ROAD TRIP! AEG Takes the Party to Dothan for the 7th Annual Wiregrass Heritage Festival
DOTHAN, AL — Birmingham, sometimes a good concert is worth a road trip.
Earlier this year, Urbanham celebrated 30 years of American Entertainment Group (AEG) and looked back at the Black-owned entertainment company’s three decades of bringing live music, comedy and major touring acts to Birmingham and communities throughout the region.
Now we’re encouraging our Birmingham readers to follow AEG down Highway 231 and see what the company has been building in Dothan.
On Saturday, September 26, the Wiregrass Heritage Festival returns to the National Peanut Festival Fairgrounds for another big afternoon and evening of Southern Soul, R&B, food, fun and good-time vibes.
And after several years of bringing some of Southern Soul’s biggest names to the Wiregrass, this isn’t simply another concert on AEG’s calendar. The festival is developing an identity of its own.
Birmingham, Let’s Take a Road Trip
There’s something different about getting a few friends together, loading up the car, putting on a playlist and heading out of town for a festival.
That’s the vibe we’re suggesting for this one.
The 2026 Wiregrass Heritage Festival takes place at the National Peanut Festival Fairgrounds, 5622 U.S. Highway 231 South in Dothan. Gates open at 3 p.m., with the show beginning at 4:30 p.m. The National Peanut Festival lists the event at its All In Credit Union Amphitheater.
This year’s lineup includes Marcellus The Singer, West Love, Cupid, Mr. Campbell, Tonio Armani, Young Guy, Anthony Q and Breeze MrDo2Much, with DJ Trucker keeping the music moving and M.C. Lightfoot hosting the show.
For Southern Soul fans, that’s a lot of music packed into one Saturday.
A Festival That Has Built a Following
The Wiregrass Heritage Festival is heading into its seventh year, and one of the things that stands out is the caliber of talent AEG has consistently brought to Dothan.
The festival has become a destination for Southern Soul fans while giving both established performers and some of the genre’s rising artists a stage in Southeast Alabama.
Just last year, the 2025 festival featured Tucka, 803Fresh, Marcellus The Singer and Avail Hollywood among its performers.
In 2024, the lineup was stacked with Tucka, Calvin Richardson, J-Wonn, Cupid, FPJ, Big Ro Williams, Fat Daddy, DJ Trucker, Just’n, Billy D and Donnel Davis. Gates opened at 3 p.m. that year as well, giving festivalgoers an afternoon and evening full of music. Other notable acts have included Dru Hill, Adina Howard, Raheem DeVaughn, Club Nuevo, Pokey, Sunshine Anderson, Urban Mystic, Khia, Tank, Young Joc and many more.
Those names help tell the story of what the Wiregrass Heritage Festival has become.
Rather than chasing one musical trend, the festival has carved out a lane centered around Southern Soul, R&B, blues and feel-good grown-folks music—the kind of music that can turn a concert into a family reunion, cookout and party all at once.
And some performers have returned over multiple years, another indication that AEG is building a festival brand rather than simply assembling a new standalone concert each September.
Southern Soul Is Having a Moment
The timing is also interesting.
Southern Soul has expanded well beyond the traditional blues circuit, with a new generation of artists building huge audiences through streaming, social media, line dancing, trail rides and festivals. Truth is, American Entertainment Group has been providing this type of entertainment across the region for years.
That makes a lineup combining artists such as West Love, Marcellus The Singer, Tonio Armani, Young Guy and Cupid especially timely.
Cupid alone brings a song that can change the energy of just about any party when the first notes of the “Cupid Shuffle” or the popular “Flex” hit.
This year’s festival gives fans an opportunity to see several generations and styles of Southern Soul on one stage instead of waiting for individual club dates or tours to come through their city.
And What a Place to Hold It
The location has become an important part of the Wiregrass Heritage Festival experience.
If you’ve traveled through Dothan, you’ve probably heard of the National Peanut Festival. The annual fair is one of the signature events associated with the Wiregrass region, celebrating the area’s agricultural heritage and its relationship with the peanut industry.
But the property is much more than a place that’s used for a few weeks during fair season.
The National Peanut Festival Fairgrounds has developed into a year-round event complex, with facilities capable of hosting concerts, livestock events, competitions, private events and other large gatherings. Its current facilities include the All In Credit Union Amphitheater, Alfa Event Center, BankPlus Arena, Premium Exhibit Building and Alabama AG Credit Livestock Complex, among other spaces.
That makes the fairgrounds an almost perfect home for something like the Wiregrass Heritage Festival.
There’s room to make the event feel like a festival, not simply a concert.
And there’s something fitting about a celebration of Southern music and culture taking place at one of Southeast Alabama’s most recognizable gathering places.
The National Peanut Festival itself dates back generations and remains synonymous with Dothan and the Wiregrass. Now, each September, the Wiregrass Heritage Festival is creating another reason for people to make their way to those same grounds.
30 Years Later, AEG Is Still Creating Experiences
For Urbanham, there’s another reason we’re paying attention.
Earlier this year, we celebrated American Entertainment Group’s 30th anniversary and the role the company has played in Birmingham’s entertainment landscape.
For three decades, AEG has remained active in an industry where longevity is anything but guaranteed.
That’s significant.
Promoting live entertainment requires identifying the right artists, securing venues, marketing shows, selling tickets and taking financial risks long before the first performer ever walks onto the stage.
Now over thirty years later, AEG is still doing it.
And the Wiregrass Heritage Festival demonstrates how that footprint has expanded beyond Birmingham.
Make Dothan the Destination September 26
So here’s the Urbanham suggestion:
Make a day—or a weekend—out of it.
Call some friends. Build the playlist. Get on Highway 231 and head south.
When you arrive, you’ll find Marcellus The Singer, West Love, Cupid, Mr. Campbell, Tonio Armani, Young Guy, Anthony Q, Breeze MrDo2Much and DJ Trucker, with M.C. Lightfoot hosting.
Wiregrass Heritage Festival 2026
Saturday, September 26, 2026
Gates: 3 p.m.
Showtime: 4:30 p.m.
National Peanut Festival Fairgrounds – All In Credit Union Amphitheater
5622 U.S. Highway 231 South, Dothan, AL 36301
Tickets are available now through AEG’s official ticketing page, with current online prices beginning around $22 before applicable fees.
GET WIREGRASS HERITAGE FESTIVAL TICKETS
And AEG Already Has Valentine’s Weekend Covered in Birmingham
If Dothan is the road trip, AEG’s next major announcement brings the party right back home to Birmingham.
American Entertainment Group has announced its annual Valentine’s concert, “Someone to Love,” coming to the BJCC Concert Hall on Friday, February 12, 2027.
And this one has date night written all over it.
The evening will feature Grammy-nominated R&B singer Eric Benét, singer, songwriter and television personality Tamar Braxton, and Birmingham’s own Grammy-nominated Ruben Studdard as special guest. The BJCC and Ticketmaster both confirm all three artists on the bill.
Doors open at 7 p.m., with showtime at 8 p.m., according to AEG.
Someone to Love Valentine’s Concert
Friday, February 12, 2027
Doors: 7 p.m.
Showtime: 8 p.m.
BJCC Concert Hall
2100 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. N., Birmingham, AL 35203
Featuring Eric Benét, Tamar Braxton and special guest Ruben Studdard
GET SOMEONE TO LOVE TICKETS ON TICKETMASTER
From Birmingham to the Wiregrass
Thirty years after American Entertainment Group began building its reputation in live entertainment, the company continues doing what has kept it around for three decades—putting people in a room, or in this case a festival field, together around music.
For Birmingham fans, September 26 is an opportunity to support a homegrown entertainment company while experiencing something AEG has steadily built outside the Magic City.
Dothan is calling, the Wiregrass Heritage Festival is waiting, and if Southern Soul is your thing, September 26 might be a good Saturday to point the car south.
For more about American Entertainment Group and it’s upcoming concerts visit https://www.americanentgroup.com/
