'Cuegrass is a celebration of two of North Carolina's cultural assets: Barbecue and Bluegrass music. More importantly, it is a fundraiser supporting local children's causes. Each year, 100% of the proceeds from food and beverage sales, Fast Passes, The Pit merch, and the Silent Auction are donated to our chosen beneficiaries for that year.
Since 2009, we have raised over $200,000 for local organizations including: BackPack Buddies, SAFEchild, Cub Scouts, Team Chris Combs, Food Banks of CENC, 4-H Club, NC Farmers via AWA, WC Breeze Family Farm, Read & Feed, Feed the Farm, and The Occoneechee Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
Our beneficiaries for 2025, are SAFEchild, The Occoneechee Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Freedom Ride Rescue, and Western North Carolina Hurricane Relief. Read more about these organizations on our Beneficiaries page.
Saturday, April 19, 2025
Noon - 6pm
'Cuegrass is held on Fayetteville Street between Morgan and Martin Streets, including East and West Hargett Street between Salisbury Street and South Wilmington Street.
Nearby parking is available in the lots and decks listed below.
Download a map of all ADA accessible on-street parking locations here. View more parking options on the Downtown Raleigh Alliance website or the City of Raleigh website.
Head on over to the food tent on West Hargett Street near South Salisbury Street or the Food Truck on Fayetteville Street near Martin Street, to indulge in The Pit's Whole-Hog Eastern North Carolina chopped barbecue sandwiches, delicious hot dogs, or veggie burgers. Water and Pepsi products will be available to quench your thirst. Or enjoy a cold local beer from one of our beer stations throughout the festival.
Want to breeze through the food or beer line? Purchase a Fast Pass wristband to access the Fast Pass lanes at all food and beverage stations.
Kids of all ages will enjoy playing lawn games, like corn hole in Market Plaza.
We're keeping the good times going til 10pm on Hargett Street with our friends at The Raleigh Times.
The live music continues on the LIVE at The Raleigh Times stage on Hargett St and the Beer Station will keep on serving!
Bid on items generously donated by local businesses. Past items have included: grocery gift cards, museum passes, sporting events, sports memorabilia, and more. All proceeds from the online auction will support our chosen beneficiaries. Auction ends at 5pm April 19, 2025. Winners will be notified with instructions for picking up their items.
We are currently accepting items for the auction. If you are a local business and wish to donate an item to be auctioned, please contact us.
Auction will be live about a week before the Festival. Follow us on Instagram for updates.
We will have a special item that we will raffle off during the festival. Last year the prize was a $2,000 gift card to Bailey's Fine Jewelry!
Raffle tickets will be available to purchase online or at the Merch Tent during the festival. Tickets bought online can be picked up at the Merch tent during the festival. Raffle ends at 5pm April 19, 2025. Winner will be notified with instructions for picking up their prize.
Stroll through vendor village, located on Fayetteville street near Martin Street and shop handcrafted gifts by local artisans. Typical wares include jewelry, art work, clothing, and more. Don't forget to stop by our Merch tent to take home some sauce and spice blends from The Pit or a festival t-shirt.
Applications for vendors closed on February 19. We will be notifying vendors soon if they were selected. Thank you to all who applied.
