The annual Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival in Franklin, Tennessee will be skipping 2026 with plans for “something bigger, something better, something brighter” in 2027, according to an Instagram post from organizers.
The Instagram video says, “11 years of memories, of magic, of music… now something new is blooming.” The video post was captioned, “New sights, new sounds, new surprises! This move will allow us to bring you the best festival experience. We can’t wait to see you next year!”
Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival
Better Than Ezra frontman Kevin Griffin co-founded the even alongside Brandy Wood and Michael Whelan, which launched in 2015.
The event was headlined by Cage the Elephant, Willie Nelson, and Wilco who performed at the Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin.
In 2016, the event featured performances from Beck, Daryl Hall & John Oates, and Jason Isbell. Since then, Pilgrimage has prioritized a blend of rock, country, folk, and American sounds.
In 2015, Griffin told Billboard he took inspiration from the New Orleans Jazz Fest when the idea for Pilgrimage was birthed.
“Jazz Fest has huge tents on the main stages that look unlike any other festival. It has a very bucolic, rural look to it and we’re taking that idea. All the partners in Pilgrimage grew up in New Orleans going to Jazz Fest and having gone to a lot of festivals around the country and world I realized that model of a multi-genre day festival with a big emphasis on food and drinks and art really wasn’t done the way Jazz Fest does it. It hadn’t been done many places outside New Orleans. So that was really the emphasis behind Pilgrimage,” Griffin said.
Last year’s festival featured John Mayer, Kings of Leon, Better Than Ezra, Turnpike Troubadours, Sam Barber, and American Aquarium.
Franklin Mayor Ken Moore says, “We were sad to hear today that the Pilgrimage Music Festival has canceled their fall festival at the Park at Harlinsdale Farm.”
The only other time the event has been canceled was in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Moore says, “We’re always excited to welcome them to Franklin. It’s a popular event among our citizens, and a lot of people have traveled from pretty far spots away to see all the action.”
Sources:
WKRN News 2: Pilgrimage Festival on pause until 2027
The Tennessean: Pilgrimage music festival won’t happen in 2026. Here’s why
Yahoo: Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival to Skip 2026, Has plans for ‘Something Bigger’ in 2027
Featured Image Courtesy of Shannon McGee’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
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