Best Blues & Soul Festivals 2026

The best-loved Blues & Soul festivals

How we rate this: we read attendee reports from public discussion and score each festival on value, music, access, safety and facilities. These are the blues & soul events with the warmest word of mouth. It is early, honest signal, not paid placement and not our own opinion.

1. 1AB Beach Music Festival · NC5/5

   “Oh my God, this is the best event you can do.”

2. 2Bentonia Blues Festival · MS4/5

   “The Bentonia Blues Festival was a great time last month”

3. 3Baton Rouge Blues Festival · LA4/5

   “The Blues Festival is a great event in April in downtown Baton Rouge that has a little something for everyone.”

The most talked-about Blues & Soul festivals

The blues & soul events generating the most public discussion in our records, and what makes each one land.

1. 1Baton Rouge Blues Festival · LA

   The Baton Rouge Blues Festival is one of the oldest free blues festivals in the United States, running since 1981 and now staged across downtown Baton Rouge around North Boulevard

2. 2Chicago Blues Festival · IL

   Billed as the largest free blues festival in the world, this event fills Chicago's Millennium Park with four days of live music across multiple stages, drawing top-tier blues talen

3. 3Blues on the Green · TX

   Blues on the Green is Austin's longest-running free outdoor concert series, held on summer evenings at Zilker Park, where tens of thousands of Austinites spread out on blankets for

4. 4Telluride Blues & Brews Festival · CO

   The Telluride Blues & Brews Festival is a three-day celebration in the box-canyon town of Telluride, Colorado, held in Town Park each September at the start of the mountains' golde

5. 5Briggs Farm Blues Festival · PA

   Billed as Pennsylvania's largest blues festival, this family-owned event has run every July since the late 1990s on a scenic working farm in Nescopeck.

The 2026 Blues & Soul scene by sound

How the 68 US blues & soul festivals split by sub-genre

Soul is the biggest strand, tagged on 6 of the 68 blues & soul festivals we track. Tap a sound to see only those festivals.

Blues & Soul festivals by month

When the 68 US blues & soul festivals happen across the year

Blues & Soul season peaks in July, with 12 festivals that month. Tap a month for the full calendar.

Where the Blues & Soul scene clusters

The states with the most blues & soul festivals

It clusters hardest in Mississippi (8 festivals), then California (7) and Pennsylvania (6). Tap a state for its full list.

This week in Blues & Soul

From the Froligo Desk: what the blues & soul scene is talking about right now.

Blues & Soul festivals 2026: quick answers

The questions people ask most, answered from our data

How many blues & soul festivals are there in the US?

We track 68 US blues & soul festivals, 47 of them live or upcoming for 2026.

When is blues & soul festival season?

It peaks in July, with 12 blues & soul festivals that month.

Where are the most blues & soul festivals?

Mississippi leads with 8, then California (7) and Pennsylvania (6).

What are the best blues & soul festivals for 2026?

By attendee sentiment, AB Beach Music Festival, Bentonia Blues Festival and Baton Rouge Blues Festival lead our read.

Stay up to date

Dates move, lineups shift, prices climb. Froligo Pulse is built to tell you the moment a festival you care about changes. For what the blues & soul scene is talking about this week, read the Froligo Desk.

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