Peacemaker Music & Arts Festival kicks off Friday in Fort Smith

Jason Isbell / Courtesy photo

Jason Isbell, Lucero, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Anders Osborne, Corey Smith, The Cate Brothers and more will perform on a stage just an hour from Fayetteville this weekend.

The artists are part of the lineup for the first ever Peacemaker Festival, set for Saturday, July 31 through Aug. 2 in downtown Fort Smith.

The inaugural festival was organized by AJ’s Oyster House owner Jeff Gosey and a handful of other locals who wanted to see a world class music event come together in downtown Fort Smith. It started with a Facebook status by Gosey more than a year ago asking simply, “Who wants to help start a new music festival?”

Gosey’s friends came together quickly to form a board and organize the event, and the result is one of the more promising lineups for a first-year festival we’ve seen in a long time.

The event will take place at Harry E. Kelley Park along the banks of the Arkansas River in Downtown Fort Smith.

Gates open at 4 p.m., and the music starts at 5 p.m. with local act Tyrannosaurus Chicken. Fayetteville legends The Cate Brothers, Memphis-based Americana act Lucero, and acclaimed Nashville songwriter Jason Isbell also highlight the Friday night lineup.

Isbell is kind of on top of the music world this week. His new album, Something More Than Free debuted this week atop the country, rock, indie and folk charts, and is currently the No. 4 album in the country. Not too shabby.

Saturday’s lineup is promising as well. Former Black Crowes frontman Chris Robinson and his new band, Chris Robinson Brotherhood will headline, along with well known songwriters Corey Smith and Anders Osbourne.

The full stage schedule for the three-day event is listed below.

Tickets range from $10-15 for a single-day pass to $25-30 for a three-day pass. For more information, visit peacemakerfest.com.

Peacemaker Fest 2015 Schedule

Friday, July 31st
Gates open at 4 p.m.
5 p.m. – Tyrannosaurus Chicken
5:50 p.m. – The Paul Benjaman Band w/ Jesse Aycock
7 p.m. – The Cate Brothers Band
8:20 p.m. – Lucero
10:00 p.m. – Jason Isbell

Saturday, Aug. 1
Gates open at 2 p.m.
3 p.m. – Luke Pruitt
3:50 p.m. – Isayah’s Allstars’ “Help On The Way”
5 p.m. – Brownout Presents Brown Sabbath
6:10 p.m. – Red Wanting Blue
7:20 p.m. – Anders Osborne
8:30 p.m. – Corey Smith
10 p.m. – Chris Robinson Brotherhood

Sunday, Aug 2nd
Gates open at 11 a.m.
12 p.m. – Shadygruve
1:10 p.m. – The Boxcars
2:30 p.m. – Sleepy Man

Promo video


This article is sponsored by First Security Bank. For more great stories of Arkansas food, travel, sports, music and more, visit onlyinark.com.