Tom Morello Announces Power to the People Festival
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- Tom Morello announced the "Power to the People" festival for Saturday, October 3, 2026, at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD, describing it as a "celebration of peace, justice, solidarity, music, and community action."
- The lineup spans Foo Fighters, Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen (billed as a "special guest"), Joan Baez, Brittany Howard, Dropkick Murphys, Jack Black (with Roman Morello, Revel Ian, Yoyoka Soma, and Hugo Weiss), Serj Tankian, Cypress Hill, Killer Mike, Grandson, Taylor Momsen, Matt Cameron, the Linda Lindas, and Morello himself, plus artwork and a DJ set by Shepard Fairey.
- Morello revealed the festival onstage at Washington D.C.'s Nationals Park on Wednesday night, mid-tour with Bruce Springsteen; pre-sale opens Friday, May 29 at 10AM ET, with general on-sale Saturday, May 30 at 10AM ET.
- The festival's Freedom Village will host nonprofits, advocacy groups, and community partners focused on civic engagement, grassroots organizing, education, mutual aid, and social impact initiatives.
- VoteRiders and HeadCount are named beneficiaries: a portion of all ticket sales plus 100% of net VIP proceeds go to the voter-ID and voter-registration organizations, with HeadCount on site to register fans during the event.
- Morello framed the event as being "about freedom, justice, equality and rock and roll" and "the power everyday human beings have when they come together through music, art, community, and action," with additional participating organizations and special guests to be announced in coming weeks.
Why it matters: The festival is positioned as much as an organizing infrastructure as a concert: HeadCount will register voters on-site in a D.C.-area swing state region, while 100% of net VIP proceeds and a portion of all ticket sales flow to VoteRiders and HeadCount — turning a single October 2026 event into a concrete voter-access fundraising vehicle timed before midterm-season activity.
