Buy Tickets: $45 VersoFest 2025 is kicking off with a legend of music and letters. Patti Smith, the acclaimed singer/songwriter, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, and National Book Award winner, will open The Westport Library’s fourth annual music and media festival on April 3. Doors open at 6:15 pm. The talk begins at...
Buy Tickets!: $100 The Wallflowers, who rose to fame behind their iconic 1996 album Bringing Down the Horse and who have continued to thrive as one of rock’s most dynamic and purposeful bands in the three decades since, will be the headlining act for the VersoFest 2025 concert event. Doors open at 7 pm (no...
Register Here: Free Join us for a special VersoFest panel discussion celebrating the 50th anniversary of Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen’s breakthrough 1975 album — a seminal work that is widely considered to be one of the greatest rock albums of the 20th century. The discussion will be hosted by Arlen Schumer, author, pop culture...
Register Here: FREE Black Thought, lead emcee and founding member of The Roots, will headline Saturday afternoon at VersoFest 2025 alongside music industry executive, entrepreneur, and community leader June Archer. The event is free to attend. Copies of Black Thought’s 2023 memoir, The Upcycled Self: A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are,...
Buy Tickets: $35 Henry Rollins — musician, spoken word artist, and one of the forerunners of the hardcore punk scene — will be the Verso Visionary conversation during Saturday night of VersoFest 2025, in conversation with fellow author and musician Nabil Ayers. Rollins has held many titles in the past 45 years: singer, writer, spoken...
On April 6, SNL veterans Paul Shaffer and Christine Ohlman will deliver their unique mix of music, comedy, and entertainment to The Westport Library at VersoFest 2025.
Ticket + Book: $30 The Westport Library is thrilled to welcome Gang of Four vocalist and founding member Jon King to talk about his brand new memoir, To Hell with Poverty! A Class Act: Inside the Gang of Four, live in the Trefz Forum. King will be in conversation with Rock and Roll Hall of Famer...
Buy Tickets: $55 Gang of Four, the pioneering band that served as one of the forerunners of the post-punk movement, mixing outspoken political messages with intense, percussive live sets, will kick off its farewell tour in The Westport Library’s Trefz Forum. Tickets for the concert, an extension of VersoFest 2025, are $55 and on sale...
Event Details The Westport Library is getting an early jump on the 2026 edition of VersoFest, our annual festival celebrating music, media, and creativity. The Thing, the rising rock band out of New York City with roots in Connecticut, will be performing the 2026 VersoFest Kickoff Concert. Presales for the concert will begin Tuesday, November...
Grammy Award-winning musician, folk-rock legend, and cultural icon Ani DiFranco kicks off the four-day weekend of VersoFest 2026 in conversation with Lauren Coyle Rosen, co-author of their new book, 'The Spirit of Ani: Reflections on Spirituality, Feminism, Music, and Freedom'.
Former Fugees star, celebrated rapper and singer, and multi-time Grammy winner Wyclef Jean will be this year’s headline performer for the VersoFest 2026 Friday night concert event.
Event Details Best-selling memoirist, essayist, and critic Claire Dederer takes the VersoFest Saturday stage, in conversation with acclaimed journalist Hilarie M. Sheets. Dederer’s books include the national best-seller Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma, the critically acclaimed Love and Trouble: A Midlife Reckoning, and The New York Times best-seller Poser: My Life in Twenty-three Yoga Poses. Monsters:...
Event Details Adria Petty, the daughter of Tom Petty and acclaimed producer and music video director, will be on hand in the Trefz Forum as part of the burgeoning Saturday lineup for VersoFest 2026, The Westport Library’s annual music and media conference and festival powered by Verso Studios, the media arm of the Library. Adria...
Celebrated actress Gina Gershon will be one of the highlight performers on VersoFest Saturday, discussing her recent memoir, AlphaPussy: How I Survived the Valley and Learned to Love My Boobs, with award-winning journalist and rock memoirist Alisyn Camerota.
Event Details Musician, writer, playwright, poet, visual artist, and alt-rock legend David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets) closes VersoFest Saturday with a special storytellers event. David will read selections from his new poetry book, Rhapsody, Threnody & Prayer, accompanied by original pre-recorded music. The reading will be followed by an interview featuring celebrated author Douglas...
Artificial intelligence is reshaping how music is created, distributed, licensed, and monetized — but who benefits, who owns what, and what comes next? Learn more in this candid, executive-level conversation that aims to unpack the seismic shifts redefining the industry.
Event Details Peter Shapiro, who has owned and operated venerated concert venues like Brooklyn Bowl and The Capitol Theatre and has produced a wide array of lauded music festivals, will join VersoFest 2026 alongside rock author, writer, and documentarian Dean Budnick. Together, the two music industry veterans will be discussing the legacy of the Grateful...
This open workshop with Suno invites the curious to experiment with instruments, voice, and AI to explore how technology can expand the edges of musical expression and unlock playful possibilities. Open to all ages and musical abilities!
VersoFest 2026 winds down with a true classic concert film. Recorded October 30 and 31, 1980 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, 'Dead Ahead' showcases the recently reformed Grateful Dead lineup in acoustic and electric splendor.