Clark Co. native, Kate Hasting of Nashville-based, HASTING Music, first approached her team with a plan to move forward with Hasting Farm Fest in late 2017. She and her family had been brainstorming an event of this type for many years prior. Initially, it was imagined as a family-friendly, farm-themed experience and would be hosted at the Hasting’s family farm in NW Clark County. Seeing nothing like it, she longed to bring high quality singer-songwriters and entertainers to folks in her hometown, and provide an outlet for local vendors, agricultural suppliers, etc. She wanted to bring that ‘Clark-County-country-feel’, while locally supporting the fight against hunger. It was a way to give back to the community that had supported her music since its early days.

In June of 2018 a tragic automobile accident caused the death of Kate’s father, and nearly claimed her mother as well. As with many artists, Kate’s parents were her business and tour managers. The accident left her mother’s life and Kate’s career hanging in the balance. Kate believed her father would want her to power through, and she did. Not a single show of that summer’s tour was canceled—from Iowa to New York, and everywhere in between, she showed up for her fans. Just three weeks after the accident, she and her family, band and creative crew fulfilled the scheduled show and music video shoot for her hit single, “American Love” at the Clark County Fair—ironically, written about her parent’s deep love for one another. Kate moved back to the farm from Nashville for several months to help care for her mother. Plans for a Hasting Farm Fest were moved to a back burner for many years.

TODAY, the spirit of HFF is the same as it was years ago: to provide a fun musical experience rooted in family, friends, and farming. It’s an opportunity to enrich the community who supported Hasting Music and Kate’s entire family on their long road to recovery. HASTING has toured much of the United States, having played hundreds of venues, festivals, events, and fairgrounds—but none quite like her beloved Clark County, Ohio—the birth place of 4-H. She and four generations before her grew up raising and showing livestock at the Clark County Fair. It became clear the community was ready for an experience like Hasting Farm Fest, and that the Clark County Fairgrounds was the ultimate spot. Its central location offers important amenities, and that genuine farm-feel needed for hosting this new Clark County tradition. In 2024, Hasting Farm Fest was born!