John Mellencamp performs during the 2022 Farm Aid concert in Raleigh, North Carolina. Farm Aid, a festival designed to raise awareness of small farming practices, comes to Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville in September.
SUBMITTED PHOTO | FARM AID
All across Johnson County and the rest of Indiana, fields of corn, soybeans and other crops stretch as far as the eye can see.
Agriculture is in the blood of Indiana residents, a cornerstone of communities and the economy for generations.
And this September, icons of rock and country music will come together in the Hoosier state to celebrate, support and spotlight the work that farmers do.
Farm Aid returns to Indiana this fall at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville on Sept. 23. The lineup is held up by the festival’s four stalwarts — founders Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young, as well as Dave Matthews. But the schedule is also studded with luminaries such as Margo Price, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, and the String Cheese Incident, in addition to up-and-coming artists.
Beyond the music, Farm Aid will shine a light on the work family farmers are doing to address climate change through regenerative, organic and sustainable farming practices, featuring these innovative climate champions on the Farm Aid stage and throughout the event.
“It’s a celebration of the people who grow good food, restore our soil and water, and strengthen our rural communities,” said Jennifer Fahy, director of communications for Farm Aid. “Willie would say every year, there’s still a need here, and these folks need us to advocate for them. We need to keep reminding people about the good work they do for all of us.”
Farm Aid had been an annual focus on the struggles and innovations of small farmers for nearly 40 years. The event was created in 1985 as a benefit concert.
Nelson, Young and Mellencamp — a Seymour native — were compelled to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to raise funds to keep farm families on the land.
“Family farmers have the solutions to some of our toughest challenges,” said Nelson, Farm Aid president and founder, in a statement. “As we face a changing climate, farmers in Indiana, across the Midwest and all over the country are farming in ways that create more resilient farms to build healthy soils and protect our water.”
Matthews joined the group’s board in 2001, and since then the four behemoths have driven the event forward. Held at venues in agriculturally important areas around the country, Farm Aid was held in Indiana twice before — at the Hoosier Dome in 1990, and at Ruoff Music Center, which was then called Deer Creek Music Center, in 2001 just weeks after the 9/11 attacks.
“We know that Ruoff is a beloved venue, that it gets great crowds who love music, and who also love farmers,” Fahy said. “It’s surrounded by farm fields, and it just feels good.”
But what started as a concert has blossomed into a day-long celebration of agriculture — particularly new practices employed by small farmers to combat challenges created by climate change.
“It was 2007 when we started to introduce a few other parts into our event, which moved it from being a concert focused solely on music to being a festival,” Fahy said.
Experts anticipate Indiana’s weather getting hotter and drier in the summer, and wetter in the winter and spring. In a state that is the eighth largest farming state in the nation, generating $31.2 billion annually, thinking about these issues is imperative, Fahy said.
According to the Indiana Department of Agriculture, Indiana is home to 56,649 farms with an average farm size of 264 acres. More than 94,000 farmers work in Indiana, and more than 80% of land in Indiana is devoted to farms, forests and woodland.
State farmers grow more than 30 major fruits and vegetables each year, including melons, pumpkins and mint.
At Farm Aid, concertgoers can explore the unique approaches some of those farmers are using inside the HOMEGROWN Village. The special area features hands-on activities engaging people with exhibits about soil, water, energy, food and farming.
“Festivalgoers can really dig in and get their hands dirty. They can learn how farmers are caring for soil and water; they can do a workshop on composting or cheese-making or beekeeping. They can listen to conversations between artists and farmers talking about some of the challenges and opportunties we have in agriculture,” she said. “We hope people leave the festival taking back something with them they can do at home or do on a regular way to support family farming.”
People can also hear farmers and artists inform and inspire on the FarmYard Stage and celebrate the know-how and diversity of cultures of agriculture in the HOMEGROWN Skills tent.
Many of those farmers will be from Indiana, and potentially from the Johnson County area, Fahy said.
“We’re really focused on who are the farmers we can introduce to Indiana and the community as examples who are really great examples for each of us,” she said.
Ticketholders not only get to learn about farming, but taste the bounty of its harvest as well. Through the HOMEGROWN concessions program, people can choose food from a diverse, fresh menu with ingredients that are produced by family farmers using ecological practices with a fair price paid to the farmers.
To complement the activities and food will be a full day of music, led by Nelson, Young, Mellencamp and Matthews (joined by longtime collaborator Tim Reynolds.) Fellow Farm Aid board member Price brings one of music’s most original and passionate voices to the stage.
Bob Weir & the Wolf Brothers, featuring the Wolf Pack, builds on Weir’s time in the Grateful Dead with expansive orchestral arrangements.
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats offer soulful blues and roots rock offset by Rateliff’s gravely vocals. Their sound is balanced by Allison Russell, whose silken voice belies passionate lyrics about the Black experience.
Other performers include Lukas Nelson, the String Cheese Incident and Particle Kid, with more to be announced soon.
Organizers are excited to return to Indiana again for the first time in 22 years, and look forward to sharing the vitality of the farming community with a new generation of festivalgoers.
“Coming to John Mellencamp’s home state, where he is beloved, is really excited. He loves this state, and it’s going to be a great thing, because everything together adds up to something special,” Fahy said. “It’s really exciting to go to a place to make new connections, reestablish old connections and see what’s happening.”
IF YOU GO
Farm Aid
What: An annual food and music festival celebrating family farmers, locally grown food and agriculture in general.
When: Sept. 23
Where: Ruoff Music Center, 12880 E. 146th St., Noblesville
Lineup: Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds), Margo Price, Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Lukas Nelson, Allison Russell, The String Cheese Incident and Particle Kid.
Other activities: The HOMEGROWN Village features hands-on activities engaging festivalgoers with exhibits about soil, water, energy, food and farming. Festivalgoers can hear farmers and artists inform and inspire on the FarmYard Stage and celebrate the know-how and diversity of cultures of agriculture in the HOMEGROWN Skills tent. To savor the taste of local agriculture, HOMEGROWN Concessions, which offer a diverse, fresh menu with ingredients that are produced by family farmers using ecological practices with a fair price paid to the farmers.
Tickets: Range from $75 to $315; on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday
Information: www.farmaid.org/tickets
