Kentucky
Eddie Montgomery, Blink-182, Phil Wickham and 28 more concerts coming to Kentucky
Kentucky State Fair guide. Here’s what to know.
The 2024 Kentucky State Fair runs from Aug. 15 to Aug. 25. Here’s what you need to know about ticket prices, location and more.
From free concerts at the 120th Kentucky State Fair and the ticketed Sky Soul Festival at Waterfront Park to covered outdoor seating at Iroquois Amphitheater, August is a great month for outdoor music in the Bluegrass State. Or, if you prefer not to sweat, plenty of acts are coming to indoor venues like the Kentucky Center, Paristown Hall, and Lexington’s Rupp Arena and Opera House.
Here are the major entertainment acts coming to Kentucky in August.
Kentucky State Fair’s Texas Roadhouse Concert Series
WHAT: Free concert included with the price of entry to the 120th Kentucky State Fair. Here is the 2024 Texas Roadhouse Concert Series lineup:
- Thursday, Aug. 15: Lonestar and Eddie Montgomery
- Friday, Aug. 16: The Sugarhill Gang Melle Mel & Scorpio (of Furious Five) with special guest Ying Yang Twins
- Saturday, Aug. 17: Stephen Pearcy of Ratt with special guest Quiet Riot
- Sunday, Aug. 18: The Oak Ridge Boys with special guests The Country Gold Tour including Leroy Van Dyke, Linda Davis, Jimmy Fortune, Rockland Road (which will perform the national anthem and “God Bless the USA.”)
- Monday, Aug. 19: CAIN with special guest Katy Nichole
- Tuesday, Aug. 20: Happy Together including The Turtles, The Cowsills, Badfinger, The Vogues, The Association, Jay and the Americans
- Wednesday, Aug. 21: Justin Moore with special guest Alex Miller
- Thursday, Aug. 22: Everclear with special guest Marcy Playground
- Friday, Aug. 23: 38 Special with special guest Exile
- Saturday, Aug. 24: Lauren Alaina with special guests Mackenzie Porter, Kelsey Hart
- Sunday, Aug. 25: (6 p.m. show): Tauren Wells with special guest Consumed By Fire
WHEN: All concerts, except Aug. 25, begin at 8 p.m. with gates opening at 6:30 p.m. and take place in Lot L adjacent to Kentucky Kingdom and Broadbent Arena. On Aug. 25, the concert area opens at 5:30 p.m. with the concert beginning at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Kentucky Exposition Center, 937 Phillips Lane in Louisville.
COST: Advance tickets are $9 plus fees online until Aug. 6. Tickets purchased Aug. 7-25 are $10 for admission and $10 for parking. Visit kystatefair.org/tickets for details.
WHAT: Join Phil Wickham and Brandon Lake on the second year of the Summer Worship Nights Tour! Live with special guest Hulvey
WHEN: Saturday, Aug. 3 at 7 p.m.
WHERE: KFC YUM Center, 1 Arena Plaza
COST: Tickets start at $25 at kfcyumcenter.com.
WHAT: A celebration of art, culture and community featuring Dru Hill, Doug E Fresh, Anthony Hamilton and KeKe Wyatt.
WHEN: Saturday, Aug. 10
WHERE: Waterfront Park Great Lawn, 129 River Raod
COST: Starting at $50 at skysoulfest.com
Here are more major concerts coming to Louisville in August:
Iroquois Amphitheater
1080 Amphitheater Road, iroquoisamphitheater.com
Kentucky Center Whitney Hall
501 W. Main St., kentuckyperformingarts.org
Old Forester’s Paristown Hall
724 Brent St., kentuckyperformingarts.org
Mercury Ballroom
611 S Fourth St., mercuryballroom.com
WFPK Waterfront Wednesday
Waterfront Park Big Four Lawn, 1001 River Road, lpm.org
And here are concerts happening elsewhere in the state:
The AMP at Logstill
225 Dee Head Road, New Haven, Kentucky, logstilldistillery.com
Greensky Bluegrass, Friday, Aug. 2
Lexington Opera House
401 W Short St, Lexington, Kentucky, centralbankcenter.com
Rupp Arena
430 West Vine St., Lexington, Kentucky, centralbankcenter.com
Reach features reporter Kirby Adams at kadams@courier-journal.com
Kentucky
Kentucky is poised to land either Donnie Freeman or Sebastian Rancik this weekend, per report
Jones posted on Twitter that “Kentucky will have (absent a major change) either Freeman or Rancik by tomorrow,” while also noting the Wildcats still need to add another shooter and another big to round out the roster.
One of the top targets is Donnie Freeman, a 6-foot-9, 205-pound sophomore forward transferring from Syracuse. Freeman arrived in Lexington on Tuesday night and began his visit on Wednesday before leaving without a commitment. While there was concern he could land at UConn, that visit has since been canceled, leaving Kentucky and St. John’s as the top teams.
Freeman averaged 16.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game last season, while adding nearly a block and a steal per contest. He shot 47.4% from the field but 30.2% from 3-point range across 23 games.
The other option is Sebastian Rancik, a 6-foot-11, 220-pound sophomore forward transferring from Colorado. Rancik visited Kentucky starting Wednesday through Thursday and brings a versatile skill set, averaging 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2 assists per game while shooting 33.1% from 3.
Either Freeman or Rancik would provide a significant boost at the power forward position for head coach Mark Pope. Kentucky has already added guards Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins in the portal.
Kentucky
Kentucky football spring game offers early look at Will Stein’s Cats
Kentucky football coach Will Stein reflects on new position
Will Stein was officially introduced to fans and media as the head coach for the Kentucky Wildcats, replacing Mark Stoops.
LEXINGTON — Kentucky football had its first spring game under new coach Will Stein at Kroger Field on Saturday.
The offense, in blue jerseys, had its moments. So too the defense, donning white uniforms.
Ultimately, the blue squad earned a 23-18 victory in a game called just after noon because of inclement weather.
Stein admitted he “got emotional” as he charged onto the field prior to kickoff.
“I know it wasn’t a real game, but when I ran on the field, I definitely — man, I felt it,” he said. “It was like a wave running over me. And very, very, just cool.”
While it doesn’t count in the standings, Stein walked away pleased.
“I think we got a lot of really good work,” he said. “That’s the goal of spring is to improve with fundamentals and technique, learn how to practice, learn what winning edges that we need throughout spring to go into summer and fall and prepare the team for play. And we came out of the scrimmage clean. There (were) no injuries, which to me, that’s the biggest win of the day. I could (not) care less about the score.
“If we come out clean, that’s good. The Wildcats won.”
New starting QB Kenny Minchey looked about as expected, with sharp passes evened out by moments of inconsistency. Martels Carter Jr., a defensive back who is lining up at running back this spring, scored a touchdown and had several nice runs.
And the defense forced multiple three-and-outs and also picked off one Minchey pass on a two-point conversion.
This story will be updated.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
Kentucky
Kentucky has reportedly moved on from top-10 transfer Paulius Murauskas

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