PREVIEW: FloydFest26 ~ Daydream
“There is so much ‘new’ for 2026, following 50+ new additions and patron-centric initiatives in 2025,” Calhoun said. “At the top of the list is ‘SHADE'."
One of the area’s most beloved summer events, FloydFest, returns Wednesday, July 22, for a five-day run.
Now in its third year at its forever home at FestivalPark in Check, FloydFest 26-Daydream boasts one of the best groups of headliners ever, as well as a more user-friendly experience.
Last year, FloydFest COO Sam Calhoun and his team tackled more than 50 site upgrades to enhance the festival experience: new walkways, an improved tram system (the FloydFest Express), and smarter layouts based on patron surveys and traffic flow studies. The new location, which is less secluded and only 30 minutes from Roanoke is part of Calhoun and his team’s plan to make FestivalPark a year-round destination for large concerts, weddings, disc golf championships, and retreats.
“There is so much ‘new’ for 2026, following 50+ new additions and patron-centric initiatives in 2025,” Calhoun said. “At the top of the list is ‘SHADE.’ In 2025, which was abnormally hot, we listened loud and clear to the appeals for more shade. To that end, we placed it at the top of the list for 2026, resulting in many new shade locations, most which are captured on our new Shade Locator Map.”
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Calhoun said that there will also be new-and-improved flat terrain for GA Glamp-Camp, a new robust programming of DJs at FloydFest’s Depot, elongated hours of mixed-beverage service at our Barn Bar, to new, thoughtful additions such as the Wind Phone at FloydFest’s Memorial Garden, and an even brought back an old favorite — Dr. Bronner’s Magic Foam Experience — which returns after a multi-year hiatus.
Calhoun said that it is very rare in the music industry, specifically the music festival industry, to receive a blank canvas on which to build their city anew.
“We were given that chance with FestivalPark, and — akin to our festival’s purposeful programming — there was laser-focused intention involved in the ‘why.’ Most notably, it was the promise to both park and camp all our patrons on one singular site (as opposed to multiple lots and campgrounds with our old site), eradicating the need for outside shuttles, and making the entire experience safer and more carefree for our patrons,” he said. “What’s more, we are not leasing this site, thanks to John McBroom, so we can work on the site year-round, adding more permanent infrastructure, onsite art, environmental protections, improved campgrounds, more yurts, more robust and outfitted stages and buildings, the list goes on.”
Calhoun was quick to note that it is truly the people who are the real headliners, and there is nothing quite like the FloydFest experience.
“No lip service; no sensationalism; no exaggeration,” he said. “The vibe, the community, the setting, the purposeful programming, the families, the lifetime attendees to brand-new patrons, the music, magic and mountains set FloydFest apart from any other music festival that our staff has worked or experienced, and we’re grateful to say that our patrons report the same.”
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Calhoun said that as a younger person, he tirelessly sought to define it — the FloydFest magic — only to come up empty handed; and then, he just kept being amazingly impressed yet again with another facet of the festival and its community, which was undefinably beautiful.
Calhoun said “Daydream” also features one of the top quartets of headliners that the festival has ever had.
“Tedeschi Trucks Band, a group we have eyed to play for more than a decade, only to have an annual Red Rocks play always conflicting with our dates, is finally available, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a group that better suits the tastes of the FloydFest family,” he said.
My Morning Jacket, who Calhoun said has topped patron requests for as long as he can remember, will also perform this year. He said the band was on our lineup the year we had to cancel, but the stars have aligned for them to be this year’s Saturday headliner. He added that there will be an extra special, unforgettable set; (wink, wink).
Another one of the most requested artists by festivalgoers, Lukas Nelson (Willie’s son), who enchanted audiences during his first appearance in 2018 at the former site, returns with fresh musical firepower.
Calhoun said headliner Stephen Wilson Jr., a former Golden Glove boxer and microbiologist from rural Indiana whose style blends rural storytelling with indie-rock grit, is a “do not miss act.”
“We’ve rarely seen an upward trajectory such as his, and I beg you to not only immerse yourself in his rare, one-of-a kind sound and talent, but also read up on his backstory,” he said.
Calhoun said that it is the FloydFest mission for patrons to leave with a new favorite band or artist that they’ve never heard of before…and Stephen Wilson Jr. just may be that guy.
The festival has served as a springboard for emerging artists and bands like the Carolina Chocolate Drops, who performed there in 2007; the Avett Brothers in 2008; Gary Clark Jr. in 2012; Brandi Carlise in 2013 and Tyler Childers in 2018 — all before their Grammy nominations and breakout tours.
MT Jones, The Dip, The Word (ft. Robert Randolph, John Medeski, and the North Mississippi Allstars), lespecial, Zion Marley, Johnny Mullenax, Brother Wallace, Cam Clark, Free Whenever, and Jacoozy are some of the artists that he highly recommends seeing.
There is still time to grab the last remaining tickets for Southwest Virginia’s epic, family-friendly summer vacation, complete with outdoor adventure activities, great food, unique shopping, children’s activities, craft libations, cool camping spots — the whole summer vacation package.
Single-Day GA Pair + Parking Bundles are available for each full day, Thursday to Sunday.
Click to www.floydfest.com for a direct link to tickets, FAQs, and more. Plus, stay tuned to Floyd Times for festival coverage.
