Overview DeKalb Corn Fest is a free three-day festival that fills downtown DeKalb, Illinois, at the end of August, and on the Saturday volunteers steam sweet corn and hand it out free; across the weekend the festival serves more than 70 tons of sweet corn. The rest of downtown carries a carnival, the Sound Stage for headline concerts, a Community Stage, a beer garden, Kid Fest, Craft Fest and more than 90 vendors, on Lincoln Highway between First and Fourth streets. DeKalb Corn Fest Inc., the not-for-profit that produces it, is run entirely by volunteers. On site The Chuck Siebrasse Corn Boil sets up at Fourth Street and Lincoln Highway on Saturday from 11 a.m. and serves until the corn runs out, first come, first served. The Sound Stage stands in the middle of Locust Street between Second and Third, with a free viewing area on the street and a paid premium section and beer garden in front of the stage; the beer garden is family-friendly, with children under 12 admitted alongside a parent. Carnival rides run on tickets or wristbands. The festival opens Friday afternoon and runs until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, closing Sunday evening. Talent and Influencers The Sound Stage has booked Joan Jett, Blue Oyster Cult, Survivor, Night Ranger, Travis Tritt, Lady Antebellum, Phil Vassar, Eddie Money and Jefferson Starship. In 2026 it carried the Pop 2000 Tour, with Chris Kirkpatrick of NSYNC, O-Town, Ryan Cabrera and LFO. Bands submit to play each year between September 15 and November 15. Track record The festival grew out of a free corn giveaway: in 1957 Del Monte began boiling freshly harvested sweet corn for the people of DeKalb at the start of the harvest. By 1960 it was the DeKalb Corn Boil, cooking about six tons a year, and in 1977 it became Corn Fest, adding music and vendor booths. The first stage stood in an alley beside the Egyptian Theatre. In 2009 the boil was renamed for Chuck Siebrasse, its chairman for 25 years. Brand presence Sponsors sit in named tiers, from a single presenting sponsor down through Elite, Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze to Friends of the Festival, and the 2026 list ran to dozens of local and national names. For the 2026 festival Meta held the presenting position, ComEd and T-Mobile Fiber were Elite sponsors and Budweiser was Diamond. Sponsor benefits include on-site signage, ads on the stage jumbotron and social media campaigns, with custom activations built on request.