When Reba Nissen attended the first Ogden Music Festival in 2009 she fell in love with it. Until then, she’d been traveling eight hours to Colorado for a music festival every year. ”When I realized I could create that same sense of community and connection in my own town I was all in,” she said.

Nissen joined OFOAM (Ogden Friends of Acoustic Music) festival founder Michelle Tanner as co-director the next year and the two have been attracting thousands of festival goers from all over the Beehive state and beyond, annually, ever since.

“Every summer it’s like coming home,” Nissen said. Over the years she’s watched new friendships bloom, people fall in love and get engaged, kids grow up…at the “summer camp for adults” every year inside Ogden’s beautiful Fort Buenaventura.

OFOAM is thrilled to bring the 2021 Ogden Music Festival to end the summer festival season at Fort Buenaventura, this Labor Day weekend, September 3-5, and looks forward to welcoming fans back into the heart of Ogden safely—dedicated to the health and safety of the community, OFOAM will follow the guidelines and protocols set by The Weber-Morgan Health Department. For recent updates, visit their website.

TEN THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT OGDEN MUSIC FESTIVAL

• 1. 3 Days of Amazing Music
     Live music from award-winning traditional and contemporary Americana and bluegrass artists, and “a good dose of soul and mariachi”…this is a celebration of all music genres. OFOAM honors Ogden’s history of live music dating back to the early 1900s when the Porter’s and Waiter’s Club opened on 25th Street. This year, The McCrary Sisters, out of Nashville, are bringing their unique style of gospel. Additionally, more than a dozen seasoned local Utah artists are showcased as ‘tweeners’, performing short sets between mainstage acts.
  2. Sweet Deal
     $100 for a 3 day pass for 20 hours of amazing live music, over three days, with camping options…it’s an unmatched price compared to other festivals of its kind, thanks to funding from Weber County RAMP and other local organizations, foundations and business sponsors. Day passes on Friday and Saturday are $50, Sunday $25, and kids ages 16 and under are free!
  3. Inclusivity
     OFOAM honors the hispanic population that makes up 31+% of the Ogden community, and has always presented young artists, artists of color and women artists who are all too often underrepresented at other bluegrass and Americana music festivals. This year, they are excited to showcase Mariachi Aguilas de La Esperanza, children from the Esperanza School in West Valley.
  4. Beautiful Ogden Venue
     The historic Fort Buenaventura is one of the most beautiful outdoor venues in Ogden surrounded by trees with a river flowing through it, and is abundant with recreational activities including camping, trails, fishing, kayaking, disc golf—bring your blankets, chairs, and be ready to dance the day away among the trees and into the starry night sky, the main stage backed by towering Wasatch mountains.
  5. Campground Jams
     It’s rumoured that there is a tradition of late night campground jams, and campers get a backstage pass!
  6. Food Trucks, & Artist Vendors
     OFOAM has your beer and grub covered with some of the best local food trucks: Grounds for Coffee and Roosters Brewing, Lucky Slice Pizza, Charlie’s Rolling Bistro, Dakine Grindz Hawaiian BBQ, Scallywagon and Rachel’s Ice Cream. And bring extra dollars: between OFOAM and artist merch, and local artist vendors, it’s a fun shopping trip too.
  7. Kids Love It
     Kids are loved and celebrated at this festival, with plenty to keep them entertained: a Mariachi parade, Imagine Music Musical Petting Zoo, the new WILL & WAY (Weber Instrument Lending Library for Weber Acoustic Youth) program, and other music and outdoor-themed crafts and activities. And always, kids 16 and under are free!
  8. Community
     Ogden has a close and supportive arts community that warmly embraces visitors and new residents, probably because of its eclectic railroad town “outsider” roots. The result is an abundance of new friendships over the shared love of music in a uniquely OFOAM-made community.
  9. Volunteer Opportunities
     There are so many fun ways to volunteer and become an integral part of a community of music-loving friends, while earning free festival admission! You can check for available slots to volunteer this year at ofoam.org.
  10. Music Workshops
      A separate workshop stage features instrument and band workshops by mainstage artists throughout the festival!

This year’s line-up of  award winning artists continues OFOAM’s tradition of bringing the hottest names in the industry.

2021 ARTIST LINEUP

Friday, September 3

6:00 p.m. Wheelwright, southwestern pop/grunge from Arizona

7:30 p.m. The McCrary Sisters, unique gospel out of Nashville

9:15 p.m. Dustbowl Revival, large string and brass “Americana soul” ensemble from California

Saturday, September 4

12:10 p.m. Moriah & Friends, multi-instrumentalist from Salt Lake City, acoustic harmonies

1:30 p.m. Crying Uncle, bluegrass with “brotherly harmonies” and sharp instrumental skills

2:30 p.m. Mariachi Kids Parade

3:00 p.m. Mile Twelve, five piece, relevant bluegrass with traditional roots, new album “City on a Hill”

4:30 p.m. The Brothers Comatose, five piece string West Coast band with “rowdy, rock concert-like shows,” and unforgettable songwriting

6:15 p.m. The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, “cuts right through the noise of the world and speaks plainly to the soul” from the Smoky Mountains

8:00 p.m. Sierra Hull, album “Weighted Mind” won Best Folk Album at the 2017 Grammy Awards, upcoming new album “25 Trips”

9:45 p.m. Town Mountain, North Carolina, “mix of rock and honky tonk with a Springsteen sentimentality pushes boundaries of bluegrass” (Rolling Stone)

Sunday, September 5

12:00 p.m. The Proper Way, Ogden’s own “traditional bluegrass played in non-traditional ways”

1:30 p.m. Mo & Mo Friends

3:00 p.m. Mariachi Aguilas de La Esperanza, around 30 children from Esperanza School in West Valley and 20 youth graduates

4:30 p.m. Sierra Ferrell, “spellbinding voice and time-bending sound…as fantastically vagabond as the artist herself,” new upcoming debut album

6:00 p.m. Mile Twelve, “All five band members bring their own influences and observations into the music, resulting in a project that feels contemporary, thoughtfully crafted, and relevant.”

Read more about the artists and get more festival details.

OFOAM (Ogden Friends of Acoustic Music) is an all-volunteer 501-c-3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide and promote the community with live traditional and contemporary Americana music performances, and music education opportunities, with a focus on youth and underserved audiences. Learn more about OFOAM at ofoam.org.