Major Artist Announced as Free Performance at Minnesota State Fair

The Minnesota State Fair has announced their lineup of free shows and performances for the 2025 State Fair. As usual, the list is LONG, but there's one artist who will be performing that I'm actually quite surprised is doing a free show.

On the State Fair's website, they mention that there will be 900 shows and over 100 acts during the 12 days of the Great Minnesota Get-Together this year. That's nuts!

There are always all sorts of performances you can catch for free, from singers to salsa dancers to lumberjacks.

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Minnesota State Fair Grandstand Lineup (So Far)

As of writing this post, almost all of the grandstand shows have been announced, but not quite all of them just yet. Here's who we know so far:

Thursday, Aug. 21st - Old Dominion

Friday, Aug. 22nd - Meghan Trainor

Saturday, Aug. 23rd - The Current's Music On-a-Stick Show

Sunday, Aug. 24th - Melissa Etheridge and Indigo Girls

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Monday, Aug. 25th - Happy Together Tour

Tuesday, Aug. 26th - Def Leppard

Wednesday, Aug. 27th - Hank Williams Jr.

Thursday, Aug. 28th - Steve Miller Band

Friday, Aug. 29th - The Avett Brothers

Monday, Sept. 1st (2 shows) - The Rock and Roll Playhouse

All of those shows, obviously, cost money on top of the cost to get into the State Fair. But these free shows come with the price of your ticket.

Free Shows at the Minnesota State Fair 2025

If we go through all of the free shows, we'll be here all day, so let me get you the top acts that will be performing. You can find all of the free shows on the Minnesota State Fair's website.

August 21st and 22nd @ 8 PM - Deke Dickerson and The Whipersnappers - Schilling Amphitheater

August 21st and 22nd @ 8 PM - Sounds of Santana Starring Joe Cruz - Summit Stage at The Bazaar

August 23rd and 24th @ 8 PM - Jonah Marais (yes, the one from Stillwater!) - Schilling Amphitheater

August 23rd and 24th @ 8 PM - The Belfast Cowboys - Summit Stage at The Bazaar

August 23rd and 24th @ 8:30 PM - Arrested Development (the band, not the show) - Bandshell (by the food building)

August 25th and 26th @ 8 PM - Poppa Bear Norton - Schilling Amphitheater

August 25th and 26th @ 8 PM - Jaybee and The Routine - Summit Stage at The Bazaar

August 25th and 26th @ 8:30 PM - Los Lobos - Bandshell (by the food building)

August 27th and 28th @ 8 PM - Lady Midnight - Schilling Amphitheater

August 27th and 28th @ 8 PM - The Cdar Cultural Center Presents The Global Get-Together - Summit Stage at The Bazaar

August 27th and 28th @ 8:30 PM - Tayler Holder - Bandshell (by the food building)

August 29th and 30th @ 8 PM - First Avenue Goes to the Fair - Schilling Amphitheater

August 29th and 30th @ 8 PM - Malamanya - Summit Stage at The Bazaar

August 29th and 30th @ 8:30 PM - Karla Perez: Selena The Show - Bandshell (by the food building)

August 31st and Sept. 1st @ 7:30 PM - Ber - Bandshell (by the food building)

August 31st @ 8 PM - Joyann Parker - Schilling Amphitheater

August 31st @ 8 PM - Pam McNeill: Janis, Stevie, Dolly, and Me - Summit Stage at The Bazaar

And the one that I left out that surprised me as a free performer is Rachel Platten!

Rachel Platten Performing a Free Show at the Minnesota State Fair

I can't believe Rachel Platten is performing a free show! Sure, she's not a massive name like Taylor Swift or something, but I feel like plenty of people know about her. So for her to do a free show is crazy to me, but super cool.

She performed at the Vikings vs. Rams game shortly after the LA wildfires.

Rachel's performances will be on August 21st and 22nd, both starting at 8:30 PM at the Bandshell (which is by the food building).