Farm Aid Returns in September, With Willie Nelson, Dave Matthews & Neil Young's Return From Hiatus

Neil Young's planned performance at Farm Aid is his first announced show since his tour with Crazy Horse announced a "big unplanned break" that includes a number of Canadian dates. - Billboard Canada

Farm Aid is returning to New York this year, and will be held Sept. 21 at Broadview Stage at Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs, New York.

This year’s lineup features performances from Farm Aid board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds). Also on the bill are Mavis Staples, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, Lukas Nelson with the Travelin’ McCourys, Charley Crockett, Joy Oladokun, Southern Avenue, Cassandra Lewis and Jesse Welles. Additional artists are yet to be announced.

This marks the third time Farm Aid has been held in New York (and the second time in Saratoga Springs). In 2007, Farm Aid was held at Randall’s Island, New York, followed by Saratoga Springs in 2013. Farm Aid will feature not only music, but also homegrown food and agrarian experiences.

“We’re energized to be back in New York, said Farm Aid president and founder Nelson in a statement. “The farmers here have always found ways to innovate and contribute to their communities, even as they deal with uncertainties, extreme weather and policies that favor corporations over people. Farmers need us to stand with them as they work to grow our future.”

Over more than 35 years, Farm Aid has raised nearly $80 million to aid programs that help farmers survive and thrive. Farm Aid also promotes the acceleration of the Good Food Movement and family farms as well as works to shift the dominant system of industrial agriculture. Nelson, Young and Mellencamp organized the inaugural Farm Aid concert in 1985 to raise awareness and funds to combat the loss of family farms. Matthews joined the Farm Aid board of directors in 2001, while Margo Price joined the board in 2021.

A release for the 2024 Farm Aid noted that according to the 2022 U.S. Department of Agriculture Census, New York state lost 3,000 of its 33,000 farms between 2017 and 2022, as farms across the U.S. decline due to rising production and labor costs, consolidation and abnormal weather patterns. New York State has nearly 3,600 dairy farms that produce 15.7 billion pounds of milk annually, making New York the country’s fifth largest dairy state.

Tickets for Farm Aid 2024 will go on sale Friday, July 26, at 10 a.m. ET at livenation.com.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.