Overview Tucson Folk Festival is a three-day folk and roots music festival held every spring on the streets around Jácome Plaza in downtown Tucson, and it is free to attend. The volunteer-run nonprofit Tucson Kitchen Musicians Association produces it, and Art State Arizona co-presents it and runs production on site. The music runs from bluegrass and blues to mariachi and zydeco. The festival calls itself one of the longest-running free folk festivals in the country and the largest of its kind in Arizona. On site Friday night opens on the Plaza Stage with the finals of the Stefan George Memorial Songwriting Competition. On Saturday and Sunday the festival closes three city blocks for six outdoor stages: the Plaza headliner stage and the Wildflower family stage on Jácome Plaza, the North Church Stage for dancing and a contra dance, a stage at the Presidio San Agustín del Tucson Museum, and two smaller stages on Court Avenue and Telles Street. Chairs sit in front of every stage. Workshops and song circles meet under umbrellas nearby. The Elise Grecco Community Marketplace lines Church Avenue with artisans, food trucks and nonprofits, and a KidsZone sets up on the plaza. Audience Crowds come from across Tucson and up from Phoenix, and the festival counts visitors from Portland, Pennsylvania and France. Families spend the afternoon at the Wildflower Stage, where performers under 18 play the Roger Mikulas Young Artist Showcase. Many carry folding chairs from stage to stage, and players bring instruments to sit in on the song circles. Dogs are welcome. Talent and Influencers Headliners close each evening on the Plaza Stage. Past headliners include Tom Rush, Jerron Paxton with Dennis Lichtman, Cheryl Wheeler with Kenny White, Watkins Family Hour with Sean and Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek, Ray Wylie Hubbard, David Bromberg, Chris Hillman and Pokey LaFarge, and Tucson's own Orkesta Mendoza has headlined too. Most other acts are local and regional players who perform as volunteers, chosen by committee from several hundred applications. Past songwriting winners return to play Friday night. The next lineup is posted each March. Track record The first festival ran on two downtown stages. It now fills six, and admission has never been charged. When crowds could not gather during the pandemic, the festival went ahead as a free live broadcast, with a drive-in stage for cars. The Arizona Daily Star, KGUN 9, Tucson Weekly and KXCI have all covered it, and the national roots magazine No Depression has run a photo feature on it. Brand presence Sponsors present named parts of the festival. Pima County Attractions and Tourism has presented the Plaza Stage, and Rio Nuevo presents the family shows and the under-18 performers. Beer and spirits partners pour in three designated beverage areas, and alcohol sales pay for the free festival. Sponsor booths stand in the Church Avenue marketplace beside artisans and food trucks, with tent, table and chairs supplied. Emcees thank sponsors from every stage, and sponsor slides run on the festival broadcast.