Organizers with the National Folk Festival have announced the first group of artists who will be performing Sept. 8-10.
The 77-year-old festival has been held in downtown Greensboro for two years now, and the upcoming event will mark the third.
The National Folk Festival boasts approximately 300 musicians, dancers, storytellers and craft people, more than 30 musical groups and seven outdoor performance venues. Last year's event drew a crowd of 138,000 people.
The first artists to sign up were announced Monday, including bluegrass singer Dale Ann Bradley; Feedel Band, a jazz, funk and soul group; the Marshall Ford Swing Band, Mary Jane Lamond & Wendy MacIsaac; the Sri Lankan Dance Academy of New York; The Beat[box] Goes On; The Fairfield Four gospel quartet and the Tremé Brass Band.
The three-day festival is completely free, and, based on its success in the area, organizers are considering launching a North Carolina Folk Festival in 2018.
“In just two years, we’ve watched the National Folk Festival grow to become one of North Carolina’s largest annual events,” said Tom Philion, President and CEO of ArtsGreensboro, which co-produces the event. “We are excited about what this third year will bring as we look at creating a permanent legacy festival here for North Carolinians and the region.”
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