Husband and wife musical duo Ironwood, Mark Pierce and Anna Dorsey, perform at the Arts, Beats & Eats press conference June 9 at Oakland Community College. They also will be performing at the festival when it takes place Sept. 4-7.
By: Mike Koury | Royal Oak Review | Published June 10, 2026
ROYAL OAK — The city of Royal Oak is gearing up to welcome back the popular Michigan Lottery Arts, Beats & Eats presented by Flagstar Bank on Labor Day weekend.
The 29th annual Arts, Beats & Eats will return Sept. 4-7 with hundreds of thousands of people expected to attend over the four days.
As the buildup to the event begins, the city and event organizers announced during a June 9 press conference that a deal has been struck to keep Arts, Beats & Eats in Royal Oak through 2030.
“Royal Oak has been an incredible home. It’s really one of the centers of the region,” Event Producer Jon Witz said. It’s got the parking needed, it’s got a very wonderful downtown and backdrop, including a $2 million streetscape. … We hope to continue that, and we feel we’re in the right home and hope it is here forever.”
Outside of the numbers that Arts, Beats & Eats brings in revenue and attendance, keeping the event in Royal Oak makes sense, Mayor Mike Fournier said.
“When I walk around, even though there’s 300,000 people here, I see so many friends and neighbors and kids and schoolmates of my children,” he said. “It really has become an event for Royal Oakers, not just to celebrate Royal Oak, but also a place where we bring in our neighbors from all over and (they) enjoy (it) with us. And so, I think numbers totally make sense, but it goes way beyond the numbers and it’s part of the awesome quality of life that we enjoy here in the city.”
Witz promised this year’s lineup will be the best in the history of Arts, Beats & Eats; it will be announced in late July.
“I'll let the crowd or the fans decide if that’s true or not, but we’re going to make our biggest financial investment in history into our national and local musicians. We’re expecting the best show, and that is no showman. It’ll be the best music lineup in our history and will capture so many genres and ages, and (we’re) just excited to bring it to everyone.
Part of this year’s plans announced during the press conference is the introduction of a Pride Stage, a performance space that celebrates “inclusion, creativity and community” and will feature “a diverse lineup of musicians, entertainers and cultural programming designed to amplify voices and experiences from across the region,” a press release states.
The Cranbrook Institute of Science also will have different experiences for eventgoers, such as a life-sized Tyrannosaurus rex for its “Dino-MITE! The Dinosaur Science Show” exhibit and an insect show, including live Madagascar hissing cockroaches, for its “Bugging Out: Meet, Make and Munch!” exhibit.
The festival also will be holding a T-shirt design contest in partnership with the Royal Oak Commission for the Arts.
The first Spirit of Royal Oak T-Shirt Design Competition will be held over six weeks, with artists asked to “showcase what makes Royal Oak unique through original T-shirt artwork inspired by the city’s energy, culture, events and neighborhoods.”
The winning artist will be awarded $1,500, with $1,000 going to second place, and both designs will be produced and sold during Arts, Beats & Eats. They also will receive special recognition on the festival’s main stage.
Fournier said the city wanted to have some custom Royal Oak merchandise sold for the event, leading to the idea to hold a contest to find the artwork.
“Not only do you have T-shirts that people want to buy and show their pride, you have a whole creative process to get there that seems very aligned with the idea of arts in our community,” he said. “I’d love to see this as a tradition. I’d love to see our artists in the community come up with creative ideas, and I’ll be the first to wear this shirt because I think we have so many creative people in the city and I just can’t wait to see what comes out of it.”
More information on the contest will be posted on artsbeatseats.com later this week.
Witz has been with the festival since its inception in 1998 in Pontiac, and he said seeing where it is today has been nothing but a blessing.
“I will tell everyone, you will find something that moves you at the event,” he said. “Every corner you turn, your senses will be stimulated. You will smell a different food, you will hear a different sound, you will see a different work of art. Every element of the event, you will find something that moves you at the event. It might not be music; it might just be watching a family enjoy some good food, but that’s what moves me, just everyone hanging out together.”
For more information on the event, visit artsbeatseats.com.