The Newport Folk Festival has confirmed that Mavis Staples and Friends will perform on Sunday, July 27, at this year’s event. Staples is the first act to be announced for the festival, which began revealing its “rolling line-up” today.

The performance will be a bit of a birthday celebration for Staples, as a statement from Newport Folk explains:

Dear Folk, it is with great pleasure that we begin the 2014 rolling line-up by announcing Mavis Staples & Friends. Mavis has been celebrating her birthday at Newport since 1964. Therefore, in her honor, Newport Folk with the help of some special guests will celebrate “75 years of Mavis” throughout the weekend.

As our founder George Wein exclaims, “It’s a joy that we’re honoring Mavis Staples at this year’s Newport Folk Festival. I go back a long way with Mavis and her family, The Staple Singers. They were one of the first gospel groups to play at Newport and they appeared at both the Folk and Jazz Festival over the years. Pops Staples was a favorite of my wife Joyce, who would ask him to play acoustic guitar at our workshops, which were such a vital part of Newport in the sixties. We knew that Mavis was a star and were not surprised when she started her successful solo career. She is a wonderful artist and a beautiful person.”

The 2014 Newport Folk Festival will take place at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, RI July 25-27. Three-day passes and single day tickets for the event are still on sale.