Lancaster’s annual Roots & Blues Music Festival returns this weekend for the first time since 2019.

With more than 80 concerts scheduled in the city of Lancaster over three days, the festival which draws music fans from all over the United States will kick off this weekend with local and national acts.

This year’s festival marks the return of the major event in the city of Lancaster. Rich Ruoff, founder of the festival, canceled the 2020 festival to take care of his late wife as she battled cancer. A 2019 LNP Survey | LancasterOnline discovered that the festival had around $ 200,000 in unpaid invoices to artists and vendors. As reported by LNP | LancasterOnline earlier this month, Ruoff said he had paid off his debts and was ready to move on.

“This is the biggest and best calendar we’ve ever put together,” says Ruoff. “I booked a lot of better-known national artists, more than in the past.”

This year’s lineup includes rock, soul, R&B, blues, roots and bluegrass artists, among other genres. The full range is available here.

“It’s not just a small local music festival. It’s becoming a major festival, ”says Ruoff, adding that he expects around 8,000 people to attend Roots & Blues. Before the pandemic, the festival attracted around 8,000 to 10,000 visitors per year.

Here’s what you need to know before heading to Roots & Blues this weekend.

The basics

Lancaster Roots & Blues will debut on Friday October 15th at Tellus360 with rockabilly band Martini Brothers. The festival will run from Friday at 5 p.m. to Sunday October 17 at 8:45 p.m. with the duo Larkin Poe (direct descendants of Edgar Allan Poe) closing the festival.

A one-day general admission ticket costs $ 64, a two-day ticket costs $ 120, and a general admission weekend pass costs $ 170. Tickets can be purchased at home and printed at home or presented on a mobile device. Tickets purchased in 2020 will be honored for the 2021 festival.

The hub of the festival will be the Lancaster County Convention Center located in the Lancaster Marriott at 25 S. Queen Street in downtown Lancaster. Those who have purchased tickets should visit the convention center before the event to get wristbands, which will allow access to the seven festival venues.

Here’s a list of all the venues participating in Roots & Blues this weekend:

– The Village Nightclub, 205 N. Christian St., Lancaster

– Holiday Inn Lancaster, 26 E. Chestnut St., Lancaster

– Freedom Hall at the Lancaster County Convention Center, 25 S. Queen St., Lancaster

– Zoetropolis Stillhouse Cinema, 112 N. Water St., Lancaster

– Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster

– Trust Performing Arts Center, 37 N. Market St., Lancaster

– Elks Lodge, 219 N. Duke St., Lancaster

Lancaster Roots & Blues is a 21+ year old event.

COVID-19 protocols

All festival-goers must either present proof of full COVID-19 vaccination or provide proof of negative COVID-19 test results within 48 hours of the festival.

“This COVID spike was unforeseen and quite distressing, but we were able to manage it,” Ruoff said.

In an effort to streamline the process, Lancaster Roots & Blues will feature a COVID-19 rapid test provider called Curative. Ruoff says he came up with the idea for a bluegrass music festival in Colorado.

Curative will have a mobile site outside the Lancaster County Convention Center at the following times, without an appointment:

– Wednesday October 13: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

– Thursday October 14: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Another effort to streamline the COVID-19 registration process is to upload a photo of your vaccination card to Crowdpass, an app that acts as a “vaccine passport,” according to the Roots & Blues website. It’s not mandatory, but it helps event planners process spectators faster, the website says.

Ticket holders who cannot show proof of vaccination or proof of a negative COVID-19 test within 48 hours of the event will not be allowed to attend, Ruoff said.

Masks are not required for the event, although Zoetropolis Cinema Stillhouse will require festival-goers to wear a mask, Ruoff said.

What’s new?

The locations have changed a bit from previous years, says Ruoff. The former Roots & Blues establishments, Federal Taphouse and Chameleon Club, have closed during the pandemic.

The Trust Performing Arts Center has hosted some of the festival’s concerts in the past, although it wasn’t the last time it was a festival destination for a few years. This year, it will host 11 performances until Friday and Saturday.

This year Roots & Blues will have two stages at the newly renovated Holiday Inn in downtown Lancaster, one of which is called the Front Porch Stage.

“We’ve literally built a little stage – it looks like a porch on a cabin in the woods – and that’s where we’ll host the mostly acoustic performances,” says Ruoff. “He should have a good vibe.”

This year, the Roots & Blues Festival also features a revamped Art Expo at the Lancaster County Convention Center, which will feature several sellers of ready-to-buy artwork.

“We’re trying to marry not just the music, but the art scene in this area,” says Ruoff. “We believe this component of the festival will continue to grow year after year.”

Ruoff’s choices

Ruoff likes to say he’s passionate about music. After all, he’s been in the industry for over 30 years.

We asked Ruoff which shows he was most excited to see at Roots & Blues this weekend.

“Asking me for my favorite child is like asking who my favorite child is: I hate to answer them,” Ruoff laughs.

Blues singer Robert Finley, who performed at the Elks Lodge on Saturday at 8 p.m. and the Holiday Inn on Sunday at 5 p.m., was Ruoff’s first choice.

“I’m super excited to see him,” says Ruoff.

He also noted the soul-jazz group Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio as a favorite.

“They smoke so much,” Ruoff says. The band plays at the Holiday Inn at 10 p.m. Friday.

“And my old friend Joan Osborne is coming back,” says Ruoff. “I’m super excited for Joan.”

Osborne is a multi-faceted, Grammy-nominated artist who is best known for her song “One of Us”. She will perform at the Freedom Hall Main Stage on Saturday at 7:15 p.m.

For more information on Roots & Blues, visit lancasterrootsandblues.com.