Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival Announces Hiatus in 2026, Promises Grand Return in 2027

Organizers of the annual Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival, held in Franklin, Tenn., have announced that the festival will not take place in 2026. They promise a return in 2027 with "something bigger, something better, something brighter," according to an Instagram post shared on March 25.

The Instagram video announcement stated, "11 years of memories, of magic, of music…now something new is blooming." The video was captioned with, "New sights, new sounds, new surprises! This move will allow us to bring you the best festival experience. We can’t wait to see you next year!"

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No further details were provided regarding the reasons for skipping the 2026 festival or the specific plans for the 2027 event.

Kevin Griffin, frontman of Better Than Ezra, co-founded the festival alongside Brandt Wood and Michael Whelan. The Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival launched in 2015, with headliners including Cage The Elephant, Willie Nelson, and Wilco, all performing at The Park at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin. The 2016 festival featured performances from Beck, Jason Isbell, and Daryl Hall & John Oates. Since its inception, the festival has prioritized a blend of country, rock, folk, and Americana, featuring artists such as Chris Stapleton, Zach Bryan, Foo Fighters, and The Lumineers.

In 2015, Griffin told Billboard that he drew inspiration from New Orleans Jazz Fest when conceiving the Pilgrimage festival.

"Jazz Fest has huge tents on the main stages that look unlike any other festival. It has a very bucolic, rural look to it and we’re taking that idea,” Griffin said. “All the partners in Pilgrimage grew up in New Orleans going to Jazz Fest and having gone to a lot of festivals around the country and world I realized that model of a multi-genre day festival with a big emphasis on food and drinks and art really wasn’t done the way Jazz Fest does it. It hadn’t been done many places outside New Orleans. So that was really the emphasis behind Pilgrimage."

Last year’s festival included performances from Kings of Leon, John Mayer, Turnpike Troubadours, Better Than Ezra, American Aquarium, and Sam Barber.

Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival Announces Hiatus in 2026, Promises Grand Return in 2027

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