Supporting Artists’ Health: O+ Festival Set For Kingston, New York

The B-52's Kate Pierson, Neko Case and more to perform at 14th annual festival promoting health and wellness.

The O+ Festival will return to Kingston, NY for the 14th annual event featuring three days of art, music and wellness.

Also See: Kingston, New York's First Legal Cannabis Shop Opens

What is the O+ Festival?

The O+ Festival started in Kingston, NY in 2010 and has grown into a national nonprofit working to help artists and musicians access health and wellness services, amplify the importance of arts, and build more resilient communities. Since many artists and musicians are without health insurance and have no way to pay for healthcare, the O+ Festival does its part to help out. Whether it be through music, art or donations, it's all about people helping people. Everybody giving what they can.

Neko Case Headlines 14th Annual O+ Festival in Kingston, NY

Singer-songwriter Neko Case (a member of the Canadian indie rock group the New Pornographers) will headline this year's event. Case' voice has been described by contemporaries and critics as a "flamethrower", "a powerhouse [which] seems like it might level buildings,"  "a 120-mph fastball," and a "vocal tornado". Critics also note her idiosyncratic, "cryptic," "imagistic" lyrics, and credit her as a significant figure in the early 21st-century American revival of the tenor guitar. Case's body of work has spanned and drawn on a range of traditions including country, folk, art rock, indie rock, and pop and is frequently described as defying or avoiding easy generic classification.

Kate Pierson of The B-52's Will Perform

Singer, lyricist, and founding member of the B-52's, Kate Pierson plays guitar, bass and various keyboard instruments. In the early years, as well as being a vocalist, Pierson was the main keyboard player and performed on a keyboard bass during live shows and on many of the band's recordings, taking on a role usually filled by a bass guitar player, which differentiated the band from their contemporaries. The B-52's had many his singles like "Rock Lobster", Love Shack" and "Roam".

Pierson's distinctive wide-ranging singing voice, remains a trademark of the B-52s' unique sound. Pierson has also collaborated with many other artists including the Ramones, Iggy Pop and R.E.M. Poerson releaed her first solo album Guitars and Microphones in 2015 and just releaed a new album Radios and Rainbows last month.

When Is the O+ Festival in Kingston?

The three day schedule featuring over 55 live music performances, dozens of visual and performance art activations, spoken word, a BlO+ck Party filled with vendors and a variety of health and wellness workshops open to the public takes place this weekend, Oct. 11 through 13th throughout the Kingston, NY area.

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Live music includes Neko Case, Kate Pierson, Hannah Cohen, Rhett Miller & the All Stars and so many more with main performances taking place at Kingston's Old Dutch Church. Get the full lineup and all the event details at the O+ Festival website.