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The 2025 edition of Alabaster CityFest will take place on the front lawn of Thompson High School on Saturday, June 7 and will feature a regional music lineup and a host of other attractions, including vendors food trucks and more. (Contributed)

By NOAH WORTHAM | Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Parmalee, Maddie and Tae, Five for Fighting and Eric Essix will headline this year’s installment of Alabaster CityFest which serves as the largest free music festival each year in Shelby County.

The 2025 edition of Alabaster CityFest will take place on the front lawn of Thompson High School on Saturday, June 7 and will feature a regional music lineup and a host of other attractions, including vendors, food trucks and more.

“The Arts Council is excited to announce this lineup for Alabaster CityFest,” said Adam Moseley, president of the Alabaster Arts Council. “It gives the community an opportunity to gather for some great food, family fun and incredible music.”

Alabaster CityFest is completely free for residents and visitors to attend and is made possible by sponsors such as Central State Bank, Coca-Cola and the city of Alabaster.

“The city is a proud sponsor of Alabaster CityFest,” said Jamie Cole, city council member in Alabaster’s Ward 5 and Arts Council vice president. “This is a terrific music lineup, one we are excited to share.”

Alabaster CityFest will open at 9 a.m. and local and regional music acts will continue throughout the afternoon, including country group Jesse Crow and the Unrest at 1 p.m., the rock outfit Dug featuring “Rockstar” Heninger at 2 p.m. and local jazz band Take 7 at 3 p.m.

Headliner Eric Essix will be the first to perform at 5 p.m. With an extensive discography of 28 full-length albums released over a period of more than 32 years, Essix has maintained a steady flow of music that pushes the boundaries of contemporary jazz. He has toured with his own band, Eric Essix Group, and with dozens of artists as a sideman, constantly refining his craft. A Birmingham native, gospel music and jazz have influenced Eric’s musical sensibilities since childhood and throughout his career after he grew up playing in quartet gospel groups for many years.

“It’s about time we had Eric Essix on our stage,” Cole said. “He’s a Birmingham legend and a jazz great, period.”

The next headliner to hit the stage will be Five for Fighting at 6 p.m. In the two decades since his first major single, “Superman (It’s Not Easy),” hit the stratosphere, John Ondrasik—the songwriter and performer known as the platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated, Five For Fighting—has both evolved and come back around full circle. Five For Fighting has released six studio LPs, including the platinum-certified “America Town” and “The Battle for Everything” and the top-10 charting “Two Lights,” along with an EP and live albums. Ondrasik has penned major hits, including the chart-topping “100 Years,” “The Riddle,” “Chances,” “World” and “Easy Tonight,” which have earned over one billion streams and place him as a top-10 Adult Contemporary artist.

“Piano rock is really exciting to me as a genre and something different for CityFest,” Cole said. “There aren’t many better at it than Five For Fighting.”

Slotted for 7:15 p.m., the award-winning duo Maddie and Tae will entertain the audience with a performance showcasing their unbreakable bond, honest songwriting and harmonic structure. Together as longtime friends and collaborators, Maddie Font and Taylor Kerr have been named one of Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame’s “I Wish I Wrote That Song” award winners, and won Song of the Year in the Nashville Scene’s Country Critics Poll for “Girl in a Country Song.” Touring internationally, they racked up gold, platinum and multiplatinum certifications. They have just announced their fourth studio album, Love & Light, due out Friday, May 2 on Mercury Nashville. The 16-track album features previously released songs “Free Like,” “Sad Girl Summer,” “Heart They Didn’t Break” and their latest tune, “Kissing Cowboys.”

“Maddie and Tae have gained such respect and maturity as songwriters and performers,” Cole said. “They headlined for us several years back, and we are excited to welcome them back.”

The most played group/band on country radio of 2024 will hit the stage at 9 p.m. as Parmalee delivers the climactic act of the festival. Parmalee is one of country music’s most successful acts with five No. 1 singles, multiple platinum records and more than 1 billion streams. Comprised of brothers Matt and Scott Thomas—lead vocals/guitar and drums, respectively—Cousin Barry Knox on bass and life-long friend Josh McSwain on guitar and keyboard, the North Carolina natives first topped the charts with “Carolina,” followed by their platinum certified No. 1 single with Blanco Brown, “Just the Way.” They followed with “Take My Name,” Billboard’s Most-Played Country Song of 2022. “Gonna Love” topped the country singles chart in December 2024. The band released their new single, “Cowgirl,” from their forthcoming album, Fell In Love With A Cowgirl, on April 4.

“Parmalee have become a staple of country radio and they have a string of hits to prove it,” Cole said. “We’re grateful to team up with 102.5 The Bull to bring them to our stage.”

In addition to the continuous music lineup, KidsFest will return this year featuring plenty of rides and activities for families all day long. The Cruise-In Car Show will also return for attendees to view and vendors and food trucks will be located on site throughout the duration of CityFest.

“This is a great opportunity for local businesses to be a part of a big event,” said Camille Herron, Arts Council vice president. “And we encourage those attending the event to support our sponsors; we couldn’t make this happen without them.”

Alabaster CityFest is made possible each year thanks to the dedication of the Alabaster Arts Council, an officially incorporated non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that is comprised of a group of local volunteers whose mission is to advance and enrich the quality of life in the Alabaster community through the arts and art education.

“We’re excited to bring a diverse lineup to Alabaster, a little something for everybody,” Cole said. “I was happy to hear from a friend of mine in the arts community that the lineup is ‘sophisticated’ musically; I agree. You’ll find something you like and might find a new favorite artist.”

Those interested in hearing more about Alabaster CityFest may visit Alabastercityfest.com for schedule updates and more information.

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