File Photo by Eric Ayres This year’s Heritage Music BluesFest will take place Aug. 8-10 at Heritage Port in Wheeling, once again bringing three days of “Award-Winning Blues” to the Ohio Valley.

WHEELING — Music fans from near and far are preparing to descend on the Ohio Valley this weekend when Heritage Music BluesFest returns to Heritage Port.

The 2025 installment of the “Weekend of Award-Winning Blues” will take place Friday through Sunday, Aug. 8-10, along the riverfront in downtown Wheeling.

It may be hard for even the annual festival’s most dedicated, hardcore to believe — but Heritage Music BluesFest is approaching its silver anniversary. Removing the COVID year when no gatherings took place, Heritage Music BluesFest has been a highlight of the dog days of summer in the Friendly City for nearly a quarter of a century.

“This is the 24th year,” said the festival’s founder and producer Bruce Wheeler, who started BluesFest back in 2001.

A full slate of world-class live entertainment will once again fill Heritage Port with the sound of the blues. The schedule of artists includes live music from 5-11 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8; noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 9; and 1-9 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 10. Gates open one hour before the music begins each day.

For the night owls, there will also be “AfterJams” across Water Street at Waterfront Hall on Friday and Saturday nights after the music on the main stage concludes. Pittsburgh’s Jimmy Adler will host Friday night’s “AfterJam,” and regional favorites Billy the Kid & the Regulators will host Saturday night’s “AfterJam.”

Heritage Music BluesFest will have two stages set up at Heritage Port — the main stage featuring national and international acts, and the second stage with local and regional acts performing “tweener” sets between main stage artists.

As always, the array of artists include fan favorites as well as some new blood each day.

“I always try to keep it fresh,” Wheeler said. “One of the phrases I use — when putting together BluesFest, I try to present ‘all shades of blues.’ Whether it’s Chicago blues, rockin’ or mellow … I like to take the fans on a blues journey when they’re here.”

The fans should be primed and ready for what promises to be an electrifying assortment of artists making their Heritage Music BluesFest debuts this year. First-time artists to the event include a “blue-eyed soul bluesman” from Atlanta — Eddie 9V on Friday, Belgium-born and New Orleans-based blues-rock songstress Ghalia Volt and exciting “tweener” band Electric Mud on Saturday, and Grammy-nominated Chicago blues legend John Primer closing the weekend on Sunday night.

“I guess with Eddie 9V, Ghalia Volt and Electric Mud, we’ll be all charged up,” Wheeler said.

BluesFest veterans and returning favorites will also be cranking out the blues all weekend long on the main stage with a schedule that was just recently updated.

“I did have Popa Chubby as the closer on Friday, but he was in a car wreck and had recently had back surgery on top of that,” Wheeler said, noting that the closing slot on opening night will now be manned by Louisiana swamp bluesman Kenny Neal. “I’m really glad he was able to step up and do it.”

On Saturday, one of the highlighted returning artists will be Danielle Nichole, who first came to BluesFest in 2008 with her family band Trampled Under Food.

“They won the IBC (International Blues Challenge) that year,” Wheeler said, noting that he was excited to have Danielle Nichole coming back to Wheeling. “She’s an incredible blues vocalist and left-handed bass player.”

Wheeler said another one of his favorites is coming back on Sunday — the “stellar” Carolyn Wonderland out of Texas, as well as an energetic three-piece band with a larger-than-life name.

“One of the acts that I’m excited about is The Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band — made up of three people,” he said. “They were last here in 2018, and this will be only their second time here.”

There promises to be plenty of other people making their return to Heritage Music BluesFest this year, as they do every year — the fans.

“The blues community has people who travel and go to blues festivals,” Wheeler noted. “They kind of travel everywhere and plan their vacations around it. I get amazed all of the time about where people come from — all over the place.”

Last year, fans from at least 28 states were represented at Heritage Music Bluesfest.

Main stage acts also include Adler and Nikki Hill on Friday; Rory Block, Billy the Kid & the Regulators, Toronzo Canon and Shemekia Copeland on Saturday; and Ray Fuller & the Blues Rockers and Guitar Zack on Sunday. Second stage acts will be Pittsburgh’s Honky Tonk Heroes on Friday, Electric Mud and the Adrian Niles Trio on Saturday and Appalachian Soul Man Aristotle Jones on Sunday.

There will be food vendors, artists, crafters and merchandise vendors and more at the festival.

“If you’ve never been there before, you don’t know that you don’t like it,” Wheeler said, encouraging all music lovers to come join in the fun.

For tickets and additional information, visit www.herigatemusicfest.com.