Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival, held on the brick streets of downtown Tyler since its inception, will have a new home.
Townsquare Media and the Park of East Texas have partnered to bring the Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival from downtown Tyler to a larger, more accessible location, organizers said. The Park of East Texas, located at 11315 State Hwy 64 in Tyler, is the new fairgrounds for the East Texas State Fair and makes for a great event venue, officials said.
“The Park of East Texas was designed for events like this,” said Cody Rosenbalm, president and CEO of The Park of East Texas and East Texas State Fair. “Hosting the Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival is a natural fit, and we’re thrilled to provide a new home for such a beloved tradition.”
For the past decade, the Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival has taken place in downtown Tyler. The new site offers increased capacity, on-site parking and improved safety measures, ensuring a more seamless and enjoyable experience for all attendees.
Ongoing road, sidewalk and square transformation in downtown Tyler has forced changes for local events. With construction expected to last until 2027, the festival and other community gatherings are being relocated.
“The inconvenience that we will all experience from January 2025 until kind of late 2027 is the piece where some of the stuff will be moved to different locations,” Tyler City Manager Ed Broussard said in a recent interview with the Tyler Morning Telegraph.
The Park of East Texas, a 300-acre campus under development in West Tyler, is set to host the 108th annual East Texas State Fair Sept. 20-29. Following that, on May 10, 2025, the venue will welcome the Red Dirt BBQ & Music Festival.
“There’s a lot of potential here,” said Brent Lyon, Market President of Townsquare Media. “This move allows our festival to continue expanding, following a decade of successful events in downtown Tyler. It also provides us with more room to enhance the guest experience, with opportunities that weren’t available before.”
While headliners for the upcoming festival have yet to be announced, previous years have featured performances by Texas legends like the Randy Rogers Band, Parker McCollum, Turnpike Troubadours, Aaron Watson, and Cody Johnson.
Organizers say fans can expect another exciting lineup of top-tier talent in 2025. In addition to the music, the festival brings together over 20 of the most celebrated barbecue joints in Texas for an day filled with food and entertainment.
“As both of our annual events continue to grow, we’re proud to host this event and look forward to working together as we continue to develop The Park of East Texas into a year-round event park,” Rosenbalm said.
