Two worlds collided as Kevin Griffin, frontman for Better Than Ezra and co-founder of the Pilgrimage Festival, sat down with powerhouse vocalist and singer/songwriter Maggie Rose, who will be performing on the Pilgrimage stage for the first time, for a one-on-one conversation ahead of the 2025 Pilgrimage Festival in Franklin, Tennessee.
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The two artists talked about the fest, swapping stories about the multi-genre lineup, the history of the fest, and even teased a possible collab moment that could become a highlight of the fest. Rose and Griffin take a candid look at the event and what makes it more special than other festivals. They came to the conclusion that family, music, and authenticity can come together in one space.
“The idea for Pilgrimage came from a run the day after Thanksgiving in 2013,” Griffin says. “I ran and found myself out at The Park at Harlinsdale, which is right in the center of Franklin, Tennessee, across from The Factory. I was catching my breath, and literally, the sun came out from behind the clouds, and I caught my breath, and I looked around. I was like, ‘This is the coolest setting for a music festival I’ve ever seen,’ rolling hills, natural amphitheaters, buildings on the Historic Register. It’s the original home of the Tennessee Walking Horse industry. I was like, “I’m going to do a festival. I’m going to call my guys.”
And the rest is history… Griffin and friends will be hosting Pilgrimage Festival in their 11th year on September 27-28.
Read ahead for an excerpt of their conversation and watch the full video interview below.
Kevin Griffin: I’m Kevin Griffin. I’m a working songwriter, a musician, but more importantly, I’m one of the founders of Pilgrimage Music Festival, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to have Maggie Rose in the studio today at American Songwriter.
Maggie Rose: I’m so excited to be part of the Pilgrimage for the first time.
KG: For the first time! We’re going to dive right into it if you guys are good with that. Your name has come up so many times over the years, and there were different times where you weren’t available or we didn’t have the slot. Jay Sweet from Newport Folk Festival is a massive fan of yours, and he has booked our festival for many years, so it just seems like a logical thing to have you on the bill.
MR: It was meant to be, and I’ve been looking forward to it. You guys have done such a good job building this festival and curating wonderful talents. Jay Sweet has great taste. I appreciate him throwing my name in the pile. We just did Newport Folk Fest earlier this summer, so this is a great way to end our summer season with you guys.
KG: Have you had the opportunity to come to Pilgrimage Festival?
MR: I have. Yes, I attended as a spectator. I got to watch Steven Tyler.
KG: Oh, so you were there year one?
MR: Yes.
KG: Year one was 2015, and this will be the 11th year.
MR: That’s remarkable.
KG: We’re counting the COVID, we’re counting it. We’re not going to be robbed of that year, so we counted that year even though there wasn’t technically a festival.
MR: I support you.
KG: I was doing some due diligence for this interview, and I heard “Poison in My Well,” and I love the song. It’s great.
MR: Thank you.
KG: And what’s so cool, and I don’t know if you planned it this way, and you are one of those all-encompassing 360-type of artists who plan way ahead of time. You sing it with Grace Potter, and she’s on the bill at Pilgrimage Festival.
MR: I know. We are scheming and plotting.
KG: Is it going to be a surprise? We can hope.
MR: You can hope. Yes. I want people to have their hearts filled with hope that there will be a moment at Pilgrimage.
KG: Oh, my gosh. You heard it here first. Potentially, we can’t guarantee it, so don’t come after us for a refund, but there’s a good chance. There’s a good chance that Grace and Maggie will rock.
MR: Yeah, please don’t. That’s too much pressure on you guys.
KG: I got to say, you were at the first year with Willie Nelson and Wilco, Cage the Elephant, and also, you mentioned, this summer, you did some shows with Chris Stapleton. Chris Stapleton performed year one in the middle of the day…
MR: Yeah. Nashville’s best-kept secret for so long.
KG: … for less money than Better than Ezra, my band, is getting paid. It just lets you know how things have changed.
MR: But look at what you did, curating people that you loved and bringing them together. That exposure that we’re going to get at Pilgrimage is very beneficial.
KG: We love it. Thank you.
Me and my partners, it’s still the same three guys that started it, were inspired by Jazz Fest, which was a multi-genre festival, family-friendly, and a celebration of the Gulf Coast. When I moved to Franklin, Tennessee, after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, where I was living, I wanted to bring that kind of festival. And it seems like it’s taken root, and performers like yourself are critical.
MR: Absolutely. And I think that the environment being family-friendly and just community and music, obviously, those things go hand in hand.
KG: Yeah. And it can be family-friendly, but it can still be rad. It can be cool.
MR: There’s a lot of festivals I’ve gone to that I maybe wouldn’t bring my children to. This is a way to do something that’s fun together and culturally enriching, and win over your children’s taste in your personal favorite bands.
KG: It’s an amazing lineup. And I can say that without bragging because it’s a group effort. A lot of people ask, “How do you book the festival?” And it’s three of us, and I tell people it’s like a band. Everybody has their favorites, songs, and their approach, and the style of music they like…
… It’s like a band. There’s tension, there’s friction, but what comes out of it, if it’s a good band, is a great song. You can look at bands like The Police or a famous band that had antagonistic relationships; that’s the way the booking is, but what comes out is hopefully a great lineup.
MR: What was your vision when you were putting Pilgrimage together? To embody the spirit in one word, what would it be?
KG: Authenticity.
MR: I like it.
KG: I grew up going to Jazz Fest in New Orleans. The idea for Pilgrimage came from a run the day after Thanksgiving in 2013. I was like, “I need to burn some calories.” I ran and found myself out at The Park at Harlinsdale, which is right in the center of Franklin, Tennessee, across from the factory. I was catching my breath, and literally, the sun came out from behind the clouds, and I caught my breath, and I looked around. I was like, “This is the coolest setting for a music festival I’ve ever seen,” rolling hills, natural amphitheaters, buildings on the Historic Register. It’s the original home of the Tennessee Walking Horse industry. I was like, “I’m going to do a festival. I’m going to call my guys.”
I ran home and called my guys, and we were inspired by Jazz Fest. At the time when we had the idea, our peers at C3, Live Nation, they were like, “Your DNA needs to be one type of music, all rock, all alternative,” and they gave us all these examples. We were like, “No, but we want it to be multi-genre,” and that was novel, and a lot of people counseled us against doing that. But we were like, “No, man, we want to celebrate middle Tennessee’s rock, alternative, indie, country, Americana,” but the follow-through, the one line, the glue, needs to be authenticity, that even if you’re not into that artist, if you weren’t into Justin Timberlake, you’re like, “I don’t buy his albums, but he’s a badass. I don’t listen to Chris Stapleton, but God, his voice is amazing.”
That’s the thing, and that’s what’s really elevated Pilgrimage. I guess kudos to us, other festivals have copied that DNA, like Bourbon & Beyond, BottleRock, and stuff like that. And if you look at people’s Spotify playlists, it’s crazy. It’s all over the place.
KG: …What I love about booking the festival and having it is people say to me, “Wow, I love going there. Of course, I know John Mayer and Kings of Leon, but I go early in the day to check out (so and so) … because I know that they’re going to be great artists and you’re going to turn me on to new artists and new music.” Our big hope with Pilgrimage 2025 is that people will come up to me on the streets after Pilgrimage and say, “Maggie Rose, she blew me away. Thank you so much for having her on the festival.”
MR: Well, I’m going to do my best to make you look good.
KG: Oh, you will. And with Grace singing with you and me on tambourine, oh, my God. Did I just do that? Did that just happen?
MR: You just manifested it.
KG: This has been awesome. I can’t wait to have you. Good luck with the EP (Cocoon) coming out in October.
MR: Thank you.
KG: And keep kicking booty.
MR: I will. We’ll see you at Pilgrimage.
Watch the full interview with Kevin Griffin and Maggie Rose below.
For Tickets, go to the Pilgrimage Festival website HERE.
2025 Pilgrimage Fest Lineup
Saturday, September 27th
Midnight Sun
Taylor Hunnicut – 1:30-2:00 pm
Maggie Rose – 2:30-3:15 pm
Father John Misty – 4:00-5:00 pm
Turnpike Troubadours – 6:00-7:15 pm
Kings of Leon – 8:20-10:00 pm
Gold Record Road
Angel White – 2:00-2:30 pm
American Aquarium – 3:15-4:00 pm
Colony House – 5:00-6:00 pm
Sam Barber – 7:15-8:15 pm
American Music Triangle
Will McFarlane – 3:00-3:30 pm
Ben Chapman’s Peach Jam featuring JD Clayton & Meg McRee – 3:50-5:20pm
Sunday, September 28th
Midnight Sun
verygently – 1:30-2:00 pm
Sam Grisman Project – 2:30 – 3:15 pm
Grace Potter – 4:00-5:00 pm
Young The Giant – 6:00-7:15 pm
John Mayer – 8:20-10:00 pm
Gold Record Road
Eddie 9V – 2:00-2:30 pm
The Heavy Heavy – 3:15- 4:00 pm
Better Than Ezra – 5:00-6:00 pm
Sam Fender – 7:15- 8:15 pm
American Music Triangle
Cristina Vane – 3:00-3:30pm
Sam Grisman Project featuring Vince Herman & Lindsay Lou – 3:50-5:20 pm
Sam Grisman Project featuring Vince Herman & Lindsay Lou – 5:45-7:15 pm
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