ASHLAND, Ky. – After five years of concerts in West Virginia, Healing Appalachia is moving to Kentucky in 2025.
Healing Appalachia is the flagship production of Hope in the Hills, a West Virginia-based nonprofit organization operated by an all-volunteer board of directors and committed to combating the opioid crisis and supporting recovery across Appalachia.
What began as a small concert for 1,500 music fans at the West Virginia State Fairgrounds quickly turned into a gathering of nearly 20,000 kindred spirits from 42 states and three countries. Healing Appalachia is staffed by nearly 500 recovery volunteers, as well as local school bands who park cars, clean the grounds, and lead a march to start the fest. This community spirit has enabled Hope in the Hills to distribute more than $1 million to boots-on-the-ground nonprofits offering life-saving prevention, recovery, and wellness programming across Appalachia and beyond.
“Blind faith” tickets to the two-day Healing Appalachia festival went on sale, Tuesday, Feb. 4. For tickets, click below.
https://www.healingappalachia.org/.
Healing Appalachia co-founder and show producer Charlie Hatcher explains he originally envisioned the concert “like a Farm Aid that would move around Appalachia. Let’s not forget Appalachia is thirteen states, and we love Appalachia whether you’re from New York or Mississippi.”
Photo: Bill Fraley of Alabaster Boxer at Healing Appalachia 2024
After five good years in West Virginia, festival organizers looked to the hills along Kentucky’s Country Music Highway that birthed Loretta Lynn, Tom T. Hall, The Judds, Dwight Yoakam, Ralph Stanley, Chris Stapleton, Tyler Childers and dozens of other influential artists.
In 2025, Healing Appalachia will take place Friday and Saturday, Sept. 19-20, on a mountaintop near the Boyd County Fairgrounds in Ashland, Kentucky. The move was “a painful decision to have to make but it was necessary to grow this thing and to help create a more stable Appalachian region,” Hatcher said, and “more opportunities of giving on our end.”
“One of the things that makes this so hard,” Hatcher continued, “is because the State Fair CEO Kelly Collins and her staff were the best hosts a person could ask for.” Hatcher is glad the festival leaves with a great relationship with WV State Fair leadership and has an open door to return. But it was time to make good on that promise to move around the charitable concert.”.
“We are thrilled that the Healing Appalachia team is taking a chance on Boyd County, Kentucky for 2025! The mission behind the festival is so impactful for our region, and we are excited to show off what #teamkentucky support looks like from local entities all the way up to the state level!” Andrew Steele, Executive Director of Boyd County Tourism
Healing Appalachia, which occurs in September during National Recovery Month, spreads empathy, kindness, and action while celebrating addiction recovery. The festival solemnly honors the more than 100,000 people in the U.S. who died of overdose in 2024, and joyously celebrates the more than 20.9 million people in the U.S. in recovery from alcohol and/or substance use disorder.
Founded and hosted by Lawrence County, Kentucky native Tyler Childers, and his team at Whizzbang BAM, Healing Appalachia has created an economic impact of more than $5 million. Over the years, fans have come to watch national acts like Gov’t Mule, My Morning Jacket, Shooter Jennings, Sierra Ferrell, Lost Dog Street Band, 49 Winchester, Charles Wesley Godwin, Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit, Galactic, Trey Anastasio, Margo Price, Sierra Hull, and many more at the family-friendly festival.
“We’re a small, all-volunteer board. Every year we put out the call and music-loving folks from around Appalachia, around the country, and now around the world, come together to create this beautiful patchwork quilt festival,” said Dave Lavender, board president for Hope in the Hills. “Please come together with us to help us normalize sobriety, fuel recovery, erase stigmas, and band together in song to build resilient, empathetic communities of healing.”
Organizations and businesses that would like to sponsor or partner with Healing Appalachia email producer David Johnson at djohnson@healingappalachia.org.
Grab “blind faith” tickets and find out how to help, buy merch, donate, and—for recovery or wellness organizations making a positive impact on substance use disorder—apply for funds, all at https://healingappalachia.org/.
Keep up with Hope in the Hills and Healing Appalachia on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Tik-Tok.
