Arcade Music Fest, a new multi-venue, genre-spanning music and arts festival, will debut in Covington August 8–9.
The inaugural event will feature nearly 80 artists across eight stages, more than 30 local vendors, and a showcase of visual art.
Spanning four blocks of Covington’s Central Business District, the festival centers around the historic Arcade Tunnel, which connects Pike and 7th Street. Transformed into the main stage with immersive lighting installations, the tunnel will host local indie-pop and EDM favorites Coastal Club and Departure Lounge.
Eight stages will be scattered in and around businesses in the Covington CBD and each will focus on a different music genre: Folk/Americana stage at Revival Bottle Shop, RNB Stage at Madison Live, EDM Stage at Galaxie, and a combination of Rock/Pop/Indie genres at Second Story, Olde Town Tavern, and an outdoor stage on Pike Street.
The Arcade Main Stage and Madison Live will feature music headliners Coastal Club, Departure Lounge, Devin Burgess, Audley, and Patterns of Chaos. An exclusive bar, professional photo booth, surprise guests, BLINK-grade activations by Dan Shields and Kemper Studios, and Madison Live’s Pizza Boiz “Super Local” Hip‑Hop showcase will be accessible to VIP ticket holders.
Live music performances will take place from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. each night. After parties will take place at Madison Live on August 8 from 11 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. and at a secret location on August 9 from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m.
VIP 1‑Day are available for $25 and VIP 2‑Day tickets are $45. VIP tickets provide access to the Arcade Tunnel and Madison Live stages, along with exclusive programming. Tickets are available online via Eventbrite.
Rooted in community, Arcade Music Fest will champion independent businesses, artists, and creative entrepreneurs. The vendor lineup features locally sourced food, handmade goods, vintage finds, and craft beverages from local art and small business vendors, as well as beer/food trucks from Braxton Brewery, Fabled Brew Works, Maki Mono, S.E.A. Cuisine, Reka’s Butchery & Delicatessen, and Ghost Kitchen Pizza, plus a specialty bar, ‘Pixelated Pours,’ featuring spirit sponsors.
“Cincinnati’s music scene is thriving in a city that lost its two biggest festivals, Bunbury and MidPoint Music Fest,” said Emma Ranney, co-founder of Arcade Music Fest. “As musicians, we wanted to curate a large-scale music festival to showcase our wildly eclectic music scene, but in a new way.”
“By utilizing a historic passageway in the heart of Covington and with so many great bars centered around the tunnel, incorporating multiple venues was a great opportunity to highlight small businesses around Covington,” said Arcade Fest co-founder Jared Metz.
Arcade Music Fest