LifeLight Festival is an annual free outdoor Christian music festival

Christian music festival

A Christian music festival is a music festival held by the Christian community, in support of performers of Christian music...

 held over Labor Day

Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...

 weekend on farm near Worthing, South Dakota

Worthing, South Dakota

Worthing is a city in Lincoln County, South Dakota, United States and is a suburb of Sioux Falls. The population was 877 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Worthing is located at ....

, which is 12 miles south of Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Sioux Falls is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Sioux Falls is the county seat of Minnehaha County, and also extends into Lincoln County to the south...

History

LifeLight Festival was started by Alan and Vicki Greene in 1998 as an afternoon concert on a local church lawn, drawing about 2,000 people. By 2001, the festival was moved to the W.H. Lyons Fairgrounds in Sioux Falls to accommodate the growing crowds. In 2002, attendance tripled from the year before, growing to 32,000 attendees over a 3-day weekend. Now, LifeLight has grown to over 320,000 attendees over a 3-day weekend, expanding to 6 stages, with a budget of nearly $700,000 each year. After outgrowing previous festival locations, the LifeLight festival found a new permanent home for the Festival on a family farm near Worthing, SD. The 2010 Festival was the first at the new location. It is a free concert but provides a great economic boost to Sioux Falls.Festivals like this one said to bring up to $10 Million
Since 2005, LifeLight has also sponsored spring and fall tours featuring LifeLight artists. They started as local tours with primarily local artists but over the years, LifeLight Tours has partnered with several national and regional bands/speakers and now travel well beyond the Midwest for tour dates. Past tours have featured artists John Reuben

John Reuben

John Reuben is an American hip hop artist signed to Gotee Records until late 2010. Reuben has sold over 200,000 copies of his first four albums. He released his sixth album, Sex, Drugs and Self-Control on December 22, 2009...

, Brian Welch

Brian Welch

Brian Phillip Welch , better known as Head, is an American musician best known as the former guitarist and co-founder of the nu metal band Korn...

, Sanctus Real

Sanctus Real

Sanctus Real is an American Christian rock band formed in Toledo, Ohio, in 1996. The group is composed of Matt Hammitt , Chris Rohman , Dan Gartley , Pete Prevost , and Mark Graalman...

, Phil Joel

Phil Joel

Philip Joel Urry is a musician known as a solo artist in addition to being the former bassist for the Christian rock group Newsboys. He uses the name Phil Joel professionally due to pronunciation issues with his surname....

, Disciple

Disciple (band)

Disciple is a Christian metal / rock band from Knoxville, Tennessee, formed in 1992.-History:Disciple was formed in 1992 by high school friends Kevin Young, Brad Noah, and Tim Barrett. The band released their first CD, What Was I Thinking in 1995...

, Project 86

Project 86

Project 86 is an American Christian rock band from Orange County, California, formed in 1996. The line-up consists of bassist Steven Dail, vocalist and songwriter Andrew Schwab, and guitarist Randy Torres. The band has released seven studio albums, which have collectively sold over 500,000 units...

, Children 18:3

Children 18:3

Children 18:3 is a punk band from Morris, Minnesota. The band is composed of homeschooled siblings David, Lee Marie and Seth. The lead vocals are shared by David and Lee Marie with their brother Seth on the drums.-Formation and debut album:...

 and many more and traveled to cities in Texas, Illinois, Nebraska, Colorado, Minnesota, Iowa, and South Dakota as well as other states.
Attendance=

• 1998: 1,500
• 1999: 4,000
• 2000: 6,500
• 2001: 10,000
• 2002: 32,000
• 2003: 110,000
• 2004: 240,000
• 2005: 275,000
• 2006: 263,000
• 2007: 320,000
• 2008: 320,000
• 2009: 270,000
• 2010: 320,000

2010 Festival

• Abandon
  Abandon (band)
  Abandon is an American Christian rock band from San Antonio, Texas. The group has five members: brothers Josh and Justin Engler , cousins Stevan and Dave Vela , and Bryan Fowler . They signed onto ForeFront Records in late 2007 and released the Abandon EP in July 2008...
  
  
• BarlowGirl
  BarlowGirl
  BarlowGirl is an American Christian rock–CCM all-female band from Chicago, Illinois. The band is composed of sisters Alyssa , Rebecca , and Lauren Barlow . The band has won several awards in their genre; their song "Never Alone" was the longest running No...
  
  
• Brian "Head" Welch
  Brian Welch
  Brian Phillip Welch , better known as Head, is an American musician best known as the former guitarist and co-founder of the nu metal band Korn...
  
  
• Children 18:3
  Children 18:3
  Children 18:3 is a punk band from Morris, Minnesota. The band is composed of homeschooled siblings David, Lee Marie and Seth. The lead vocals are shared by David and Lee Marie with their brother Seth on the drums.-Formation and debut album:...
  
  
• Colossus
• David Crowder Band
  David Crowder Band
  The David Crowder Band is a six-piece Christian Modern Worship band from Waco, Texas.-Band history:The band began when David Crowder, from Texarkana, Texas, realized that almost half of the students at Baylor University were not attending church...
  
  
• Day of Fire
• Eric Timm
• Everyday Sunday
  Everyday Sunday
  Everyday Sunday is a band from Columbus, Ohio made up of Trey Pearson , Micah Kuiper, Tyler Craft, and Nick Spencer. The old band released 2 CDs on Flicker Records including Stand Up and Anthems for the Imperfect...
  
  
• Family Force 5
  Family Force 5
  Family Force 5 is a Christian crunk rock band from Atlanta, Georgia. They consist of Solomon "Soul Glow Activatur" Olds, Jacob "Crouton" Olds, Joshua "Fatty" Olds, Nathan "Nadaddy" Currin, and Derek "Chap Stique" Mount...
  
  
• House of Heroes
  House of Heroes
  House of Heroes is an alternative rock band from Columbus, Ohio. They were also known by the name No Tagbacks. They are generally considered to be Christian rock, though their lyrics are not always transparently Christian...
  
  
• John Mark McMillan
  John Mark McMillan
  John Mark McMillan is a singer/songwriter within the Christian music industry.In 2002, he released his debut album "Hope Anthology, Volume 1". In 2005 he released "The Song Inside the Sounds of Breaking Down", which included the track How He Loves...
  
  
• John Reuben
  John Reuben
  John Reuben is an American hip hop artist signed to Gotee Records until late 2010. Reuben has sold over 200,000 copies of his first four albums. He released his sixth album, Sex, Drugs and Self-Control on December 22, 2009...
  
  
• Kari Jobe
  Kari Jobe
  Kari Brooke Jobe is an American Christian singer and songwriter.- Biography :Kari Jobe was born in Waco, Texas to parents Mark Douglas and Caroline "Sandy" Jobe and was raised in Watauga, Texas and Hurst, Texas; she has two other siblings, Kristen and Caleb. Jobe first began singing at the age of...
  
  
• Mercy Me
• Mikeschair
  MIKESCHAIR
  Mikeschair is an American contemporary Christian band signed to Curb Records. The group has charted on the American Contemporary Christian music charts with the song "Can't Take Away", which was the seventh most played Contemporary Christian music song in the United States for the week of June 13,...
  
  
• Parachute Band
  Parachute Band
  Parachute Band is a worship band from Auckland, New Zealand, formed out of the New Zealand-based Christian organisation Parachute MusicThe band makes pop/rock music and is currently in its second generation, with the current line-up regularly topping the mainstream MySpace NZ Music Charts for acts...
  
  
• Reilly
• Seabird
  Seabird (band)
  Seabird is a Christian alternative rock band from Independence, Kentucky. The band formed when Aaron Morgan, Micah Landers, and Aaron Hunt began playing songs with each other in 2004. The band soon added accordion player David Smith. After playing together for a little under a year both Landers...
  
  
• Showbread
  Showbread (band)
  Showbread is an American Christian rock band originating in Guyton, Georgia. More specifically, the band lives in a small community within Guyton called Marlow. They formed in 1997. The band has gone through numerous lineup changes since its formation but maintains its two founding members, Josh...
  
  
• Sideshow
• Silverline
• Spoken
  Spoken (band)
  -Beginnings:Starting in 1996, Spoken quickly became a mainstay in their local music scene due to a relentless work ethic and performance schedule. Shortly after forming, Spoken was signed to their first record deal with Metro 1 Music, on which they released 3 LPs and a greatest hits compilation...
  
  
• These Hearts
• The Overseer
• Triple Stitch and More
• White Collar
• Willet
• Write This Down