The New Jersey Folk Festival is proud to showcase the arts and culture of New Jersey’s many cultural communities. Our festival features music and dance on our main stage and features demonstrations and discussions in our Culture and Heritage areas. Our festival also has a long history of showcasing folk music and singer songwriters whose work is speaks to social justice or New Jersey roots, which our New Directions in Folk program of events and artists continues today.
How Do We Choose Artists?
Our Directors, students, and festival team members research artists whose work speaks to our current festival themes. We often hear about artists from our research and local community networks. Our priority is to feature artists based in or connected to the cultural communities of New Jersey or the surrounding region. We do not often invite touring acts or artists working in popular music genres. We do often highlight artists whose work draws from under-represented musical, artistic, and cultural traditions and/or who have a significant connections to New Jersey communities.
If you are an artist who would like to be considered as part of our future festival programs, or if you are a member of the public who would like to suggest artists to us, please fill out our Online Artist Application Form. This is the preferred method of contacting our staff. Email messages sent to our festival directors’ personal emails or to our general email may not receive a response. Due to the volume of inquiries, please understand that we may not be in touch with you, but we will keep your application on file. If it aligns with our upcoming thematic programs or is a good fit for future events, we will contact you. Applications are rolling and are not necessarily oriented to the upcoming festival. We are glad you are interested in the festival! Thank you for applying.
