Farm Aid 2019 headed to Alpine Valley; lineup announced

Farm Aid 2019 will be returning to a familiar landscape when the music/food festival arrives Sept. 21 at Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, Wisconsin, it was announced Tuesday.

This marks the second time the music/fundraising festival founded by Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young, will be presented in Wisconsin. In 2010, Farm Aid marked its 25th anniversary with a concert event in Milwaukee.

Here’s this year’s lineup (more artists to be announced at a later date):

• Willie Nelson

• John Mellencamp

• Neil Young

• Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds)

• Bonnie Raitt

• Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats

• Margo Price

• Jamey Johnson

• Tanya Tucker

• Brothers Osborne

• Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real

• Yola

• Particle Kid

Begun in 1985 as a benefit concert held at U of I’s Memorial Stadium in Champaign, to raise funds for America’s farm families struggling with crippling mortgage debt, Farm Aid has subsequently been held at venues across the country including Chicago’s Northerly Island in 2015 where the event celebrated its 30th anniversary.

According to the organization’s mission statement: “Farm Aid works with local, regional and national organizations to promote fair farm policies and grassroots organizing campaigns designed to defend and bolster family farm-centered agriculture.”

In addition to non-stop music, the all-day festival also features a wide array of food, hands-on activities for the whole family, educational booths/talks and more. More than $53 million has been raised to date to help U.S. farm families and to support the efforts of the Good Food Movement, which advocates locally grown, organic, family farm foods.

Tickets, $54.50 to $249.50, will go on sale at 10 a.m. July 12 at livenation.com. A limited number of pre-sale tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. July 10 at farmaid.org/festival.