‘A change of scenery.’ Bradenton Blues Festival is back with a new name and location
After the beloved Bradenton Blues Festival was canceled earlier this year, a replacement is coming — but not at the concert’s old spot on the Bradenton Riverwalk.
On Monday, Bradenton Blues Festival co-founder Paul Benjamin, who served as the concert’s artistic director since it began in 2012, revealed plans for a new event in Lakewood Ranch in December 2024.
Benjamin is partnering with Independent Jones, a local events and entertainment company, to produce the first-ever Lakewood Ranch Blues Festival at Waterside Park.
The change comes after nonprofit Realize Bradenton announced last month that it would no longer produce the annual Bradenton Blues Festival. The festival was a passion project of Realize Bradenton’s former executive director Johnette Isham, who died in 2023.
Blues Festival coming to Lakewood Ranch
“It was important to us to keep the legacy that was created by Johnette and Realize Bradenton alive,” Benjamin said in a news release. “After looking at a number of places, we decided that Lakewood Ranch was the best place to host the event, which will draw in blues fans from across the world.”
Morgan Bettes Angell, president of Independent Jones, said they hope to honor Isham’s memory with the new festival in a way that’s familiar to fans, “but with a change of scenery.”
“The blues are like coming home for me,” Bettes Angell said in the news release. “The Bradenton Blues Festival was the first festival I was a part of producing.”
In the years since, Bettes Angell and Independent Jones have become a staple in the local music scene, producing street festivals in Bradenton and Lakewood Ranch and booking talent for local farmers’ markets and community events.
“Now we’re excited to bring a world-class festival to Lakewood Ranch,” Bettes Angell said.
Lakewood Ranch Blues Festival details
Where will the new festival take place?
The inaugural Lakewood Ranch Blues Festival will happen at Waterside Park, an 8-acre island on the human-made Kingfisher Lake.
The park is part of Waterside Place, a new entertainment center in Lakewood Ranch home to restaurants and shopping.
What kind of music will the festival feature?
Organizers promise a continuation of the Bradenton Blue Festival tradition with a lineup of “nationally and internationally touring blues artists.”
Four performers have been announced so far:
St. Louis blues and soul singer Dylan Triplett
Mitch Woods and His Rocket 88s, a California-based rock ‘n’ roll and boogie band
Boston blues guitarist Monster Mike Welch
Kat Riggins, Miami-born international blues singer/songwriter
The rest of the lineup will be announced at a future date.
What else will the festival offer?
In addition to all-day music, festivalgoers can look forward to food and drink vendors, local craft merchants and interactive activities, organizers say.
How much are tickets?
Tickets will be $75 pre-sale or $90 the day of the concert, organizers say. A limited number of VIP tickets with special perks will also be available. Tickets will go on sale soon.
Details: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, December 7. Waterside Park at Waterside Place, 7301 Island Cove Terrace, Lakewood Ranch. $75 or $90.
