He said tickets were strictly limited and selling well.

The Illawarra Folk Club will host the event on September 27-29 at the Kiama Pavilion and Hindmarsh Park, after nine successful years hosting Folk in the Foothills in Jamberoo.

Mr Hannah said the line-up for this inaugural festival was top-notch.

"They have been booked on merit [a cheeky reference to the gender debate about Mr Abbott's cabinet appointment] and entertainment value," he said.

"They are people who hold true to the tenets of folk - they have to perform songs that are about something and chronicle their times.

"The good thing about a folk festival is that you can have a beer and the person standing next to you is the the 'star' that just came off-stage. There's a certain egalitarianism."

Mr Hannah thanked the Kiama Council, Surf and Rugby Clubs for their support and the state government, through Kiama MP Gareth Ward, for a $11,000 grant.

He said even a relatively small festival such as the one planned for Kiama would cost thousands of dollars to stage.

"When you look at the money that is given to other festivals or to opera and ballet - and I have nothing against those things, they are wonderful, cultural things - but they are not the music of the people," he said.

"What this money does is allow us to be able put on the very best musicians we can, without having to worry about how we will pay for it.

"The support from Gareth Ward is the best support we have had from any politician, in terms of actually coming good with the folding."

Mr Ward said he was pleased to have secured the discretionary grant from the premier to support the festival.

"Russell [Hannah], Rod [Cork] and Judy [Cork] are putting together a really fantastic program and it's a credit to their hard work and dedication that will make this festival a real success," Mr Ward said.

"It will generate great interest . . . and bring tourism dollars into Kiama."

Mr Hannah said Kiama Council have waived some fees.

"That enables us to keep the costs at a very reasonable level," he said. "Council will get their money's worth though."