 | This articlerelies excessively onreferences toprimary sources. Please improve this article by addingsecondary or tertiary sources. Find sources: "WE Fest" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(January 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| WE Fest | |
|---|---|
| Genre | country |
| Dates | first weekend in August |
| Locations | Soo Pass Ranch Detroit Lakes, Minnesota |
| Coordinates | 46°46′24″N95°52′14″W / 46.77333°N 95.87056°W /46.77333; -95.87056 |
| Years active | 1983-present |
| Founders | Jeff Krueger |
| Website | www |
WE Fest is a three-daycountry music festival that has been held each year on the first weekend in August at the Soo Pass Ranch inDetroit Lakes, Minnesota,United States. WE Fest is one of the largest country music festivals by attendance in the United States. In 2016, over 150,000 attended the three day event.[1] The next WE Fest is scheduled for August 1–3, 2024.
Ownership of WE Fest (Matt Mithun and Live Nation), has changed in recent years with updates often posted to the website.[2]
The festival was started by Jeff Krueger in August 1983 and was held on a stage that was down in a horse pasture. The top of the stage was built to look like a barn. there were approximately 9,000 people.
An established venue and festival grounds have been developed and on site camping is often an available option.
The WE Fest logo was created by John Roley in 1982 inBloomington, Minnesota, at Jeff Krueger's attic apartment on Old Shakopee Road. Jeff wanted to call the Festival The US Fest. That logo was actually Steve Wozniak's Festival in California. By suggestion from Roley, Krueger called the festival WE in '83 Festival, then More in '84 and Alive in '85. This is how the WE Fest became a project.
Alabama was the first band to perform at WE Fest. Since then, other country singers and bands have includedJason Aldean,Big & Rich,Brooks & Dunn,Kenny Chesney,Carrie Underwood,Eric Church,Florida Georgia Line,Rascal Flatts,Vince Gill,Merle Haggard,Faith Hill,Toby Keith,Jerry Lee Lewis,Roger Miller,Martina McBride,Tim McGraw,Nitty Gritty Dirt Band,Charley Pride, andKane Brown as well asGeorge Strait,Brett Eldredge,Taylor Swift,Blake Shelton,Tanya Tucker,Keith Urban,Tammy Wynette,Brad Paisley, andTrisha Yearwood.[citation needed]
August 2019
August 2018
August 2017
August 2016
August 2015
August 1983