October 11, 2022

By Amber Roldan

From live music to fried food, Columbia’s Roots N Blues festival kicked off with a bang on Friday at Stephens Lake Park.

The Roots N Blues festival has brought live music to the city of Columbia since 2007. What originated as a 150th anniversary event for Boone County National Bank quickly became a fan favorite and turned into the largest music festival in mid-Missouri. This year, WILCO, Jon Batiste and Bleachers made their way to Columbia to headline the 2022 festival. On Friday, gates opened at 4 p.m. with the first performance beginning at 4:30.

The festival grounds had two stages, in addition to several vendors, sponsored lounges and even a ferris wheel. From metal lawn decor to bright clothing or palm and tarot card readings, fans had plenty of booths to peruse between performances.

The MU Health Care Stage was located closest to the gates, and the EquipmentShare Stage was on the farther side of the festival grounds. Attendees brought lawn chairs and blankets to set up in front of each stage. While some of Friday night’s performances overlapped, the close proximity between each stage allowed fans to split their time between each set if they desired.

Missouri native and MU graduate Meredith Shaw kicked off the weekend as the festival’s first performer. Shaw paired her strong voice and powerful lyrics with a pink-fringed jacket that had “Shaw” embroidered on the back. Once her set concluded she made her way into the audience where she chatted and took photos with friends and fans.

Old-time Missouri stompgrass band The Kay Brothers took the EquipmentShare stage at 5:15 p.m. for the second performance of the evening. The Kay Brothers aspire to preserve traditional country blues in all of its fiddle and foot-stomping glory. Their performance Friday had audience members bouncing along to the upbeat performance.

Slightly overlapping The Kay Brothers’ performance, Jaime Wyatt took the MU Health Care Stage at 5:45 p.m. The singer, songwriter and guitarist kept the audience on their toes with a variety of her popular songs and personal stories. Wyatt has experienced a lot of life’s trials, and has turned her trauma into music. After battling a drug addiction and robbing her dealer, Wyatt spent eight months in jail. This experience inspired her 2017 album, “Felony Blues”. Before singing the album’s fourth track on Friday, Wyatt said the inspiration for the song “Wasco” stemmed from her experience with two inmates who exchanged letters after their release from prison. Although Wyatt admits she does not know the conclusion to this anecdote, both Wyatt and “Wasco” proved to be favorites Friday evening.

Hippo Campus followed Wyatt’s performance on the EquipmentShare stage. The Minneapolis-based group has gained traction with younger adults and teenagers since 2013. The band’s Roots N Blues performance is one stop on the group’s fall North American tour that began on Sept. 30. As the sun started to set behind the stage the audience enthusiastically sang and danced along to Hippo Campus’ hit songs.

Country music icon Tanya Tucker took the MU Health Care Stage at 7:15 p.m. where she sang several of her classics. Fans showed their admiration for Tucker’s music by wearing shirts that read “Tanya Mother Tucker.” Most of the crowd’s younger attendees stayed at the EquipmentShare stage, dancing along with Hippo Campus while the older festival goers and country music fans stayed at the MU Health Care Stage for Tucker’s performance.

Friday’s highly anticipated headliner, Wilco, finished the evening on a high note with their performance. Wilco’s energetic setlist featured both past hits and newer songs from their latest album: “Cruel Country”. As the festival wound down around 10 p.m., attendees began to venture home. Fans with weekend passes for all three days prepared for two more days of music, dancing and seemingly endless festivities.

Edited by Egan Ward | eward@themaneater.com
Copy edited by Jacob Richey