The Downtown Jonesboro BBQ and Music Festival Announces 2024 Plans

The Jonesboro Advertising and Promotion Commission’s Downtown Jonesboro BBQ and Music festival announced plans for two nights of music.

Headlining Saturday September 28th on the RightFiber Stage it’s Stephen Pearcy of RATT.  Pearcy formed the band in 1982 and throughout RATT’s nearly four decades of success with Pearcy at its helm, they released 8 albums and played thousands of shows worldwide all the while selling over 20 million records. His list of hits include: Round and Round, Wanted Man, Lay it Down, Lack of Communication, Dance, Your In Love and many more.  Opening for Pearcy will be EXCITER, the KISS tribute band.

Headlining Friday night will be The Band Of Heathens, an American rock and roll band from Austin , Texas formed in 2005.  The bands self-titled studio album went to #1 on the American Music Associations’s  radio charts and was ranked 8th on the Americana Music Associations Top 100 Albums of the Americana Charts for 2008.  In July 2009 the band was showcased on the TV show Austin City Limits that showcased a set by both the Band Of Heathens and Elvis Costello during the Shows 35th Anniversary. Opening for The Band of Heathans willl be June&Giles.

In recent years the festival has seen Priscilla Block, Jameson Rodgers, Shane Profitt, Gin Blossoms, Queensryche, Morris Day and the Time, Blind Melon,Smash Mouth, FUEL, Scotty McCreery, Brett Michaels, Brothers Osborne, The Commodores, Lee Brice, 38 Special, Rick Springfield, Easton Corbin, Barrett Baber and Night Ranger perform in Downtown Jonesboro.

Festival chairman, Tim McCall said, “we are thrilled to bring these major artists to Downtown Jonesboro.  We have a full lineup of talented musicians for all of Northeast Arkansas to enjoy for FREE.  Our event has become a mainstay in the midsouth and continues to grow.”

The festival also hosts the First National Bank, Kansas City Barbecue Society-sanctioned Arkansas State Championship with over $13,000 in prize money.   The Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) is the largest BBQ organization in the world. Each year, the Grand Champion is invited to the American Royal and Jack Daniels World Championship.

Saturday will also include acts on the MolsonCoors Stage with Starroy, Further Down, Fallen Within, Flatland Funk Donors, and Smells Like NIRVANA, an American NIRVANA tribute band and also Kaden Trevathan, the the United Way NEA Sings competition winner.  Saturday’s activities include food and craft vendors and music throughout the day.    A Kansas City BBQ Judges class will also be held, August 24th at 10am to 2 PM at Abilities Unlimited, 2725 North Church St.

Vendor and KCB BBQ Contest applications can be found at facebook.com/downtownjonesborobbqfest  and www.Downtownjonesborobbq.com 

Press Release