Bradenton Blues Festival Returns To LECOM Park Dec. 3-5

BRADENTON, FL — The Bradenton Blues Festival announced on social media Wednesday that it will return to LECOM Park in 2021. The festival will take place Dec. 3-5.

Organizers moved the 2020 festival to LECOM Park, the spring training home for the Pittsburgh Pirates, to allow for social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The ballpark is twice as large as the Riverwalk location where the annual event was held in previous year, according to a news release from Realize Bradenton, which produces the event. The number of tickets sold for the 2020 event were also limited.

With so much uncertainty about the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, bringing the festival back to LECOM Park makes it easy to plan for the event so far in advance, festival organizers said.

"We hope that by December the pandemic will have lessened to the degree that drastic social distancing measures will not be necessary. If they are, however, LECOM Park site offers that flexibility. Last year’s event proved that the festival could be held safely at the LECOM Park venue,” organizers commented on the festival’s Facebook page.

The Bradenton Blues Festival also announced its schedule for the 2021 event.

Friday, Dec. 3

Doug MacLeod, 4 to 5 p.m.

Johnny Rawls, 5:20 to 6:20 p.m.

Cece Teneal and Soul Kamotion, 6:40 to 7:45 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 4

Terrie Odabi, 11 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.

Jimmy Carpenter, 12:25 to 1:30 p.m.

James Armstrong, 1:50 to 2:55 p.m.

Dawn Tyler Watson, 4:40 to 5:55 p.m.

Bobby Rush, 6:15 to 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, Dec. 5

Ariella, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Tickets go on sale May 1. Proceeds from the festival support Realize Bradenton’s free youth, art and music programs, including our Blues in the Schools program.