BETHLEHEM, Pa. — ArtsQuest's Blast Furnace Blues Festival, a free celebration of blues, rock and soul music, returns to the SteelStacks campus this weekend.
The two-day festival will run 5-11 p.m. Friday, July 18, and 2-11 p.m. Sunday, July 19 on the SteelStacks campus in South Bethlehem.SteelStacks.org
Headlining the two-day festival, which will run 5-11 p.m. Friday, July 18, and 2-11 p.m. Sunday, July 19, will be Shemekia Copeland, who has been nominated for four Blues Music Awards and three Grammy Awards.
The performances will be outdoors on the Levitt Pavilion at SteelStacks and the Community stage on Town Square.
ArtsQuest started its Blast Furnace Blues festival in 2011 as an outdoor, end-of-summer event.
Two years later, it was put on hiatus, citing that it had underperformed because of the crowded summer concert season.
Over the next five years, ArtsQuest reshaped the festival, adding Grammy winners and well-known acts to headline.
It finally returned as an outdoor festival in 2019, when it also became a free event, but then went on hiatus because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Friday's schedule
BC Combo, a local blues band led by Bev Conklin that has performed since 1992, will open the festival on the Levitt Pavilion stage at 5 p.m.
Known for high-energy performances, the group has reached the finals of the International Blues Competition and continues to perform on the East Coast.
Alexis P. Suter Band, which performs at 6 p.m. on the Community stage, is known for albums such as "Be Love" and "Two Sides."
The six-member band blurs the edges of blues, rock and soul music led by Suter, who also is a three-time Blues Music Award nominee.
Expect to hear songs from their newest album, "Just Stay High," released this year.
Mato Nanji, Jax Hollow
Indigenous front man Mato Nanji, a member of the Yankton Sioux tribe of South Dakota, dedicates his music to his Indigenous youth.
Influenced by his late father Greg Zephier, a spiritual leader and musician, Mato formed Indigenous with his family, and they toured with B.B. King.
They will perform at 7:30 p.m. on the Levitt Pavilion stage.
Nashville’s Jax Hollow, who has opened for Melissa Etheridge and has released three albums, including 2024's "Come Up Kid," will perform at 9 p.m. at the Community stage.
She is known for fusing classic rock and Americana.
Saturday's schedule
Easton singer Sarah Ayers, who has won numerous Lehigh Valley Music Awards, including Best Female Vocalist and Best Singer-Songwriter, will performs with her band at 2 p.m. Saturday on the Community stage.
Dyer Davis, a singer and guitarist known for his southern blues rock, will perform at 3 p.m. at the Levitt Pavilion.
His album "Dog Bites Back" debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard Blues chart. He also was nominated for the Blues Blast Magazine's Best New Artist.
Davis's new album "Kiss The Ring" was released in May.
The Kelly Bell Band, a group that blends soul, blues, reggae and funk, is led by frontman Kelly Bell, a pro-wrestler and radio personality from Baltimore.
Bell and his group have sold more than 100,000 records and toured alongside Ziggy Marley and Maroon 5.
The group will perform at 4:15 on the Community Stage.
Indie rocker Zach Person recently released his second album, "Let's Get Loud" which was produced by Nashville-based rocker Tyler Bryant.
He will perform with his band at 5 p.m. at the Levitt Pavilion.
McKinley James will perform at 6 p.m. on the Community Stage.
His album "Working Class Blues" was recorded with just guitar and vocals and backed on drums by his father, Jason Smay, who has played with blues legends J.D. McPherson and Los Straitjackets.
Shemekia Copeland, Dylan Triplett
Headliner Copeland will perform songs from her newest album, "Done Come Too Far," when she takes the Levitt Pavilion stage at 7:30 p.m.
Dylan Triplett, 23, who began performing at 9 years old in St. Louis, Missouri, and won the 2023 Best Emerging Artist Album at the Blues Music Award, will perform on the Community Stage at 9 p.m.
Barbecue eats, ice cream
Food vendors scheduled to appear at this year's festival include Kutztown Pub and BBQ.
Menu items include pulled pork and brisket sandwiches and tacos, smoked chicken wings, and loaded barbecue tater tots.
On Friday, the specialty ice cream truck, Udder Bar, will also be on-site.
For information on the festival, visit the website.
