all-acoustic show presents bluegrass and more, including cloggers, a silent auction, raffle, and art and food vendors. The festival benefits the Madison County Arts Council and is in its 27th year in 2024.
Artists
TBA. 2023 lineup included Dangerous Curves, Whitewater Bluegrass Co., Sourwood Ridge and six more.
Festival site: Hot Springs Resort and Spa
10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Free.
Campground information here.
June 21 - 22 FlushFest - Hillsborough
FlushFest is an annual day of world music and food trucks that serves as a fundraiser for the Appropriate Sanitation Institute, a project working to improve sewerage system technology in Brazil. Friday evening's program is a silent film with live piano.
Artists
TBA. 2023 lineup included Wesley Noog, Rainbow Cabbage, Project Mustana and 20 more.
Festival site: Eno River Brewing (Friday: Eno House)
7 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday
Donations requested; thank-you gifts for doonations of more than $25.
June 21 - 23 State Annual Singing Convention - Benson
The gospel singing competition typically presents the previous year's winners Friday, competition Saturday and Sunday, nationally recognized recording acts in concert Saturdayevenings, and performances by competition winners Sunday evening. The festival is held the weekend of the fourth Sunday in June each year. The "Benson Sing" is in its 103rd year in 2024. Click on the photo for more information.
Artists
Friday: Community choirs: Midway Baptist, Justin's Choir, Advent Christian, JoCo Choir, Wilmington Celebration.
Saturday: The Sound, plus competitors.
Sunday: The Lefevre Quartet, plus competitors.
Festival site: Benson Singing Grove
Friday: 7 p.m.
Saturday: singing begins 11:30 a.m., concert 7 p.m., round-robin sing 8:15 p.m.
Sunday: signing begins 10:30 a.m., concert 4 p.m.
Free admission.
Competition categories: Junior, Duet, Trio, Mixed Trio, Quartet, Mixed Quartet, Family, Bluegrass, Choir.
June 22 - July 27 Eastern Music Festival - Greensboro and points west
The Eastern Music Festival and School trains aspiring musicians between the ages of 14 and 22, and presents classical and chamber music performances. Gerard Schwarz is the music director. The festival is in its 63rd year in 2024.
Artists
TBA. 2023 featured artists included classical guitarists Kami Rowan, Badi Assad and Jason Vieaux; Santiago Rodriguez (piano); William Wolfram (piano); and 14 more, plus faculty and student artists.
Festival site: Guilford College and other venues.
Performance dates, times, prices and venues vary.
June 22 - August 10 Brevard Summer Institute & Festival - Brevard
The Brevard Music Center's summer institute for classical music students aged 14 and older presents some 50 concerts throughout its month-long-plus festival, showcasing nationally recognized artists and the center's faculty musicians. The Independence Day concert at Whittington-Pfohl open-air auditorium typically features live cannons during the 1812 Overture. Keith Lockhart is musical director.
Artists
Wynton Marsalis with The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Bryan Sutton, David Sanborn, Aoife O'Donovan, Béla Fleck, faculty and student orchestras and smaller combos.
Classical program includes: Prokofiev 5, Gershwin's Piano Concerto in F, Strauss's Ein Heldenleben; Janiec Opera Company productions of The Threepenny Opera, Flight, La Bohème, and An Evening of Jerome Kern and Friends; film with live orchestra presentation of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in Concert; world premiere concertos by two of today's top composers; more.
Festival site: Brevard Music Center and nearby venues
Performance times and individual admission fees vary.
June 29 - July 27 An Appalachian Summer Festival - Boone
An Appalachian Summer Festival is a multi- and inter-disciplinary arts festival presenting and producing programs in music, theater, dance, film and visual arts. The festival also includes the Rosen-Schaffel Competition for Young & Emerging (classical music) Artists. It is in its 40th year in 2024.
Musical Artists (order of appearance)
Matale Merchant, Eastern Festival Orchestra with special guest Béla Fleck, Chanticleer, Canadian Brass, Brendan Slocumb, Buddy Guy, Norm Lewis, Bell-Denk-Isserlis Trio, St. Paul and The Broken Bones, Simone Dinnerstein and Awadagin Pratt (piano), Brad Paisley.
Festival site: Appalachian State University and nearby venues
Performance times and admission fees vary. Get the schedule here.
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