The best way to experience music in eastern Arkansas is at one of the area’s many music festivals.
Historic Helena hosts no less than four musical festivals each year, including the 2nd annual Arkansas Delta Rockabilly Festival, slated for May 12. This year’s lineup includes the Kentucky Headhunters, Asleep at the Wheel, Stan Perkins and D.J. Fontana, and Ace Cannon.
Helena also hosts one of The Natural State’s preeminent musical events, the King Biscuit Blues Festival. Celebrating 27 years in 2012, the three-day festival is scheduled for October 4-6. Thousands from throughout the world flock to historic downtown Helena as the music takes over – giving visitors a three-day, down-home, soul-baring musical history lesson.
“The Biscuit,” as it’s lovingly referred to, also features arts and crafts, activities for kids, fantastic food fare, and a music symposium. But it’s the music that keeps fans coming. The yearly lineup includes contemporary blues performers, up-and-coming musicians and renowned blues legends.
The Depot Days Festival in Newport is dedicated to the musical pioneers that played along the famed Rock ‘N’ Roll Highway 67 in northeast Arkansas. The fall event, normally held in mid-September, has featured legendary performers such as Ace Cannon, Sonny Burgess, and Ronnie McDowell.
Plans are also underway for the 2nd annual Johnny Cash Music Festival, slated for early October. The first event, held in 2011, raised over $300,000 for Arkansas State University’s planned restoration of Cash’s boyhood home in Dyess. Cash’s friends and family, including daughter Roseanne, son John Carter, George Jones, and Kris Kristofferson, performed at the event and offered personal stories about “The Man in Black.”
Information on music festivals throughout The Natural State can be found at Arkansas Events
For more information about top events in Arkansas take a look at the Top Events USA selection of the annual main festivals and events in Arkansas.