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Howie

Duluth Dylan Fest begins Sunday

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With the wrap-up of the Homegrown Musical Festival, live music fans can look forward to the 2025 Duluth Dylan Fest which kicks off Sunday.

The annual event celebrates the Northland’s native son, Nobel Prize winning singer and songwriter Bob Dylan. The Fest will feature a range of events spanning eight days in conjunction with Dylan’s 84th birthday on May 24.

"Bob Dylan is widely regarded as one of the world’s most influential and groundbreaking artists, redefining what music could be, shattering boundaries from his earliest days in New York’s folk scene to his decades on the global stage,” said Duluth Dylan Fest committee member Ed Newman. “As Duluth’s own, he’s a reminder of what’s possible when creativity knows no bounds. At Duluth Dylan Fest, we come together to celebrate not just a legend, but the shared joy his music brings to our community and the world beyond.”

Major highlights of the fest are two celebrations outside the two homes where Bob Dylan, then known as Robert Zimmerman, spent his childhood. First, on May 18, fans will gather on the lawn of Dylan’s boyhood home in Hibbing before touring Hibbing High School, where he was a part of its Class of 1959. Then on May 24 the Bob Dylan Front Porch Birthday Party will be held outside the Duluth home where he lived with his family the first seven years of his life. Both events will feature live music and treats.

“We always have nice crowds outside the Dylan houses,” said Zane Bail, Duluth Dylan Fest Committee member. Dylan historian and collector Bill Pagel owns the properties and is an enthusiastic Bob Dylan supporter, added Newman.

This year’s festival will once again welcome attendees from around the world including a group from the Netherlands, Australia, and Tokyo, along with fans from around the region, state, and country. Newman said a musician and Bob Dylan impersonator who performs as “Tokyo Bob” plans to join the acoustic jam on Monday night at the Carmody Irish Pub in downtown Duluth.

The volunteer Duluth Dylan Fest committee has put together a great line up which includes a singer-songwriter contest, a lecture, a vintage vinyl night, and lots of great live music featuring talented musicians from around the region.

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