BETHLEHEM, Pa. — ArtsQuest has announced a new round of opening acts for the Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza during this year’s Musikfest, adding country, alternative rock, hip-hop, indie pop and soul performers ahead of the festival’s headlining shows.
Musikfest runs July 31 through Aug. 9 in Bethlehem, with a preview night on July 30. Now in its 43rd year, the festival is the nation’s largest free music festival, featuring more than 400 performers and 500 performances across 16 stages, 15 of them free, and drawing more than 1 million visitors annually, according to ArtsQuest.
The newly announced openers join previously revealed acts St. Lucia, George Pippen and Puddles Pity Party. ArtsQuest said in a news release that the lineup represents “the diverse sounds that define Musikfest” and embodies “the festival tradition of introducing audiences to artists they may discover for the very first time.”
The opening-act schedule at the Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza includes:
- July 30 — Fabry Orihuela
- July 31 — Blake Proehl and Lilly Moss
- Aug. 2 — St. Lucia
- Aug. 3 — George Pippen
- Aug. 4 — Puddles Pity Party
- Aug. 5 — TheRealZellyZel and Küf Knotz & Christine Elise
- Aug. 6 — Chandler Walters and Gillian Smith
- Aug. 7 — Kassi Ashton and Southpaw
- Aug. 8 — The Click Five
- Aug. 9 — David Wimbish & The Collection and Ryley Tate
Headliners at the Wind Creek Steel Stage, with all shows beginning at 6 p.m. according to ArtsQuest, are scheduled as:
- July 30 — Grupo Niche (preview night)
- July 31 — Russell Dickerson
- Aug. 1 — John Mulaney, “Mister Whatever”
- Aug. 2 — Third Eye Blind
- Aug. 3 — Train
- Aug. 4 — “Weird Al” Yankovic, Bigger & Weirder 2026 Tour
- Aug. 5 — T.I. with special guest DaBaby
- Aug. 6 — Bailey Zimmerman
- Aug. 7 — Parker McCollum
- Aug. 8 — Yellowcard and Taking Back Sunday
- Aug. 9 — AJR
Among the newly announced openers, Lilly Moss is a Bethlehem native and childhood cancer survivor whose singles include “Death of Me” and “Somebody Should.” Blake Proehl, a former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver whose NFL career ended after a rookie-season injury, turned to music after a viral video of him singing for his grandmother and later appeared on “American Idol.”
TheRealZellyZel, a Pennsylvania rapper making his fourth Musikfest appearance, returned to performing after surviving a car accident in 2024 and is promoting his new album, “Departure.” Chandler Walters, a Nashville-based steel guitarist, co-wrote Post Malone and Morgan Wallen’s hit “I Had Some Help” and contributed six songs to Malone’s “F-1 Trillion” album.
Kassi Ashton, an MCA Nashville recording artist, received a 2025 ACM Award nomination for New Female Artist of the Year following her debut album, “Made From The Dirt.” The Click Five, the Boston-formed pop-rock band known for “Just The Girl” and “Jenny,” will perform as part of its “For Lovers Tour.”
Ryley Tate Wilson, an indie-pop singer-songwriter from Montgomery, Alabama, and a finalist on Season 23 of NBC’s “The Voice,” is a current Berklee College of Music student with a debut EP, “Hurry, I’m Gone,” due Sept. 24.
ArtsQuest will also host the Musikfest Music Industry Conference Aug. 2-4. ArtsQuest said the conference features “three days of learning, innovation and connection at the intersection of music education and the modern industry.”
General admission to Musikfest is free, though individual Wind Creek Steel Stage headliner shows are ticketed separately. Tickets and additional information are available on the Musikfest website.
