Winnetka Music Fest locks in celebrated artists for 10th anniversary event in June

The sounds of summer will be here before you know it, and as a warmup, the Winnetka Music Festival has announced its 2026 musical acts.

For the event’s 10-year anniversary, renowned artists Father John Misty and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue will headline a two-day lineup for Friday-Saturday, June 19-20, on Lincoln Avenue in Winnetka.

The weekend, a production from SPACE Presents and Valslist Music, will also feature Grace Potter, Petey USA, Ben Kweller and a dozen other acts.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, Jan. 16.

The Winnetka Music Festival debuted as a two-day street-style program in 2017 and has continued to grow in attendance and grandeur ever since.

“I never imagined that what began as intimate house concerts in our living room 13 years ago would grow into such a revered community festival,” said Val Haller, a co-founder of the event, in a press release. “When we launched the Winnetka Music Festival in 2017, our goal was simple: showcase top emerging artists and bring ‘downtown quality’ music to the suburbs — and 10 years later, that same mission drives everything we do.”

Four years ago, Evanston-based SPACE joined Haller and company to help produce Winnetka Music Fest.

Haller said SPACE’s industry expertise has helped push the music festival to new heights.

“Our authentic and consistent approach attracts a discerning audience that comes back every year from all over the country,” she said. “Our partnership with SPACE over the past four years has helped elevate the festival’s reach and visibility.”

Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue are led by Troy Andrews (Trombone Shorty), a lifelong trombone and jazz musician who burst on the scene in 2010 with his album “Backatown.” With the band, he has performed at the White House and across the globe. Infusing jazz with rock, funk and hip-hop, Trombone Shorty has released five albums since 2010.

Joshua Michael Tillman is Father John Misty, who has been touring since the early 2000s and is a former member of the indie band Fleet Foxes (2008-2011). With a indie and folk rock vibe, Father John Misty has six solo albums, including the acclaimed “I Love You, Honeybear” (2015). His latest album, “Mahashmashana,” features the singles “I Guess Time Just Makes Fools of Us All,” and “Screamland.”

Winnetka Music Festival’s 18 artists will perform across four stages — two main stages, a chapel stage at 630 Lincoln Ave. and a family-friendly stage — on Lincoln, north of Elm Street. The festival also, per usual, will feature a children’s area and numerous vendors offering food and beverages.

Other scheduled performers are: Futurebirds, Jonah Kagen, Lauren Watkins, Lily Fitts, Lucero, Mo Lowda & the Humble, Bayonne, Gatlin, Magoo, Steph Strings, Supertaste, The Psycodelics and Tyler Ballgame

Festival history

The Winnetka Music Festival was held from 2017 to 2019 and then canceled in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2021, it was given a new name, Emerge Winnetka, and location, the Skokie Playfields.

In 2022, the concert returned to its Winnetka Music Festival moniker and welcomed its biggest names yet, Guster and The Record Company, for a one-day extravaganza.

And then the music fest went back to its two-day roots in 2023 and added more hit musical acts, headlined by The Wallflowers and Michael Franti and Spearhead. Band of Horses and Milky Chance led the way the following year.

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