Rooster Walk: The Festival People Trust

Of all the places you can spend Memorial Day weekend, why do roots music fans flock to a farm outside of Martinsville, Virginia? Because it’s home to a hidden gem of music festivals — Rooster Walk Music and Arts Festival.

Fifteen years in, Rooster Walk has grown from a small regional fest to a significant player in the crowded Virginia festival scene. It has made its reputation on being family-friendly (kids under 12 get in free), budget-friendly (four-day general admission is less than $200 and primitive tent camping is free) and music-freak-friendly (more on that soon). Plus, its rural location, known as Pop’s Farm, is easily accessible — just 55 miles from Roanoke, Virginia, and 50 miles from Greensboro, North Carolina.

Oh, about Pop’s Farm: One visit will have you hooked. Its gently rolling hills, towering shade trees, picturesque pond, ample parking, and grassy meadows make it the envy of other festivals. Just walking from your tent to the stages is a treat, and then you find two natural amphitheaters — the Lawn Stage and the Lake Stage — for your listening, lounging, and dancing pleasure. And good luck finding any other fest where you can rent pedal boats and float around behind the stage during a performance.

It’s about the music, man

Yes, the beautiful site is great, but what about the main reason for going to a festival? Rooster Walk delivers a reliable list of top jam and bluegrass bands, legacy acts, national and regional up-and-comers, and artist collaborations unlike anywhere else. RW innovations include a house band made up of veteran “artists at large” playing cover sets such as rock, funk, and Grateful Dead classics. House Band members commonly show up for full or partial guest spots with many other performers, to the surprise and delight of patrons.

Rooster Walk also pioneered collaborations between rising stars such as its “King and Strings” sets in 2018 and 2019, where rapidly rising guitar heroes Marcus King and Billy Strings played together and blew the roof off the place. Another treat is the annual presence of Yarn, Nashville rockers who play their own show before closing the festival with a tribute set dedicated to a timeless artist. Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Van Morrison and Guns N’ Roses are past examples, while Neil Young is on tap for this year.

Headliners for Rooster Walk 15 include contemporary bluegrass-folksters Trampled By Turtles, genre-busting psychedelic funk purveyors Lettuce, twang-rock guitar slinger Daniel Donato, and high-energy soul prankster Andy Frasco. More than 45 bands will perform on six stages: see the full lineup here.

Do it for the kids

Memorial Day is a holiday weekend and the start of summer, so you’re going to need entertainment for the family. Rooster Walk has the youngsters covered with a Kids Coop that includes a separate children’s stage with music and magic performers and a daily open mic for those budding RW headliners. Arts and crafts workshops are daily occurrences, and there’s a big hill with a slip-and-slide that’s available in good weather. There’s even a tradition of a kids’ and families’ parade around the site, most often led by festival musicians. For teens, there are parties and silent discos; ultimate frisbee, laser tag and badminton; and a dedicated lounge.

From the heart

“Appreciate the present” is a longtime RW theme inspired by the festival’s origins. Rooster Walk Inc. is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting music, arts, and education in Martinsville-Henry County. Its founders created the festival in memory of two dear childhood friends who died in their 20s: Edwin “the Rooster” Penn and Walker Shank. The theme of celebrating life runs through everything Rooster Walk does.

Proceeds from the festival go toward a college scholarship fund at Martinsville High School and to local and regional charities. There’s also a program that provides instruments to beginner musicians in entry-level school band programs in the city and county.

Elevated in the foothills

If that isn’t plenty, Rooster Walk offers guided hikes, bike rides, and fly-fishing. There’s also yoga every morning and vendors offering healing arts such as massage. Other vendors sell handcrafted visual art, jewelry, clothing, and a wide variety of specialty food.

For those who prefer a more luxurious festival experience, RW offers a VIP ticket that includes high-end camping, food, beer and cocktails, and a dedicated stage with VIP-only performances.

For everyone, the festival runs a Disney-style shuttle around the site at regular intervals, so patrons can dance until they drop and then ride back to their campsite.

Now that your holiday weekend is all planned, visit the RW ticket site to get in on the fun.

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[Sponsored article: Rooster Walk is a JamBase partner.]