Nashville residents and tourists alike know that live music is available 24/7 in music city. Such events as CMA and Bonnaroo bring in hordes of visitors to the area, but few weeks are as jam-packed as the Americana Music Association’s AMERICANAFEST–a week of sessions for people in the music industry as well as performances large and small across the city.
The Americana Music Organization was created to include a broad range of roots music under a big tent: Folk, bluegrass, indie, and more. The 25th annual event will be held September 9–13 at venues all over Nashville.
Actor/performer John C. Reilly has been announced as the emcee for the awards ceremony, held on September 10 at the Ryman Auditorium. Known in part for his role in the Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Reilly in 2025 “What’s Not to Love?,” a collection of Great American Songbook covers. The awards show is a separate ticketed event, but the show is usually broadcast live by WMOT (89.5) Roots Radio.
First-time attendees should be sure to download the AmericanaFest app, which allows one to add events to a personalized scheduled. As regular fans of the event know, the festival itself is a major cause of FOMO. With overlapping shows taking place across the city, advanced planning is crucial for maximizing the experience. With parking an issue in Music City, taking and Uber or Lyft is often preferable. Searching the lineup by venue can also help attendees to find multiple back-to-back acts at a single venue.
WMOT again hosts their day stage on Wednesday–Friday, moving this year to Riverside Revival in East Nashville.
While the font size on the event poster may appear to prioritize headliners, some of the best surprises can be discovered in the smaller print. As the event draws nearer, major acts continue to be added to the schedule. Special events will also pay tribute to the late Luke Bell and to the songs of the late Nanci Griffith.
Three levels of passes can still be purchased for the conference and/or festival events.