82nd National Folk Festival Performance Schedule and Map Unveiled

The National Folk Festival today shared two major announcements: its complete 2025 performance schedule and stage locations, as well as its presenting sponsor, Ergon/Alliant. For its 82nd edition, the National Folk Festival will feature more than 300 performers, demonstrators, and artisans on six stages and in the Mississippi Folklife Area and Festival Marketplace, all located throughout downtown Jackson from November 7-9, 2025.

“After nearly 18 months of work, we are tremendously pleased to share the full picture of world-class artists performing on stages across downtown Jackson,” said Blaine Waide, executive director of the National Council for the Traditional Arts, the nonprofit organization co-producing the festival with the City of Jackson. “Audiences will find the breadth of cultures and performers dizzying. What is a folk festival? It’s all this, and more—and it’s all free!”

The FREE, three-day celebration begins with sacred steel guitar from The Campbell Brothers at 6 p.m. on Friday, November 7, on the Visit Mississippi Stage. At 6:45 p.m., the Sonic Boom of the South will kick off the opening parade, leading festival attendees from the Visit Mississippi Stage to the Ergon/Alliant Stage. Everyone is invited to join in. Festival organizers will officially open the festival at 7:15 p.m. Three stages will be running on Friday night from 7:15-9:30 p.m.—the Ergon/Alliant Stage, the Visit Mississippi Stage, and the Welcome to Jackson Dance Pavilion.

Here is the full list of 82nd National Folk Festival venues:

• The Ergon/Alliant Stage, at the intersection of Capitol and State Streets, in front of the Old Capitol Museum.
• The Visit Mississippi Stage, on Capitol Street between Lamar and Farish Streets.
• The StateStreet Group Stage, a large, covered venue at the intersection of Yazoo and President Streets.
• The Welcome to Jackson Dance Pavilion, sponsored by the City of Jackson, in front of the “Gateway to Downtown” at Pearl and State Streets.
• The Community Foundation for Mississippi/W.K. Kellog Foundation Family Stage, in Smith Park at Amite and Congress Streets.
• The C Spire Foundation | Regions Bank Family Activities Area, also in Smith Park.
• The Mississippi Folklife Stage at Amite and State Streets, on the Old Capitol Museum Green.
• The City With Soul Mississippi Folklife Demonstration Area, located throughout the Old Capitol Museum Green.
• The LocaliQ/Clarion Ledger Festival Marketplace, in front of the Governor’s Mansion on Capitol Street.
• Street performance areas at Capitol and Congress Streets, and near the family area at Amite and West Streets.

Beginning at noon on Saturday, November 8, all six outdoor stages—plus street performance areas and the City With Soul Mississippi Folklife Demonstration Area—will provide non-stop entertainment. Saturday runs all day through 9:30 p.m., with some venues closing between 5 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday festival hours are noon through 6:00 p.m. Marketplace and food vendors open an hour before the festival starts each day.

To see the complete schedule and site map, please visit NationalFolkFestival.com/schedule. For up-to-date information, connect with the festival on Facebook (facebook.com/NFFJackson) and Instagram (instagram.com/NFFJackson).

The 82nd National Folk Festival, presented by Ergon/Alliant

Ergon, Inc., and Alliant Construction have signed on as presenting sponsor for the 82ndNational Folk Festival. Part of the Ergon family of companies, Alliant Construction is built on a strong foundation established 70 years ago in Jackson, Mississippi.

“Ergon is proud to support events like the National Folk Festival that promote community engagement and bring people together to celebrate cultural arts,” said Robert Lampton, member of the Board of Directors of Ergon, Inc. “This is a wonderful opportunity for the City of Jackson and the State of Mississippi to host artists from different regions while also showcasing our depth of talent that has had worldwide impact.”

The National Folk Festival is produced by the National Council for the Traditional Arts and the City of Jackson, in partnership with Visit Jackson, Jackson Redevelopment Authority, Downtown Jackson Partners, the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership, the Community Foundation for Mississippi, the Mississippi Arts Commission, the Mississippi Humanities Council, Visit Mississippi, and the National Park Service.

The National Folk Festival is sponsored in part by: Ergon/Alliant, StateStreet Group, Renasant Bank, C Spire Foundation, Regions Bank, W.K. Kellog Foundation, Phil Hardin Foundation, Hinds County Economic Development Agency, Southern Beverage, Thomas Consulting Group, Courthouse & Walthall Lofts, Cadence Bank, Trustmark Bank, Music Performance Trust Fund, South Arts, Rides by Redd, Hemphill Construction, Atmos Energy, Entergy Open Grant, Levitt Foundation, Maris, West & Baker, Pinnacle and Regions Buildings, Mississippi Department of Archives & History, Hope Credit Union, Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, Volunteer Mississippi, Gertrude C. Ford Foundation, United Way of the Capital Area, Mississippi NAACP State Conference, Hilton Jackson, Hal & Mal’s, Cathead Distillery, The Cooley Family Foundation, Malcolm & Kara White, Barbour Hurst, Fertile Ground, Capital Area Tourism Association, City of Flowood, Explore Ridgeland, Visit Vicksburg, Explore Louisiana, City of Vicksburg, Visit Meridian, The MAX, Mississippi Public Broadcasting, LocaliQ/Clarion Ledger, Fox40, iHeart Radio, and Amazon.