Folk-Rock Legend Ani DiFranco To Kick Off VersoFest At Westport Library

WESTPORT, CT — Ani DiFranco, the Grammy Award-winning musician, folk-rock legend, and cultural icon, is scheduled to kick off the four-day weekend of VersoFest 2026 in March at the Westport Library, organizers announced.

DiFranco will participate in a conversation with Lauren Coyle Rosen, co-author of their new book, The Spirit of Ani: Reflections on Spirituality, Feminism, Music, and Freedom. The talk will focus on The Spirit of Ani and explore DiFranco’s creativity, spirituality, and evolving consciousness.

Tickets for the conversation are $35 and can be purchased here. Each ticket will come with a copy of The Spirit of Ani.

From the announcement:

Additional programs scheduled for this year’s VersoFest will include a February 27 performance by rising rockers The Thing; a Friday night (March 27) concert with former Fugees star, celebrated rapper and singer, and multi-time Grammy winner Wyclef Jean; keynote conversations with performers, actors, and authors; plus panel discussions, an interactive art installation, and much, much more. See below and go to VersoFest.org for more.

About Ani DiFranco

DiFranco is a Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and musician who has released 23 albums, traversing genres and addressing a range of autobiographical, political, and social issues. She is widely considered a feminist icon, and created her own record label, Righteous Babe Records, in 1990. She regularly releases new music and continues her decades-long career as a major touring artist.

DiFranco released a collection of poems and paintings titled Verses in 2007. Her memoir, No Walls and the Recurring Dream, was a New York Times best-seller, and she is the author of two children’s books, The Knowing and Show Up and Vote.

In 2024, she completed a five-month run on Broadway in the role of Persephone in Hadestown.

About Lauren Coyle Rosen

Coyle Rosen is an award-winning author, artist, singer-songwriter, and cultural anthropologist. Her nonfiction books include Hannibal Lokumbe (co-authored with Hannibal Lokumbe), Law in Light, and Fires of Gold. Rosen has also published eight volumes of poetry and art, including, most recently, Veils of Athena. She founded and writes for the Spiritual Muses and is a fellow at Harvard University.

Coyle Rosen was formerly a cultural anthropology professor at Princeton University, where she received the President’s Award in Distinguished Teaching, among other honors. She is currently at work on her next nonfiction book, Goddess: A Revisionist History. In 2025, she released her first music album, Purify Flame.

About The Spirit of Ani

The Spirit of Ani is a captivating journey of intimate reflections with Ani DiFranco, a pathbreaking, highly original artist of our time. In this powerful collaborative work, the legendary folk-rock star and feminist icon is remarkably open about her creativity, spirituality, personal experiences, and evolving consciousness. She is vulnerable and unapologetic, offering an unprecedented window into her fiercely prolific journeys.

Expanding on themes from her best-selling memoir, DiFranco also offers fascinating reflections on contemporary popular culture — ranging from gender and queer politics, to the music industry in the virtual age, to climate change. The book includes previously unpublished photographs and journal entries, song-birth sheets, paintings, and the lyrics for some of her most treasured songs.

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VersoFest Visionary 2026: Ani DiFranco with Lauren Coyle Rosen

Thursday, March 26

7 pm

Trefz Forum, The Westport Library

Tickets: $35 (includes a copy of The Spirit of Ani)

Website: https://versofest.org/

Tickets: https://westportlibrary.org/versofest26-tickets/

Event listing: https://versofest.org/event/versofest-visionary-2026-ani-difranco-with-lauren-coyle-rosen/

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About VersoFest

VersoFest is The Westport Library’s annual music and media conference and festival where knowledge is shared and inspiration is discovered — a forum for media creators, artists, and fans to converge. VersoFest includes conversations where experts share their perspective and vision. Intimate workshops provide creators the opportunity to deconstruct, improve, and hone their craft. Performances entertain and inspire.

VersoFest is the showcase event for Verso Studios, the media arm of The Westport Library. This year’s festival, our fifth, is shaping up to be the best yet, headlined by a February 27 kickoff concert by rising rock band The Thing and a special March 27 Friday night performance featuring Grammy Award-winning artist, producer, composer and Fugees co-founder Wyclef Jean. Our weekend guests include David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets); actress Gina Gershon, who will be talking about her memoir, AlphaPussy; Adria Petty on the legacy of her dad, Tom Petty, and the legendary Heartbreakers; a VersoFest author talk with Claire Dederer on her book, Monster; a conversation with renowned music promoter Peter Shapiro (Capitol Theare, Brooklyn Bowl); an appearance by the African dance and music troupe Cumbe Dance; an interactive art installation exhibited by award-winning, video-based artist Holly Danger; and a screening of the film Baristas vs. Billionaires, directed by Academy Award nominee Mark Mori.

Tickets and registration for these acts will go live throughout January and February; check back to VersoFest.org for the latest announcements.

Past VersoFest guests include hip hop legend Chuck D; established hit-makers the Wallflowers, Spin Doctors, and the Smithereens; up-and-coming bands Sunflower Bean and the Lemon Twigs; the Roots lead emcee Black Thought; hardcore punk pioneer Henry Rollins; rockers Lez Zeppelin; famed producers Steve Lillywhite (U2, Dave Matthews Band) and Tony Visconti (David Bowie, T. Rex); Psychedelic Furs frontman Richard Butler; the Doors drummer John Densmore; Cramps drummer Miriam Linna; Alice Cooper Group bassist Dennis Dunaway; hip-hop originators Tony Crush and Grand Wizzard Theodore; David Letterman music director Paul Shaffer; SNL Beehive Queen Christine Ohlman; and a wide array of authors, photographers, artists, and thought leaders.