A view of a sign during the Labadie Rib Fest at Veterans Memorial Park in Bay City. (Kaytie Boomer | MLive.com) Kaytie Boomer | MLive.com
BAY CITY, MI – The 2025 Bay City Rib Festival will feature a band lineup more in tune with a highly-anticipated outdoor festival than a local event.
The annual festival, slated to take place from July 24-27 at Veterans Memorial Park in Bay City, will feature four nights of music, with three of them boasting popular performers of hard rock, classic rock and country. But it’ll also feature some of the delicious barbecue that people have come to expect.
“This event here, it’s a big event and we’re happy to have the support of our community,” said Jay Samborn, the festival’s organizer. “Extremely happy to have the support of our sponsors. We wouldn’t be able to do it without our sponsors.”
Rib festival hours stretch from 4 to 11 p.m. Thursday, July 24; noon to 11 p.m. Friday, July 25; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, July 26; and noon to 10 p.m. Sunday, July 27.
Daily festival passes are available for $10. Weekend festival passes are $30 for a four-day pass. Kids 12 and under get into the festival for free.
“We want to make sure that we can get as many kids and families out to the event as possible,” Samborn said. “I think this Saturday Family Day with free admission for the adults during (11 a.m. to 12 p.m.) are going to excite a lot more people this year.”
Musically, things open Thursday, July 24, with bands Jump, a Van Halen tribute, and Moving in Stereo, a tribute to The Cars. The concert gates will open at 5 p.m. for the show.
The Friday night show will feature 80s rock music star and Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach, with special guests Great White opening for him. Gates open at 5 p.m.
“We’ve got two really cool acts to get us going out of the gates on Thursday night,” Samborn said. “Sebastian Bach from Skid Row will be joining us this year. We’ve been trying to get Skid Row here for years, but even better than that, now we’ve got Sebastian Bach, the original voice of Skid Row, going to come in and take over.”
Blue Oyster Cult will play on Saturday night with special guests Nameless opening up. Gates open at 5 p.m.
“We always like to try to put a classic rock group into the lineup,” Samborn said. “We’ve been trying to get these guys for a couple years, so we’re happy that it lined up for us.”
The Sunday night show will be headlined by Trace Adkins. Family Tradition will open for him. Gates open at 4 p.m.
“If people remember, early in his career, he was here, I think, for the River Roar way back in the late 90s or early 2000s,” Samborn said. “But since then, he’s put together 33 Top 40 songs, 10 of them in the Top 10 and four reaching the top of the charts. So, pretty popular guy.”
This year’s barbecue vendors include three from Michigan and six from across the nation.
That Guy’s BBQ will be back once again along with Bad Wolf BBQ from Freeland, back for their second year. Aussom Aussie from Sydney, Australia, returns to Bay City for the festival. Also returning is Blazin’ Bronco BBQ of St. Lucie, Florida. Johnson’s BBQ of Chesapeake, Virginia, and Smokin Bob BBQ of Gladwin also return for another year.
New participants include Git R Smoked of Louisville, Kentucky, and Moonshine BBQ of McKee, Kentucky.
As per usual, the event will also feature a beer tent with local bands and entertainment. There will be a family entertainment stage with musical acts, dance groups, magic shows and other family-friendly entertainment.
The Little Piggy Market Place will feature more than 40 area craft vendors for those interested in shopping.
The kids’ zone will feature fun festivities such as pig racing, a petting zoo, an Oink Oink bubble party and more.
Samborn credited the community with playing a huge role and making sure the event goes off without a hitch.
“We have about 300 volunteers over the weekend that help us out, and that’s incredible,” Samborn said. “And that just shows the community support that we have. The people are recognizing that this is needed in our community.”
See photos from last year’s Rib Fest here.
For more information, find Labadie Rib Fest on Facebook or visit baycityribfest.com.
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