There’s no reason to stay home this summer, with festivals and concerts in all corners of the Commonwealth. Music lovers have so many options—whether you want to bring your own lawn chair and listen to local musicians at a city park or catch a national act at a major venue, we’ve got you covered.
CITY MUSIC SERIES
Free concerts across the state
- Edgewood Summer Music Series, Tuesdays in June and July, President’s Park, Edgewood, edgewoodky.gov
- Friday After 5, Fridays in May, June and July, Smothers Park, Owensboro, fridayafter5.com
- Thursday Night Live, Thursdays, May-October, Fifth Third Bank Pavilion at Tandy Centennial Park, Lexington, downtownlex.com
- Liberty Summer Music Series, Second Friday, May 8-Sept. 11, City Green Stage, Liberty, explorelibertyky.com
- Downtown Frankfort Summer Concert Series, Every other Friday, May 29-Aug. 7, Downtown Frankfort, downtownfrankfort.com
- Summer Nights in Suburbia, Fridays, May 9-Sept. 18, Moondance Amphitheater, Lexington, lexingtonky.gov
- Grand Rivers Street Dance, Second Saturday of each month, May-September, Downtown Grand Rivers, grandrivers.org
- Big Band & Jazz, multiple dates + locations, lexingtonky.gov
- Franklin-Simpson Renaissance Presents 2026 Summer Nights Concert Series, Fridays, June 19-Aug. 14, Simpson County Courthouse Lawn, Franklin, franklinsimpsonrenaissance.com
- Southland Jamboree, Thursdays, May 28-Sept. 3, Moondance Amphitheater, Lexington, lexingtonky.gov
- East End Evenings, Second and Fourth Friday, July 17-Aug. 28 , Charles Young Park, Lexington, lexingtonky.gov
- Music by the Water, June 20, July 18, Aug. 18 + Sept. 26, Norton Commons Amphitheatre, Louisville, nortoncommons.com
- From the Front Porch, Last Saturday of the month, June 27-Sept. 26, Isaac Murphy Memorial Art Garden, Lexington, lexingtonky.gov
- WFPK Waterfront Wednesday, Fourth Wednesday, April 22-Sept. 23, Big Four Lawn at Waterfront Park, Louisville, ourwaterfront.org
CONCERTS + MUSIC FESTIVALS
- 5/16 The Band Feel with Mojo Thunder, The Grove, Glasgow, thegroveglasgow.com
- 5/23 George Thorogood + The Destroyers: The Baddest Show on Earth Tour + The Marshall Tucker Band, Beaver Dam Amphitheater, beaverdamtourism.com
- 6/6-7 Railbird, The Red Mile, Lexington, railbirdfest.com
- 6/10 “Weird Al” Yankovic: Bigger & Weirder 2026 Tour, Appalachian Wireless Arena, Pikeville, appalachianwirelessarena.com
- 6/20 Trace Adkins with Rye Davis: 30th Anniversary Tour, Renfro Valley Entertainment Center, Mount Vernon, renfrovalley.com
- 6/24-27 ROMP Bluegrass Festival, Yellow Creek Park, Owensboro, rompfest.com
- 6/27-28, 7/11, 7/18 Billie Jean Osborne’s Kentucky Opry, Mountain Arts Center, Prestonsburg, macarts.com
- 7/16 Jason Isbell, EKU Center for the Arts, Richmond, ekucenter.com
- 7/17-18 Master Musicians Festival, Somerset Community College, Somerset, mastermusiciansfestival.org
- 8/1 Shenandoah, The Amp at Log Still Distillery, Gethsemane, logstilldistillery.com
- 8/4 The Black Keys: Peaches ’n Kream Tour, MegaCorp Pavilion, Newport, promowestlive.com
- 8/6 Marty Stuart & Molly Tuttle: Cosmic Twang Guitars on Fire, SKyPAC, Bowling Green, theskypac.com
- 8/13 The String Cheese Incident: Just Keep Spinning Tour, Iroquois Amphitheater, Louisville, iroquoisamphitheater.com
FESTIVALS
Honoring everything from corn to goetta to daylilies...
- May 8-9, Lower Town Arts & Music Festival: As a UNESCO Creative City, Paducah is humming with artistic vibes. This festival celebrates all that creative energy with two days of musical acts, children’s activities and artists selling their wares. Lower Town, Paducah, paducah.travel
- May 8-9, BBQ & Barrels: Western Kentucky’s most iconic food, barbecue, is paired with bourbon, the spirit of the Bluegrass State, at this two-day festival. Downtown Owensboro, bbqandbarrels.com
- May 9-10, Mayfest Arts Fair: Browse the wares of 100 artists while enjoying live performances and family-friendly activities in the beautiful, historic Gratz Park. Gratz Park, Lexington, downtownlex.com
- May 16, BloomFest at Bernheim: Celebrate spring with family-friendly arts and crafts activities and live music amid Bernheim’s glorious 16,000-acre forest. Bernheim Forest and Arboretum, Clermont, bernheim.org
- May 15-17, Covington Maifest: Celebrate Northern Kentucky’s German heritage with maypole dancing, artisan markets, all kinds of food and, of course, beer. Goebel Park, Covington, braxtonbrewing.com
- May 21-24, Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival: Since 1931, this annual rite of spring has included arts and crafts vendors, concerts, a 5K run, a parade through Pine Mountain and a crowning of the Mountain Laurel Queen, which is held at Laurel Cove in Pine Mountain State Resort Park. Pineville, kmlf.org
- May 27-Aug 9, Shakespeare Festival: Celebrating its 66th year, the festival is the longest-running free, non-ticketed Shakespeare festival in the United States. The plays change every few weeks, so check the website for shows and times. Central Park, Historic Old Louisville, kyshakespeare.com
- May 30-July 19, Sat + Sun, Kentucky Highland Renaissance Festival: A rural farm in Henry County is transformed into an early 14th-century Scottish village. Festival goers enjoy the works of artisans selling handcrafted items and actors portraying jousting and re-enacting fairy tales. Festival Grounds, 955 Elm Street, Eminence, kyrenfaire.com
- June 17-20, The W.C. Handy Blues & Barbecue Festival: This festival, which draws about 50,000 people each year, honors William Christopher Handy, a Henderson resident who was known as the “Father of the Blues.” The multi-day free celebration features continuous live music and multiple vendors serving up their versions of Western Kentucky barbecue. Audubon Mill Park, Henderson, handyblues.org
- June 19-20, Heart of Kentucky Juneteenth Celebration: A day of restoration, recognition and celebration, the festival includes guest speakers, kids’ activities, food and games of chance. West Lane Park, Harrodsburg, juneteenthky.com
- June 20, Dazzling Daylilies Festival: In addition to its phenomenal display of more than 800 varieties of daylilies, the festival features artists painting in the gardens, live music, and a petting zoo. Western Kentucky Botanical Garden, Owensboro, wkbg.org
- June 25-27, Great American Brass Band Festival: Danville pulls out all the stops to celebrate amazing brass band tunes. The weekend includes free performances throughout the community and on the campus of Centre College. Don’t miss the parade that travels down Main Street, band after band strutting their stuff and filling the town with sound. Downtown Danville, gabbf.org
- June 30-July 4, Blackberry Festival: Celebrating its 80th year, this festival will commemorate America’s 250th anniversary with carnival rides, live music, countless blackberry treats and, of course, fireworks on the Fourth. Downtown Carlisle, carlisle-nicholascounty.org
- July 10-12, Berea Craft Festival: Festival goers will enjoy the Appalachian craftsmanship of 100 artisans and wander through booths set up in this historic, wooded location. Along with live music and food vendors, many artists conduct workshops and demonstrations. Indian Fort Theater, Berea, visitberea.com
- July 11, BG Wine Fest: Sample vino from Kentucky wineries while enjoying live music, silent auctions and shopping. Historic RailPark & Train Museum, Bowling Green, historicrailpark.com
- July 11, Skeeterfest: Enjoy this all-day outdoor music festival, with local food vendors and kids’ activities. Grant County Fairgrounds, Williamstown, visitgrantky.com
- July 23-26 and July 30-Aug 2, GoettaFest: Covering two weekends, this festival celebrates the German-American staple goetta. Although typically served as a breakfast dish, the sausage is offered by creative vendors in about 50 one-of-a-kind dishes, such as goetta pizza, goetta tacos and even desserts made of goetta. Two stages will feature more than 40 bands, and there will be a kids’ fun area, all along the banks of the Ohio River in Newport. Newport Festival Park, goetta.com
- July 31-Aug. 2, Stanton Corn Festival: A weekend full of beauty pageants, a 5K run, live music and, of course, a corn-eating contest. Stanton Community Park, cornfestivalky.com
- Aug. 1, St. Jerome Fancy Farm Picnic: Known for its popular—sometimes rowdy—political speeches, the picnic serves attendees plenty of Western Kentucky barbecue alongside those partisan jabs. The day includes kids’ games, bingo and a raffle for a brand new car. Fancy Farm, stjeromefancyfarm.com
- Aug. 1, Appalachian Artist Festival: A full day of live music along with demonstrations in woodworking, fiber arts and quilting will entertain festival goers in downtown Inez. Downtown Inez, Visit on Facebook: Appalachian Artist Festival
- Aug. 5-8, NIBROC Festival: Along with live music, carnival rides, and arts and crafts vendors, the NIBROC Festival hosts volleyball, cornhole, basketball and tennis tournaments. Downtown Corbin, southernkychamber.com
- Aug. 7-8, Bluegrass in the Park Folklife & Music Festival: This annual event in downtown Henderson claims to be the largest ongoing, free bluegrass festival in the country. Visitors will enjoy two days of nonstop music, located about 60 miles from the birthplace of Bill Monroe, known as the Father of Bluegrass Music. Audubon Mill Park, Henderson, bluegrassinthepark.com
- Aug. 15-16, Woodland Art Fair: Nearly 200 artists and artisans from across the country bring their creations each year to Woodland Park, where 70,000 people enjoy shopping and soaking in all the talent. Woodland Park, Lexington, lexingtonartleague.org
- Aug. 14-17, Great Inland Seafood Festival: Live music, family fun and plentiful shrimp, oysters and whole Maine lobsters can be enjoyed on the banks of the Ohio River. Newport Festival Park, On Facebook: Great Inland Seafood Festival