The Red Ants Pants Foundation announced today the legendary Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Ryan Bingham will be taking the stage at the Fifth Annual Red Ants Pants Music Festival. A host of yet-to-be-named music legends, including two additional Grammy award-winning artists, and several buzzworthy rising newcomers will round out this year’s lineup and are scheduled to be announced on Saturday April 4th, 2015 at a Lineup Release Party in White Sulphur Springs. Details about the event and live streaming of the lineup announcement will be available on the music festival's Facebook page. A limited release of 500 early bird tickets will go on sale online and at the Red Ants Pants Store at a discounted price of $110 at 7pm MST April 4th, 2015. Held in a cow pasture on the Jackson Ranches, and surrounded by the Big Belt, Little Belt, and Castle Mountain ranges, the festival will bring in more than two dozen different artists performing on separate stages. The weekend-long, grassroots, honky-tonkin' music festival brings in millions of dollars to the rural economy and is now in its 5th year. “The momentum keeps growing every year as the festival has become a bucket list item for musicians and fans around the world. It’s all about bringing good hard-working folks together to enjoy some incredible music in one of the most beautiful places around,” said Sarah Calhoun, Red Ants Pants Music Festival founder and producer. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band remains a country music icon known for multiple top ten hits such as “Fishin’ in the Dark,” a string of multi-platinum and gold records along with having their recording of “Mr. Bojangles” inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2010.

Ryan Bingham has been featured in Rolling Stone, Esquire and the Washington Post. In 2010 Bingham’s song “The Weary Kind” for the Crazy Heart Soundtrack earned him a Grammy, Oscar, Golden Globe and Americana Artist of the Year Award. (High-resolution photos available below) This is the fifth year of the music festival which benefits the Red Ants Pants Foundation, a nonprofit organization in support of women's leadership, working farms and ranches, and rural communities. The Foundation also announced today it is now accepting applications for its Community Grant Cycle funded by the Red Ants Pants Music Festival. Grant applicants are encouraged to submit proposals for projects throughout the region that further the Foundation's mission of developing and expanding leadership roles for women, preserving and supporting working family farms and ranches, and enriching and promoting rural communities. Last summer, 13 grants were awarded. The application cycle is open now and will continue until April 30th. Applications and the list of the 2014 grant recipients are available on the Red Ants Pants Foundation website. The Foundation would like to thank everyone for the continued support of these projects and the Red Ants Pants Music Festival, which provides the funding for the grant cycle.

MORE INFORMATION 500 early bird tickets will go on sale online and at the Red Ants Pants store in White Sulphur Springs on Saturday April 4th, 2015 at 7pm at the discounted price of $110. Early bird tickets will be sold first come first serve. A three-day weekend pass is $125 in advance and $140 at the gate. One day passes are $50 in advance and $55 at the gate. Camping is $20 per person for the weekend. Camping passes are available only at the gate, but there will be plenty of room for everyone. Kids 12 and under are free for festival and camping when accompanied by an adult.