ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Highland Park is once again full of live music, food, games, and the fragrant scents of lilacs. Tuesday marks day five of the 128th annual Lilac Festival.
Day five will feature music headliners curated by the Rochester Music Hall of Fame. Scott Mayo, a former member of the legendary group Earth Wind & Fire and a 2024 hall of fame inductee, will be among the performers at the KeyBank Center Stage. The multi-instrumentalist has also performed on albums for Beyonce, Bruno Mars, Paul McCartney, John Legend, and Sergio Mendes. He will perform with Prime Time Funk.
Tuesday also marks the second day of the Lilac Local Farmer’s Market, which will feature fresh fruits, vegetables, handmade goods, and more. See more details in our schedule guide.
See our live reporting from the Lilac Festival here
The festival runs through Sunday, May 17, for a total of 10 days in a row. It kicked off on Friday and continued into the weekend with the annual Lilac Parade, Art in the Park, Small Business Circle, and special events from Mother’s Day. This year, the Lilac Festival was voted as the country’s second-best flower festival in a USA Today readers’ choice poll.
More details on the schedule
Here’s the schedule for the rest of the Lilac Festival. There will also be free walking tours of the lilacs each day, which you can sign up for here.
- Tuesday, May 12: The Lilac Local Farmer’s Market continues from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, May 13: Seniors’ Day returns to the festival. It aims to celebrate older adults in the community with lunch specials, specially curated music, and parking for buses and vans arriving from senior homes. In addition, the Lilac Local Farmer’s Market continues from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Saturday, May 16: The first-ever Lilac Table, a tasting event featuring local restaurants and craft beverage producers, kicks off. The ticketed event is happening from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. behind the Lilac Adventure Zone. In addition, Art in the Park & Small Business Circle continues from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Artists from across the region will sell their work on Reservoir Avenue, up the hill from the main festival grounds.
- Sunday, May 17: The 47th annual Lilac 5K and 10K is taking place on the final morning of the festival. Both races start and finish on Highland Avenue near the purple crosswalk. The 5K begins at 8 a.m., and the 10K begins at 9:30 a.m. You can register and see a course map here.
The music lineup
Some nationally touring artists are coming to the KeyBank Center Stage in Highland Park. There will be a different headliner for each of the 10 days, along with supporting acts. Here’s the lineup for the rest of the festival:
- Tuesday, May 12: Scott Mayo & Prime Time Funk (part of the Rochester Music Hall of Fame Takeover). Support from The Dawgs, Stoney Lonesome.
- Wednesday, May 13: Mikaela Davis (indie, alternative, and Americana). Support from Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad.
- Thursday, May 14: Joe P (Part of the 94.1 The Zone Takeover). Support from The Demos.
- Friday, May 15: Anees (R&B, pop, and fusion). Support from Chi TheRealist.
- Saturday, May 16: JD McPherson (rock & roll, R&B, and blues). Support from Prime Time Brass.
- Sunday, May 17: Eggy (jam, funk, and Psychedelic). Support from High Fade.
Dozens of local artists are also set to perform at the festival. You can see the full schedule here. Dave Drogo, director of the KeyBank Center stage, said the festival showcases the diversity of music talent in the Rochester area.
“It’s a long process. We start about a year out usually, get our amazing national closing acts, and then it’s actually really not that difficult to go from there because there are so many original amazing bands in Rochester that honestly, I have to say no to so many and say next year,” he said.
You can become familiar with the headliners using this playlist on Spotify. Drogo says he’s enjoyed listening to the playlist.
“There’s about two or three songs from each band on a Spotify playlist. We put it on shuffle, and we can hear all over the festival and get excited about stuff,” he said.
Festival forecast
We’re tracking temperatures in the 50s for Monday, with some clouds and some breaks of sunshine. Monday and Tuesday will stay mainly dry, before showers arrive on Wednesday. See our latest forecast here.
History of the Lilac Festival
The festival all started with a local horticulturist, John Dunbar, planting lilacs in Highland Park in the 1890s, and thousands of people showing up to see them. It expanded over the decades and now draws over 500,000 visitors. The festival features the most extensive lilac collection in the northeast.
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