DC Blues Festival Music Festival Every year in September

Blues fans and musicians around DC celebrate the best in local and national blues at the annual DC Blues Festival hosted by the Carter Barron Amphitheater in Washington DC. On the first Saturday in September, the free DC Blues Festival attracts over 4,000 blues fans and musicians with some of the best headlining blues acts in the country.

Since 1989, the DC Blues Festival has featured free live blues performances, workshops for children and adults, and an “instrument petting zoo” for children to try their hand at jamming on pint-sized blues instruments. Past performers at the annual DC Blues Festival include living legends like Sista Monica Parker, Clarence “The Blues Man” Turner, and Sugar Ray & The Bluetones.

For amateur blues musicians, the DC Blues Festival offers workshops led by prominent blues artists like Mike Westcott and Nadine Rae. Guitar, vocal, harmonica, and ensemble workshops are available for both children and adults of all levels.

The DC Blues Festival is free but you’ll need a ticket to catch the special performances at the sponsored after party. Tickets to the DC Blues Festival After Party start at around $15 for DC Blues Society members to $17 for general admission at the door. After the last set, enjoy the scenery and historic Civil War forts at nearby Rock Creek Park.