Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival
The Park at Harlinsdale Farm
Sat, Sep 25, 2021 - 26, 2021 All day
Franklin’s Pilgrimage festival has had its ups and downs since its inaugural run in 2015 — traffic issues in 2017, getting rained out in 2018 and, as with pretty much all live entertainment, being canceled due to the pandemic in 2020. This year, the fest is back at the beautiful Park at Harlinsdale Farm with two very full days of music that appeals to a pretty broad audience on a family-friendly schedule. It’s worth noting a couple of differences this year: First off, the festival has a proof-of-vax/negative-test protocol in place, so be ready with your COVID-19 vaccination card or a negative test result time-stamped less than 48 hours from the start of the festival; either way, be sure to bring a mask if you’re planning to go into any of the indoor spaces. Second, there’s no ancillary stage in the walking horse arena this year, but there are more short sets sprinkled throughout both days in the Americana Music Triangle Experience tent. Saturday, headliners The Black Keys are set to play at 8:25 p.m., coming through on the heels of their Hill Country blues tribute record Delta Kream, possibly bringing along some of the Hill Country players who join them on the record. Among other evening sets to look forward to on Saturday are country phenom Maren Morris and pan-American roots ace Valerie June, but you won’t want to miss afternoon sets from soul-blues singer Robert Finley, top-notch songwriter Katie Pruitt, energetic rockers Low Cut Connie or Southern rock champs The Marcus King Band. Sunday has plenty of highlights on the early side too, like rising gospel quartet The Harlem Gospel Travelers and rising country ace Morgan Wade. Later in the afternoon, you can catch the danceable joyful noise of Tank and the Bangas, the chilled-out funk groove of Khruangbin, soulful songsmith Blessing Offor; as evening comes on, look out for outstanding country singer-songwriter Hailey Whitters, rockers Cage the Elephant and Texas psych-soul duo Black Pumas. Headliner Dave Matthews Band is a jazzy, jammy, folky group you either love dearly or wouldn’t touch with a 10-foot-pole; either way, it’ll likely work out well for you that their festival-closing set is scheduled for 6:30-8:30 p.m. Keep an eye on pilgrimagefestival.com or the fest’s app for the most up-to-date info. Sept. 25-26 at The Park at Harlinsdale Farm, 239 Franklin Road, Franklin STEPHEN TRAGESER



















