Coping with COVID-19 and another season of severe weather, thousands of family farms may go under, Farm Aid warns.
Willie Nelson’s Farm Aid marks its 35th anniversary Sept. 26 with an online festival that will feature its most expansive and diverse artist lineup in years and a spotlight on the issues of sustainable agriculture, the pandemic, climate change and the struggle for racial justice.
With the organization’s guiding foursome of Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews leading the bill, the virtual Farm Aid 2020 On The Road also will feature: Black Pumas, Bonnie Raitt and Boz Scaggs, Brandi Carlile, Chris Stapleton, Edie Brickell with Charlie Sexton, Jack Johnson, Jamey Johnson, Jon Batiste, Kelsey Waldon, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, Margo Price, Nathaniel Rateliff, Particle Kid, The Record Company, Valerie June and The War And Treaty, with other artists to be added.
Against the backdrop of the pandemic, which has disproportionately affected communities of color, and amid another season of severe weather, driven by climate change, Farm Aid warns that thousands of family farms may go under. The sustainable agricultural methods of family farmers, meanwhile, are viewed as essential to addressing climate change.