Fans Find Community, Value at Noah Kahan’s Hutton Brickyards Festival Stop

The hot summer day hung over Hutton Brickyards. Blankets covered the floor near the main stage as fans waited for the final performance of the night. After a storm swept through briefly and cleared the sky, rainbows appeared overhead, setting the stage for the headlining act.

Noah Kahan performed on the main stage at Hutton Brickyards on July 4 for StateSide, a festival hosted by Rolling Stone that brought artists to two stages. Many fans camped out near the main stage, making connections, playing games or relaxing between sets. Music began at noon and wrapped up after Kahan’s performance and a fireworks display after 11 p.m. Vendors lined the grounds, along with a table from the local O+ Festival.

While the event was one of the first music festivals of its kind at Hutton Brickyards, the ticket price was steep for a single-day festival. On regular sale, general admission tickets started at $408, a cost that can be out of reach for locals in the surrounding area.

To beat the heat, the event provided free water bottles at various points throughout the venue. Bringing blankets to rest between sets also gave attendees a chance to bond throughout the night.

Becky Himmelblau, who drove in from Albany, formed a connection with people from Florida.

“This is our blanket club. We made a club, we introduced ourselves, we had normal social interactions, and then we made a pact that we’re gonna stay here together and watch out for each other’s belongings,” Himmelblau said.

Even with the fun atmosphere, some locals said they noticed few other attendees from the area. Amber Larsen and Casey Arnold, both from the Hudson Valley and local to the venue, said the cost likely kept many locals away.

“We will say they were very, very expensive, and most of the locals — we have not met a single local that is here because nobody can afford it from our area, which is unfortunate,” Arnold said.

Himmelblau said the prices were on par with the rest of Kahan’s tour and cheaper than some other venues he played. She also said concert prices in general have risen.

“What hasn’t gone up in recent years?” Himmelblau said. “Everything is up in price, especially tickets. It is so expensive to go to any kind of event.”

According to TicketData, Noah Kahan tickets are currently selling for as low as $233 for his first night at Fenway Park or as high as $637 at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. The festival price, then, seemed like a bargain to some fans compared with his stadium tour, where the same amount of money could buy a seat among more than 30,000 other fans.

According to Pollstar, which tracks ticket prices and concert revenue, average stadium tour ticket prices rose to $216.13 per show in 2025, up from $182.66 the year before. Compared with 2023, the 2025 average was 29% higher.

That makes concerts a luxury good, with cheap tickets increasingly a thing of the past. This festival, while exciting for fans, showed how a high price tag can still feel worthwhile because of the destination and Kahan’s move away from smaller venues.

Noah Kahan was not the only artist with high-priced tickets, even at a one-day festival. While many fans stayed near the main stage to see Kahan close out the night, the Scout Stage featured artists throughout the day, surrounded by food trucks, picnic tables overlooking the Hudson River and old brickyards, and several drink stands, mostly selling Dogfish Head products.

That built-in festival feel gave fans another reason to pay, since they could see multiple artists in one day even if it meant staying in one place for hours.

“I would say for me it felt worth it because Noah’s tickets, I was looking at resale tickets for Philly, and they were like $400-plus for not that great of a seat,” said Bri McKenna. “So I felt like going to a smaller venue would be cool.”

Morgan Blake, who came from Florida, also saw value in the setting. Ticket prices near her were comparable or higher.

“[Noah Kahan was] playing in the Kia Center in Orlando, where we’re from, it was like $150 or $350 for the cheapest seats, but it was gonna be 80,000 people,” Blake said. “And so this is like, for just 50 bucks more, 4,000 people.”

That more intimate setting was part of the appeal for many fans, especially with Kahan on a stadium tour. It offered a chance to see a major artist with a general-admission setup at a small venue hosting a festival of this size for the first time.

“We also were just like, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. When is he ever gonna play in Kingston, New York, again? Who knows?” Larsen said. “I figured it’s gonna be a long, long time if he ever does, so I was like, we have to go now.”

The main stage featured Arcy Drive, Bo Staloch, Sydney Rose and Gigi Perez before Kahan. The Scout Stage included Hudson Ingram, Derby, Michalea Anne, Calder Allen and Devon Gilfillian.

Even with the high ticket prices, the event sold out within days and remained on resale until the festival.

Despite the high prices, fans still came out to support their favorite artists. Throughout the day, they gathered to sign an American flag with Noah Kahan in the center and sang along to his songs over the speakers between sets at the main stage.

Music festivals and concerts bring fans together over shared music and the chance to discover new artists and revisit favorites. Even with the heat, attendees kept enjoying the performances and embraced the first music festival at Hutton Brickyards.