PANAMA CITY BEACH − Despite rainy conditions, crews are expected to have everything set up on time for the 2026 Gulf Coast Jam.
Known to attract thousands of patrons, the Gulf Coast Jam is a popular four-night country music festival in Panama City Beach. The event is scheduled to occur Thursday, May 28, to Sunday, May 31, at Frank Brown Park.
According to Rendy Lovelady, executive producer of the event, it takes about 10 days to set up the park. Recent weather conditions threw a wrench into the mix, however, Lovelady said it was nothing they could not handle.
“It’s been dicey becuase of the rain,” Lovelady said. “We’ve had an enormous amount of rain in the process, but at the same time, we’re getting it done. It’s just been a couple bad nights of rain.”
He noted that only about 1% of tickets still are available for the festival. If they do not sell out before it begins, tickets will be available for purchase at the door.
“I think the economy has slowed down a lot of things,” Lovelady said. “I think gas prices and hotel rooms are extremely expensive, but I think (people) are still coming.”
The lineup for the 2026 Gulf Coast Jam is:
“Everything is going to be fine,” Lovelady said. “The weather forecast now for the four days of the show are looking good. We’re sitting right now at about 24,000 people in the park. We expect it to be about 25,000 to 26,000.”
This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Crews continue setting up 2026 Gulf Coast Jam despite rainy conditions
Reporting by Nathan Cobb, Panama City News Herald / The News Herald
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
