Organizers of the Bourbon & Beyond Festival announced that Sting will make his debut at this year’s festival in Louisville, KY., replacing Neil Young.

Danny Wimmer, Founder of Danny Wimmer Presents, shared: “While we will miss Neil Young at Bourbon this year, we’re excited to welcome a music legend, Sting, to the Bourbon & Beyond lineup. We’ve been trying to bring Sting to Bourbon for you since 2018 and it’s an incredible honor to have him join us for what will undoubtedly be our biggest and most unforgettable year ever.”

Young and his backing band Crazy Horse dropped off the roster for the sixth edition of Bourbon & Beyond last month when the veteran group paused their Love Earth tour following an undisclosed illness within their touring party. In a statement, Young said at the time that when a “couple of us got sick after Detroit’s Pine Knob, we had to stop. We are still not fully recovered, so sadly our great tour will have a big unplanned break.”

The former Police frontman and his new power rock trio, STING 3.0, will take the stage on Thursday night of the four-day fest, slated to take place on the Highland Festival Grounds at Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville from September 19-22. The trio — featuring guitarist Dominic Miller and drummer Chris Maas — will be joined that evening by Beck, Matchbox Twenty, Fleet Foxes, Maren Morris, Koe Wetzel, Lyle Lovett, the Wallflowers, Arlo Parks and many more.

In addition to Sting, Bourbon & Beyond 2024 will feature headlining performances from Zach Bryan, Dave Matthews Band, and Tyler Childers. Fleet Foxes, The War on Drugs, Black Pumas, Beck, The National, Matchbox 20, Maren Morris, Teddy Swims, Melissa Etheridge, The Beach Boys, My Morning Jacket, Sunny Day Real Estate, and Arlo Parks.

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