What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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2 WHAT'S UP! AUGUST 18-24, 2019 Roots Returns Music, food fest celebrates 10 years File photo The first Roots Masterclasses were hosted at Brightwater: A Center for the Study of Food in 2017, where an impromptu community-style barbecue broke out on the patio. The casual outdoor party is part of the schedule this year. FEATURE JOCELYN MURPHY NWA Democrat-Gazette I t was 10 years ago that a humble new festival rolled into Fayetteville with the moniker of "intimate urban music and food festival." A decade later, the Roots Festival has expanded to five nights of 100-plus music and culinary experiences across two cities and only continues to grow in prestige and influence with each passing year. But the festival manages to maintain its intimate feel by focusing on the community, co-founder Bryan Hembree says. "It's this notion that this is not just one footprint, one field where everyone has gathered all together in the same place. But there are multiple different things happening across Fayetteville and Northwest Arkansas that we still have that kind of community cohesion and gathering, it's just that people are all coming for a different slice," Hembree shares. "There's so much happening that that's the glue. It's not one singular experience, but it's a multitude of experiences that we're getting to the point that we're all sharing together." Those experiences range from the mainstage performances — which include a blend of returning fan favorites and new faces — to the VIP and community culinary events, to the free programming happening across the region. It really does feel like a 10-year-old festival where there's something for everyone, Hembree promises. The addition and expansion of free and low-cost programming, on both the music and culinary sides, aligns with organizers' goal of creating a festival for the community. And while the mainstages include some exciting collaborations and surprises, the Roots Festival continues to showcase the best of what Northwest Arkansas venues, chefs and musicians have to offer. With more than 100 events over the festival's five days, there's no way we could list them all here. But get a taste of Roots Festival's schedule below, and whether you're attending all, some or none of the festival, join us in taking pride in our region's creators establishing something so magical for music and food lovers. Mainstage Fayetteville Town Center Friday, Aug. 23 3:25 p.m. — Anthony DaCosta 4:50 p.m. — Joe Purdy with The Honey Dewdrops and Smokey & The Mirror 6:15 p.m. — Amy Helm 7:40 p.m. — The Cate Brothers 8:40 p.m. — The Crazy Chester Award 9:15 p.m. — Mavis Staples Saturday, Aug. 24 3 p.m. — Ana Egge 5 p.m. — Smokey & The Mirror and The Sentimentals: The Denmark Project 6:25 p.m. — Rhiannon Giddens & Fran- cisco Turrisi 8:05 p.m. — The Milk Carton Kids 9:45 p.m. — Hiss Golden Messenger FAQ Roots Festival WHEN — Aug. 21-25 WHERE — Venues across Fayetteville and Bentonville COST — Multi-day music passes sold out; various other passes and tickets are still available. Prices vary. INFO — therootsfest.org