Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival

Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival returns for its 15th year, and it’s kicking off with a lineup that promises unforgettable performances and boundary-pushing soundscapes! Headlining the first wave of announcements are Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country, blending psychedelic jams with outlaw country flair, and the explosive energy of Andy Frasco & The U.N., renowned for their crowd-fueled, unpredictable live shows.

Just outside Martinsville, tucked away down amongst a hollow of southern Virginia, you will find Pop’s Farm, the home of Rooster Walk. The Rooster Walk Musical Festival started in 2009 as an annual party to honor high school friends and to raise money in their names for charity. It has since become one of the finest regional music festivals in the nation, with a dedicated fan base eager to ‘get their strut on’ every Memorial Day weekend.

This week, we had the opportunity to sit down with Johnny Buck, the executive director and co-founder of Rooster Walk, to discuss the upcoming Rooster Walk 14. The festival began in 2009 as a tribute to late high school friends Edwin Penn ('the rooster') and Walker Shank. From its inception, the festival has focused on supporting a charity that grants college scholarships to deserving seniors at Martinsville High School and provides instruments and funding to enhance local school band programs.

The North Mississippi Allstars, an internationally touring blues band known for its energetically rollicking shows, top the third and final list of bands joining the 14th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival lineup. The NMAs, making their RW debut, have been nominated for four Grammys over a 25-year career that has produced 12 albums and countless sold-out shows. Big Something will also join the RW14 lineup. The North Carolina-based jam band has played nearly half a dozen Rooster Walks over the years.

Emmylou Harris, a 2018 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner and member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, will headline the 14th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival with her band. Celebrated guitarist Cory Wong, a rising star on the international music scene, will also top the band lineup.

The Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival is excited to unveil the first lineup of bands for its 14th annual event, set to take place from May 23-26, 2024, at the picturesque Pop’s Farm in Martinsville, Va. Topping the list is the highly anticipated and remarkable reunion of the Broke Mountain Bluegrass Band, performing their first East Coast set in nearly two decades.

Internationally touring purveyors of psychedelic funk, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, top a list of 19 bands added to the 13th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival lineup, festival organizers announced today. These additions finalize the band lineup for the multi-genre, family-friendly festival which will take place May 25-28, 2023 at Pop’s Farm in Martinsville, Va.

Critically acclaimed soul stars St. Paul & The Broken Bones top a list of eight bands added to the 13th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival lineup, festival organizers announced today. The multi-genre, family-friendly festival will take place May 25-28, 2023 at Pop’s Farm in Martinsville, Va.

Chart-topping, progressive jamgrass rockers Greensky Bluegrass will headline the 13th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival this May at Pop’s Farm in Martinsville, Va., festival organizers announced today.

The first band announcements of the Rooster Walk 12 lineup are here, just in time for tickets going on sale tomorrow (Tuesday) at noon EST. Legendary rock band Little Feat will perform the entirety of their 'Waiting for Columbus' album at Rooster Walk this year! Tab Benoit will sling smoking New Orleans blues, while Andy Frasco & The U.N., and Sammy Rae & The Friends, will bring the party.

Archived news