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Tag Archives: Carolina in the Fall


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The Kruger Brothers present ‘Carolina in the Fall’ music and food festival for 7th year on Sept. 22-23

I had the pleasure of being invited to this festival several years ago by the incomparable Kruger Brothers, who are MerleFest fan favorites for the uninitiated, and I fell in love with this festival. It’s mostly free, it’s intimate (I sat on the stage steps as Ricky Skaggs performed just a few feet away), it always has a great lineup (and this year is no exception) and it’s in a fantastic location (downtown Wilkesboro has a very Mayberry vibe). Trust me, you are going to want to add this festival to your fall music calendar!

From the good folks at Carolina in the Fall: Carolina in the Fall returns for our seventh festival in the Carolina West Community Commons in Downtown Wilkesboro, North Carolina, with our host band, The Kruger Brothers, for two days of great music, food, drink and community.

This year’s festival will be Sept. 22 and 23. Our lineup is headlined by Balsam Range, The Kruger Brothers, Woody Platt and Shannon Whitworth and John Cowan’s NewGrass Allstars. The lineup also includes Hank, Pattie & the Current, Alex Key, His & Hers, Presley Barker, Shay Martin Lovette, and returning international guests, Thurler-Mosimann Project.

We have made some significant changes to last years festival in an effort to simplify the festival experience and want to highlight those again. Here are the biggest changes to be aware of:

Carolina in the Fall is a mostly free festival. VIP tickets will be sold for reserved seating at the main stage. All seating behind the reserved and sponsor seating areas will be open and free to the public.

There will only be one stage this year. Managing four stages spread out across the downtown had become an overwhelming task and we wanted to bring the focus back to those artists who perform on our main stage each year. The Carolina Stage in the community commons is our one featured stage.

Music begins at 5 p.m. on Friday. After five years of watching our attendance, we’ve realized that most festival goers arrive after work on Friday. So, we’ve condensed our Friday lineup to begin when most folks can attend.

2023 Stage Schedule

Friday 

5:00 – 5:45 – Presley Barker

6:00 – 6:45 – Alex Key

7:00 – 8:15 – Balsam Range

8:45 – 10:00 – The Kruger Brothers

Saturday 

12:00 – 12:45 – Shay Martin Lovette

1:00 – 1:45 – His & Hers

2:00- 3:00 – Thurler-Mosimann Project

3:15 – 4:15 – Hank, Pattie & the Current

4:30 – 5:30 – John Cowan’s NewGrass AllStars

6:00 – 7:15 – Woody Platt & Shannon Whitworth

7:45 – 9:15 – The Kruger Brothers

Registration is also open for the 8th Annual Chad Lovette Memorial Trail Run at Cub Creek Park in Wilkesboro on Saturday, Sept. 23! Link to register below. Of course we will have our virtual option available for our friends and family who aren’t able to make it in person! We can’t wait to gather again with everyone to celebrate Chad and then head to Carolina In The Fall (Chad played at the inaugural festival). As always, all proceeds go to the American Cancer Society to contribute to the fight against cancer!

https://runsignup.com/…/ChadLovetteMemorialTrailRun5K10…


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Carolina in the Fall Music and Food Festival returns to Wilkesboro Sept. 23-24

I call it the mini-MerleFest. After a two-year hiatus due to the Covid pandemic, I’m excited to announce Carolina in the Fall Music and Food Festival, presented by Window World, is set to return on Sept. 23-24, 2022, to Wilkesboro.

Organizers say significant changes have been made for this year’s festival including a new presenting sponsor, Window World, which also sponsors MerleFest.

“We have been blessed with great local support for the festival from the very beginning and that tradition continues as Window World has taken over the role of the presenting sponsor for Carolina in the Fall”, said Dale Isom, festival organizer, on the event website. “We are very thankful for all of our sponsors over the years and their desire to provide excellent entertainment to our community”. 

Additionally, this year’s festival will be held entirely in the Carolina West Wireless Community Commons in Historic Downtown Wilkesboro. 

“Probably the biggest change to the festival is that it will be free to those that want to attend free”, Isom added. “We will sell a limited number of Reserved Seats to help fund the festival and the rest is free to the public”. 

The goal from the very beginning was to present a free festival, said Jens Kruger, of the festival’s host band, The Kruger Brothers, who call Wilkesboro home. “It just took us a while to figure out how to do it. We are excited to offer an amazing weekend of free music to our community and those that will visit Wilkesboro.”

The festival begins on Friday at 5 p.m. and Saturday’s festivities will begin at noon.

“We are very excited about the bands we have lined up for this year’s festival,” said Festival Director Michelle Isom on the website. “We have worked very hard to bring excellent talent to Wilkesboro just as we have in our previous years. As always, we focus on bringing bands from North Carolina as this festival is a celebration of our musical roots. We are thankful to have the Kruger Brothers back as our host band and this year they are bringing a very special surprise for our audiences”. 

For more information and the full lineup, visit www.carolinainthefall.org. 

Famous for an amazing selection of food trucks, Carolina in the Fall will be bringing some of western North Carolina’s best trucks to feed their audiences. The festival will also have a limited number of vendor tents. The festivities will include the Annual Chad Lovette Memorial Run to benefit the American Cancer Society. Festival beer and wine sales will be handled by the Wilkes Heritage Museum with all proceeds going to benefit the museum.

Carolina in the Fall Music and Food Festival is a production of Heart of Folk, LLC along with the Town of Wilkesboro and The Kruger Brothers.


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Kruger Brothers’ Carolina in the Fall festival hits its stride in year five

The Kruger Brothers own homegrown music festival, Carolina in the Fall Music & Food Festival, has been on the rise ever since it received IBMA’s Momentum Award and this year is no exception.

In addition to the Kruger Brothers, festival goers will have the chance to hear Balsam Range; Chatham County Line; The Black Lillies; EmiSunshine; Hawktail; Trout Steak Revival; Scott Mulvahill; Cicada Rhythm; The Contenders; The Honey Dewdrops; Baucom & Jones; Williamson Branch; Hank, Pattie & The Current; Zoe & Cloyd; Red Wine; Newberry & Verch; Presley Barker; Lateral Blue; Nikki Talley; Thurler-Mosimann Project; Carly Bannister, S. Grant Parker and Jac Thompson; The Burnett Sisters; Cane Mill Road; Back Porch Bluegrass Band; Shay Martin Lovette; Alex Key & The Locksmiths; and Bob and Roberta Kogut.

Check out the official press release below and learn more at www.carolinainthefall.org

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Sam Bush Band, Hank and Pattie Duo rock Cat’s Cradle

Sam Bush loves North Carolina. And gauging from the roar of the appreciative crowd of some 200 souls gathered at the Cat’s Cradle live music venue in downtown Carrboro on Saturday night, North Carolina loves Sam Bush and company, and in this particular instance, the Sam Bush Band.

“It don’t get no better than to play in North Carolina,” Bush said from the stage.

His fans agree. “As always, Sam and band were amazing,” commented Rick Henderson of Raleigh. “No two shows are the same, but they’re all terrific.” Continue reading →


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The Kruger Brothers’ Carolina in the Fall 2018 announces expanded lineup

This just in from the good folks over at Carolina in the Fall Music and Food Festival:

The fourth annual Carolina in the Fall Music and Food Festival set for Sept. 21-22, 2018, in downtown Wilkesboro, North Carolina, has expanded its powerful lineup of entertainment to include The Secret Sisters, Jim Lauderdale, Front Country and Humming House, among others. These artists will join festival hosts The Kruger Brothers and The Steel Wheels, The Roosevelts, Fireside Collective, The Contenders, Snyder Family Band, The Arcadian Wild, Nikki Talley and more than 100 other musicians, chefs, vintners and craft beer brewers from the region.

The complete lineup is available online at www.carolinainthefall.org.

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The Kruger Brothers to host third annual Carolina in the Fall Music and Food Festival on Sept. 22-23

The third annual Carolina In The Fall Music and Food Festival presented by Wilkes Communications Inc. and hosted by  The Kruger Brothers is set for Friday and Saturday, Sept. 22-23.

The festival continues its tradition of celebrating the heritage of western North Carolina through music, food and beverages. More than 100 musicians, chefs, vintners and craft beer brewers from the region will gather on Main Street in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, to engage audiences with the best of their craft, according to a release.

“We made a big change last year, the festival grounds were open to the public with no admission charge,” explains Dale Isom, festival organizer. “Folks enjoyed the food trucks and shopped at the vendor mall without having to purchase a wristband. This was a big success as many folks came down just to enjoy the food and the festival environment. We will continue this again this year and invite folks to come down and enjoy the street festival portion of Carolina in the Fall. Those wishing to take in the music will have to purchase a wristband to enter the music venues.”

Wilkes County’s own The Kruger Brothers will welcome some of North Carolina’s best folk/ roots music bands. They will be joined by some of the nation’s best bands from other regions that tip their hats to the rich musical history of Wilkes, the Heart of American Folk Music™. In addition to The Kruger Brothers, the festival line-up includes Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors, The Black Lillies, The Hunts, Terry Baucom’s Dukes of Drive, Darin and Brooke Aldridge, the Snyder Family Band, Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys, and many others. Continue reading →


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Second annual Kruger Brothers’ ‘Carolina in the Fall’ music and food festival features Infamous Stringdusters, The Steel Wheels on Sept. 23-24 in Wilkesboro, N.C.

MerleFest fans who make the annual trek to Wilkesboro, North Carolina, to hear their favorite bluegrass and Americana artists every April are in luck because they don’t have to wait until next spring to hear some great music thanks to the Kruger Brothers, hosts of Carolina in the Fall.

For the second year in a row, Heart of Folk LLC brings “New Carolina Music”  and a new (but not so new) music and food festival to the old Courthouse Square in historic downtown Wilkesboro featuring some of North Carolina’s best folk/ roots musicians. They will be joined by bands from other areas that tip their hats to the rich musical history of Wilkes, the heart of American Folk Music.

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