Residents of Lillington and the surrounding areas are in for a treat with the return of the Lillington Chamber of Commerce’s Cape Fear Fest presented by Visit Harnett.

This year’s free event will feature local vendors, food trucks, live entertainment and a Kids Zone on East Front Street in Lillington from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Guests can also enjoy the return of the highly anticipated cornhole tournament, Kayak Race and Duck Derby taking place at Cape Fear Adventures from 3 p.m.- 6 p.m. 

This year’s festival will also feature a stacked schedule of live, local talent that will be performing throughout the day. 

The festival will begin with a local ROTC group Presenting the Colors at 10 a.m. sharp. Following the official opening ceremony will be performances from local gospel group Voices of Praise from the Revival Center from 10:15- 10:45 a.m. and a performance from Dunn’s SOLINA Dance Productions from 11:00- 11:45 a.m. 

After which, featured performer Cannan James will take the stage from 12 p.m. - 1 p.m. 

With a sound described by those in the music industry as being “a mashup of Tyler Farr, Kip Moore & Chris Stapleton,” Canaan James is a five time award nominated singer/songwriter originally from Upstate NY who moved down south in 1996. 
He recently journeyed to Nashville to pursue his dream of recording music and has taken his music to all digital platforms and beyond with the release of his newest song, "This Time," and recently released song "One of a Kind." 
His newest single was aired for the first time on FM radio on Sunday, Jan. 7, and can now be heard on more than 30 radio stations across the U.S. Canaan currently lives in Erwin and is a big supporter of local businesses and the community.

“He came highly recommended from another chamber. I listened to his music and I sent it to other people to make sure they really liked the music and they said “Yes, absolutely!’ So he will be our featured artist for the festival,” shared Robin Moody, executive director of the Lillington Area Chamber of Commerce. 

But the fun vibes won’t stop between acts. The Chamber has also brought on Justin Powers with Powers of Sound to DJ the event and close out the festival from 1- 2 p.m. 

“We have a live DJ and he's amazing. So he'll  be playing music throughout the festival whenever we don't have the live entertainment going,” said Moody. 

For Moody, who took on the role of Executive Director at the Lillington Chamber of Commerce in July of 2023, this will be her first time not only planning but experiencing Cape Fear Fest with the rest of the community. 

“I'm really looking forward to it. My heart is community and in building community connections, so we want to make this festival just phenomenal for our community; and for people outside of our community to come in and learn more about Lillington and be a part of our community, it makes me so happy. And I think, people being able to get a feel and a taste of Lillington by being here is just going to be awesome,” said Moody. 

Find out more about this year’s Cape Fear Fest and how you can get involved by visiting the Lillington Area Chamber of Commerce website here. 

You can also learn more about featured performer Canaan James on his webpage here.