Streaming library of longer performances features more than 30 acts from the Fox Valley festival

Four days. 200 artists. 40 venues.

PBS Wisconsin will take viewers inside Appleton’s Mile of Music Festival in an all-new documentary and streaming archive of music performances.

Mile of Music premieres 8 p.m. Monday, June 23, on PBS Wisconsin and streaming online at pbswisconsin.org/mileofmusic. A streaming archive of performances from more than 30 artists who performed at the 2024 Mile of Music festival will also be available at that site and on the free PBS app on all streaming devices and smart TVs.

In the Fox Valley, music enthusiasts are also invited to see a special big-screen premiere of the new film during a special free screening at 6 p.m. Monday, June 16 at the Fox Cities Exhibition Center, 355 W. Lawrence Street in Appleton.

Registration via EventBrite is requested but is not required.

PBS Wisconsin recorded the immersive and music-filled documentary during the 2024 festival in Appleton. Live performances and artist interviews provide a front row seat to the free community music festival that showcases more than 200 emerging artists each year. Viewers will see and hear musicians from all over the world performing in a wide array of genres from the four-day celebration of original music and singer-songwriters.

The concert documentary and library of streaming performances explore the festival's diverse settings — from intimate listening rooms to energetic public spaces — through the eyes of performers including Christopher Gold, Illiterate Light, Abby Posner, Ben Mulwana, Tommy Prine and more.

“We are honored that PBS Wisconsin is able to share the magic of Mile of Music through the upcoming Mile of Music broadcast program,” Mile of Music founder Dave Willems said. “The Mile team has worked alongside the wonderful folks at PBS Wisconsin to make it happen since their very first festival visit in 2019, and are thrilled with the story that has been told with festival footage from 2024. We look forward to sharing our festival with a statewide audience, and beyond, through both the broadcast and online content."

“The way the community of Appleton comes together to host all these musicians and music fans is just amazing to see,” PBS Wisconsin Mile of Music producer Colin Crowley said. “Everyone at PBS Wisconsin worked really hard on this production to create a show that conveys the feeling of what it’s like to experience all the musical performances and community connections that happen every year at Mile of Music.”

“What a great collaboration between both the Mile of Music and PBS Wisconsin teams,” said Deb Piper, PBS Wisconsin Cultural Affairs Executive Producer and Producer of the Mile of Music digital content . “We recorded so many artists that, in addition to the fantastic concert documentary, we have curated a collection of 32 extended performances that can be viewed online. There is something for everyone to enjoy!”

Funding for Mile of Music is provided in part by the Wooden Nickel Fund, Elizabeth Olson, in memory of Modesta Olson, the Community Vision Fund within the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, Fox Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau, TDS Telecom, donors to the Focus Fund for Wisconsin Programs and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Lodging, catering and production spaces for Mile of Music provided in part by Hilton Appleton Paper Valley, Appleton Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriott, Telmark Sales Solutions, Heirloom Kitchen, St. Joseph Parish and History Museum at the Castle.

PBS Wisconsin is a service of the Educational Communications Board and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

PBS Wisconsin is a place to grow through learning on WHA-TV, Madison; WPNE-TV, Green Bay; WHRM-TV, Wausau; WLEF-TV, Park Falls; WHLA-TV, La Crosse; and WHWC-TV, Menomonie-Eau Claire.

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