Let’s be real: there’s rarely a wow factor with the Wisconsin State Fair’s entertainment lineup.
And that’s fine. Tradition is perhaps the biggest selling point for the fair (cream puffs aside, although they certainly qualify as tradition, too), so the entertainment lineup closely follows a tried-and-true formula year after year. Headliners check off different boxes (country, Christian, R&B, rock, comedy, family-friendly, etc.), with nostalgia often a common denominator.
The formula is still in place in 2026, but it feels a little fresher.
A comedian’s covered, again – but it’s one of comedy’s biggest acts who just sold-out Wrigley Field.
There are rock and R&B veterans, but both bands are among the most influential American acts still touring today.
And it’s rare that a couple of the biggest names to headline two of the state’s biggest music festivals – Summerfest and Country Thunder – would headline the Wisconsin State Fair their next time in the area, but it’s happening in 2026.
Here are 11 top shows to check out at this year’s fair Aug. 6 to 16, one pick for each day. And we didn’t just include the headliners: some top-notch Milwaukee talent is in the mix, too.
Aug. 6: The Listening Party
It’s fitting to celebrate Wisconsin musical talent at the Wisconsin State Fair, and The Listening Party is a great way to do just that on opening day. The Americana band is fresh off the release of its latest album, “High & Low,” which despite its title, consists only of high points with warm and catchy tunes often inspired by friendship. (7:15 p.m., Major Goolsby’s Heartland. Free with fair admission.)
Aug. 7: Nelly
It’s hard to believe around a quarter century has passed since the St. Louis rapper took the pop culture zeitgeist by storm with songs like “Ride Wit Me” and “Hot In Herre.” But those hits, and Nelly’s onstage energy, still hold up. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $72 to $92 at the gate and wistatefair.com. Tickets include fair admission Aug. 7.)
Aug. 8: Bailey Zimmerman
Zimmerman last played Milwaukee proper in 2023, when he was a wide-eyed opener for Morgan Wallen at American Family Field, with a fresh Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit to his name (“Rock and a Hard Place”), but no album yet. In the few years since, he’s become one of country music’s most in-demand stars, comfortable across the genre’s wide umbrella, from intimate singer-songwriter mode to hip-hop-flavored bravado, and became a Country Thunder headliner (in 2024) in the process. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $87 to $110, includes fair admission Aug. 8.)
Aug. 9: Wynonna Judd and Melissa Etheridge
It’s a tremendous two-for-one deal with Judd and Etheridge sharing headlining duties. Etheridge, nominated this year for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, is destined to play the hits and possibly visit material from her new album “Rise.” Judd, meanwhile, will honor her late mother Naomi and the music they made together as Country Music Hall of Famers The Judds, and possibly preview a forthcoming solo album, “The Hard Truth.” (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $65 to $500, includes fair admission Aug. 9.)
Aug. 10: The Taxmen
Borrowing their name from “Taxman,” the George Harrison-penned kickoff song on “Revolver,” the Milwaukee band has established itself as a top Beatles tribute act in town. The band has become a favorite booking at Waukesha’s Cavern Club-inspired Let It Be and has performed at the world’s largest annual Beatles tribute festival, Abbey Road on the River, in Indiana. (Noon, Saz’s BBQ. Free with fair admission.)
Aug. 11: The Isley Brothers
Speaking of the Beatles, the Isley Brothers were a big influence on the Fab Four, who famously covered an Isley song, “Twist & Shout.” The Isleys inspiration has continued across the decades (Kendrick Lamar sampled “That Lady” on single “I”) and the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers are still a blast live, delivering one of our favorite Summerfest sets of 2025. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $56 to $76, includes fair admission Aug. 11.)
Aug. 12: John Mulaney
Mulaney didn’t need to perform in the Milwaukee area this summer. No doubt fans from the area were among the 43,000 people who were at his sold-out Wrigley Field show July 12. But it speaks to Mulaney’s impeccable wit that he has enough drawing power to headline the State Fair the same summer he packed a baseball stadium in a neighboring state. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $64 to $92, includes fair admission Aug. 12.)
Aug. 13: The All-American Rejects
After breaking out in the early aughts, the Rejects rejuvenated interest last year with a series of intimate pop-up shows in unexpected towns (including Green Bay), leading up to a headlining tour behind this spring’s “Sandbox,” their first album in 14 years. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $65 to $85, includes fair admission Aug. 13.)
Aug. 14: Lindsey Stirling
Unfairly judged and prematurely dismissed on “America’s Got Talent” in 2010, Stirling has arguably gone on to become one of the show’s most successful contestants ever, bringing pop show sensibility to her violin showcases with flashy choreography and fresh covers of timeless songs and timely hits. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $56 to $81, includes fair admission Aug. 14.)
Aug. 15: AJR
The band of brothers, Summerfest American Family Insurance Amphitheater headliners in 2024, broke out from their peers not just with their Broadway-gone-pop-style songbook and relatable lyrics about anxiety, but with an inspired stage show that creatively incorporates lots of impressive, interactive video work. (7:30 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $78 to $99, includes fair admission Aug. 15.)
Aug. 16: The Whiskeybelles
Boasting three fantastic local singers and musicians in Chrissy Dzioba Clobes (guitar), Kimberly Hanson (fiddle) and Sara Moilanen (bass), the Whiskeybelles bring vintage country songs and overlooked gems to life, with originals that hold their own alongside the classics they cover. (6 p.m., Bank Five Nine Main Stage. $48 to $63, includes fair admission Aug. 16.)
Contact Piet Levy at (414) 223-5162 or plevy@journalsentinel.com. Follow him at facebook.com/PietLevy.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 11 top Wisconsin State Fair shows, from Nelly to Bailey Zimmerman
Reporting by Piet Levy, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Piet Levy, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
