HOME - Arts in the Heart

Arts in the Heart- September 19-21, 2025

Festival is Open Friday 5pm – 9pm, Saturday 11am – 9pm, Sunday 11am – 6pm.

Welcome to the 44th Arts in the Heart of Augusta Festival!

Augusta, are you ready? I am so excited to have you here for a spectacular weekend, the one where our hometown stars light up the stages and artists from across the region and the U.S. bring their magic to our streets and 20 countries bring their cuisine.

We’re proud to be the catalyst, but we know none of this happens without you, our community and residents, our partners and small businesses, our mighty staff of four, our dynamic festival team and our incredible Arts Council Board. To all members of the Greater Augusta Arts Council, our year-round donors, and every single sponsor who views the arts as a wise investment: thank you. A festival this size takes WORK (all caps), and your belief fuels the sparkle.

This year’s festival is Powered by Amazon, honoring their intentional investment in our creative economy. Big love to the City of Augusta, Destination Augusta, the Augusta Marriott, and ALL our partners for helping craft one of the best weekends of the year.

As Executive Director of the Greater Augusta Arts Council, I’m thrilled to walk this festival journey with you. Grab your dancing shoes, your appetite, and your art-loving heart, let’s make it a movie, Augusta. Nobody does it like us!

Happy Festival Weekend!
Denise Tucker

PICK YOUR WEEKEND BADGES AT THESE LOCAL LOCATIONS:

Sacred Heart Cultural Center Gift Shop at 1301 Greene Street:
Mon-Fri 9a-5p
Destination Augusta at Augusta & Co at 1010 Broad Street:
Mon-Fri 9a-5p
Richmond County Tag Offices:
Location 1: 2816 Washington Road Suite #109, Augusta, GA 30909; 706-821-2391; Mon-Fri: 8:30am – 5pm, Sat-Sun: Closed
Location 2: 535 Telfair Street Suite #100, Augusta, GA 30901; 706-821-2391; Mon-Fri: 8:30am – 5pm, Sat-Sun: Closed
Ubora Coffee Shop in Columbia County:
Location 1: 1128 Jones Street, Augusta, GA 30901; 706-432-8571; Mon-Fri: 7am – 6pm, Sat: 9am – 5pm, Sun: 9am – 3pm
Location 2 in Evans: 116 North Belair Road, Evans, GA 30809; 706-426-8341; Mon-Fri: 6am – 4pm; Sat: 8am – 5pm; Sun: 8am – 3pm
Smoothie Groove in Aiken: 448 Fabian Drive, Aiken, SC 29803; 803-226-9024; Mon-Fri: 8am – 6pm, Sat: 10am – 6pm, Sunday: Closed

Badges are good for the entire weekend!

$15 in advance
$20 at the Gate
VIP Available online
Children 10 and under are FREE
2025 Festival Volunteers who sign up for a shift on Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday also get in free all weekend.

arts in the heart of augusta festival 2025

Arts in the Heart of Augusta will be rocking this Fall with Grammy winning band Soul Asylum on the Global Stage Saturday, Sept. 20th at 7:30pm on the Augusta Common. Soul Asylum are known for their raucous and emphatic combination of punk energy, guitar-fueled firepower, and songs that range from aggressive to heartfelt. They continue to be one of the most inspiring and hardworking bands in the rock scene, having broken through commercially with the double-platinum 1992 album Grave Dancers Union, which contained the Grammy-winning Billboard Hot 100 Top 5 hit “Runaway Train” and No. 1 Modern Rock smash “Somebody to Shove.” Their latest album, “Slowly But Shirley” includes frontman Dave Pirner, drummer Michael Bland, lead guitarist Ryan Smith, bassist Jeremy Tappero and was produced by Steve Jordan, drummer for the Rolling Stones.

Opening for Soul Asylum on Saturday night at 6pm will be Leon & the Peoples, an award-winning Reggae Soul band from NYC, led by internationally acclaimed performer, singer-songwriter, movie & TV actor Leon. Their latest album’s debut single “Love Is A Beautiful Thing” charted #3 on Billboard’s Hot Singles Sales.

The Jazz Stage will be located at 8^th Street Market Area Entrance to the Riverwalk and will feature the Pop and R&B Queen Niki Haris, former backup vocalist for Madonna who has performed with jazz greats like Stanley Turrentine, Red Holloway & Ray Charles. The popular Soul Suite Stage will be located inside the Augusta Marriott Hotel on the Riverwalk (a major sponsor of this year’s festival) and will feature viral sensation Comedian Kerwin Claiborne.

On the Community Stage, located at the Amphitheater on the river, Urban Guitar Legend Elliot Holden will be performing. Holden recently appeared in the Tyler Perry film “A Jazzman’s Blues”. The Family Stage will have lots of great family-friendly performances including Piccadilly Puppets from Atlanta.

Festival stages will be booked with remarkable talent all weekend long including dance, cultural, reggae, soul, spoken word, rock, pop, country, theatrical performances and more. Soul Asylum and Niki Haris are funded in part by a grant from Destination Augusta.

These are just a few of the amazing performers to hit our stages. Growing bigger every year, the festival has 150 juried Fine Arts and Crafts artists and five stages of entertainment with everything from hip hop to jazz to rock. The Global Stage also features a diverse selection of cultural music and dance. A festival favorite, the global food village, will tempt lovers of international food with 19 authentic food booths.

A large interactive Family Area is packed with children’s activities, street performers, public art, and our Young Artists Market. Artzilla and Nubag Artist Collectives return with local artists painting live all weekend. The Literary Lounge will feature Georgia authors and book signings.

Pets and coolers are not allowed in the Festival. Lawn chairs are welcomed. Arts in the Heart of Augusta is a rain or shine event.

This FESTIVAL is produced each year by the Greater Augusta Arts Council. Arts in the Heart of Augusta Festival is a rain or shine event. Updates regarding inclement weather will be posted to our home page and social media. Registered service animals only, no coolers.

**Entrance to the Festival grants the festival and the greater Augusta Arts Council permission to use photos and videos of festival patrons in promotions, reproductions and presentations representing the festival.