Rain, rock and roll, and an electrifying weekend—Railbird Festival’s star filled lineup brought nothing but joy to Lexington, Kentucky.
Back for its fourth year, but only its second on the Red Mile Racetrack, Railbird brought a powerful two-day lineup to Lexington. Neither rain nor wind prevented great music from persevering.
Railbird started in 2019 and was originally held at Keenland race track in 2019 and 2021. After taking the year off in 2022 to rethink and replan the event. 2023 brought a new and improved Railbird with a new location, Red Mile Racetrack, and a new look for the festival.
Railbird Festival brought an impressive lineup of rock, Americana, pop, and indie-folk artists like Wynonna, Marcus King, Counting Crows, Noah Kahan, Dwight Yoakam, Lord Huron, Chris Stapleton, Hozier, and more to the 2024 event. The festival did an amazing job highlighting up-and-comers across three different stages. With on-and-off rain, that didn’t stop the 40,000+ fans per day from packing out the stages and rocking out.
As the gates opened on Saturday, concertgoers sprinted to the front of the main stage for a spot to wait for headliner Noah Kahan. The day started off strong with Brittney Spencer, the Americana singer-songwriter, whose lyrics rang out throughout the racetrack. Another of Saturday’s highlights was Kaitlin Butts, the Oklahoma country pop artist with an extravagant, vibrant stage presence and a skill for storytelling and showmanship.
As the day went on and the drizzles started to fall from the sky, Marcus King took the stage for a memorable display of astounding vocals and electrifying solos. Beginning with one of his best-known songs, “The Well”, King led the Railbird crowd through a wide-ranging, 13-song featuring numbers from throughout his discography in addition to two covers, “Honky Tonk Hell” by Gabe Lee and “You Were Always on My Mind”, a song first recorded by Brenda Lee and later popularized by Elvis and Willie Nelson among others.
On the Elkhorn stage, the legend Wynonna Judd, one of the most widely recognized and awarded women in country music history, showed off her famous stage presence on hit after hit, from “I Saw the Light” to “Only Love” to The Judds favorites like “Cry Myself to Sleep” and “Why Not Me”. At the end of her set, she brought out Marcus King to perform “No One Else on Earth”.
Wynonna w/ Marcus King – “No One Else on Earth – Railbird Music Festival 2024
[Video: Lyssa McConathy]
Counting Crows offered up a set full of throwbacks like “Mr. Jones” and “Mrs. Potter’s Lullaby” off their 1999 album, This Desert Life, in addition to a surprising and unforgettable cover of Taylor Swift‘s “the 1”.
The rain and the lights went down when headliner Noah Kahan took the stage. As fans roared with excitement, he wished the crowd a happy Pride Month before opening with one of his biggest hits, “Dial Drunk”. A few songs into his set, Kahan described Counting Crows singer Adam Duritz as a major inspiration for his music writing before bringing him out to perform “A Long December”. Continuing to play hit after hit, Kahan later welcomed Hozier to the stage to join in on “Northern Attitude”. Between the special guests and the debut of an unreleased song, Kahan’s set was the perfect way to end day one and keep spirits high going into day two.
Rain jackets and ponchos were in hand as people walked into the Red Mile for day two, but looming thunderstorms on the radar did not prevent fans from camping out all day and having an amazing time. The day once again started out strong with acts such as Kip Moore, Brent Cobb, and The Infamous Stringdusters. The first wave of nasty weather arrived during the Stringdusters’ set with a torrential downpour, but luckily that quickly relented and the sun shone through. Throughout the day, though, there were rain showers that sent some running for cover, but the majority of attendees braved the weather and mud and didn’t let it bring down their spirits.
Another of the Sunday highlights was Allison Russell, whose beautiful, spiritual performance brought a sense of peace to the crowd. With the rain falling again, Dwight Yoakam started his set a few minutes late, but was worth the wait. He played covers from The Carter Family, Elvis Presley, Queen, and Johnny Horton in addition to his own numbers.
Other honorable mentions of the day included Tanner Usrey, Red Clay Strays, Stephen Wilson Jr., Lord Huron, and Turnpike Troubadours, who all gave powerful performances that emphasized the level of musical excellence on the 2024 roster.
Elle King had one of the most electric sets of the evening. She brought an energy to the stage unlike any other performer and, at the end of a thrilling set, brought out her son to introduce him to the crowd.
Hozier took the stage as the second-to-last headliner. He started off strong with one of his hit songs, “Eat Your Young”, and delivered an emotional, heartfelt set. Right after playing “Cherry Wine”, He brought out Allison Russell to perform “Work Song”. Saving his best songs for the end of his set, he closed with “Nina Cried Power” and “Take Me To Church” before giving a lengthy speech about the importance of activism in music and draping a pride flag around his mic stand.
Chris Stapleton finally closed out the weekend at Railbird. A sea of fans dressed in Stapleton merch spread across the grounds before the Lexington native took the stage. With his wife Morgane Stapleton on vocals and tambourine, he started out with fan-favorite “White Horse” and set the mood for what was about to come—a passionate 90-minute set full of rock, country, and soul-cleansing vibes. A few songs into his set, he looked into the crowd and saw a kid holding up his high school diploma, which just so happened to be from the same high school Stapleton went to. He got the diploma in his hand and signed it before continuing to rock out.
View photos from Railbird Festival 2024 below via Avi Warren.
The post Railbird Festival Braves Wind & Rain To Pull Off Huge 2024 Gathering Ft. Wynonna, Noah Kahan, Hozier, More [Recap/Photos] appeared first on L4LM.
