AUSTIN BLUES FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES CIMAFUNK AND SOUL MAN SAM JOIN STACKED LINEUP FOR SECOND-ANNUAL EVENT ON APRIL 27-28, 2024
Presented by Antone’s and Waterloo Greenway, Austin Blues Festival offers something for everyone with diverse music offerings, vendors and more
Advance tickets for the two-day festival are on sale now
Antone’s Nightclub and Waterloo Greenway are proud to announce the additions of Cimafunk and special guest Soul Man Sam to the artist roster of the second-annual Austin Blues Festival, which returns to Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park for its second year on April 27-28, 2024 from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. nightly.
Early bird tickets for the festival are sold out, and advance tickets are on sale now at austinbluesfestival.com. Single-day passes start at $80, and two-day passes go for $130 and up. VIP passes are also available. A portion of festival proceeds will directly fund the Waterloo Greenway mission as a nonprofit organization working to bring the Austin community together in its urban ecosystem through education, outreach, and cultural events like this year-round.
Memphis soul veteran and local blues celebrity Soul Man Sam will perform on Saturday, April 27 with Jimmie Vaughan, followed by guitar legend and Kennedy Center honoree Buddy Guy (making one more Austin stop on his Damn Right Farewell tour). Leading into these knockout performances on Saturday will be electrifying sets by The Altons & Thee Sinseers, Dumpstaphunk, Blind Boys of Alabama with Bobby Rush, and Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas. Grammy-nominated, Afro-Cuban Rockstar on the rise Cimafunk joins the Sunday, April 28 schedule alongside more star-studded performances by Brittany Howard, Robert Glasper, Big Freedia, The James Hunter Six, and Robert Finley. New Orleans’ only all-female brass band, The Original Pinettes Brass Band, will be gracing fest grounds on both days of the festival.
The Austin Music Awards “Best Music Festival” nominee is returning with an expansion from one to two full days of world-class talent for music lovers, by music lovers. Featuring one stage to ensure no overlap (so fans can catch every act they want to see), Austin Blues Festival aims to offer something for everyone by merging classic Blues sounds with fresh and adjacent interpretations of the artform that’s influenced so many others. The festival will also offer a variety of food options in addition to the Waterloo Park concessions, along with vendors like Big Henry’s vintage records pop-up, and more. All vendors, sponsors, and other programming elements will be announced in the coming months.
The origins of Austin Blues Festival date back twenty-five years to 1999, when Clifford Antone hosted the first-ever Antone’s Blues Festival at Waterloo Park as a way to showcase some of his favorite artists who were too large to play at his namesake downtown venue. The festival hosted the likes of Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, and Ray Charles during its three-year run. Now, more than two decades later, Antone’s and Waterloo Greenway have joined forces to bring blues back to an even better Waterloo Park with an incredible lineup of national talent performing at the 5,000-seat Moody Amphitheater. Last spring, Los Lobos, Booker T. Jones, and a slew of great acts heralded the return of the festival as a successful one-day event.
“It is very exciting to build on the success of last year and expand the Austin Blues Festival to two days at Waterloo Park,” said Will Bridges, Antone’s co-owner and operator. “The lineup is incredible and we’re proud to present such an amazing array of artists for Austin’s true music lovers and visitors alike to enjoy.”
To stay up to date with Austin Blues Festival, upcoming fest announcements, and more, please visit austinbluesfest.com and follow along on Instagram at @austinbluesfestival.
