Many nonagenarians are in bed with the sunset. But on September 20, 2025, there was Willie Nelson (now 93), anchoring the 40th edition of Farm Aid well past midnight, to 37,000 adoring fans in Minneapolis. The evening encapsulated many special things about Nelson—including his indefatigable quest to harness music and community to uplift the working class. 

Farm Aid—which Nelson established with John Mellencamp and Neil Young in 1985 during a wave of family farm bankruptcies—has raised more than $90 million in support of the cause. Nelson, who grew up picking cotton in Abbott, Texas, during the Great Depression, has railed against the decline of family farms for years. “We are determined to prevent the corporate takeover of all food production, making sure there is opportunity for independent farmers and ranchers on the land,” he wrote in a 2025 letter. 

Over the course of his career, Nelson has also helped raise millions for disaster relief, veterans, and victims of the 9/11 attacks, while championing environmental and animal advocacy and voting rights.