“Following a four-year hiatus, Jack the Radio is back. It’s the Raleigh rock scene’s dream come true. Jack the Radio is back with a new album and a collab beer with Trophy Brewing—a Helles lager with 100% NC Pilsner malt dubbed Jack the Radio Fast Fun (a nod to their 2023 single). After a four-year hiatus, the roots rockers are set to drop Under Lonely Light June 21, with a release show slated for June 22 at The Pour House feat. Fancy Gap, a comic release and vinyl fresh off the presses.
The magazine caught up with half the group, George Hage and Danny Johnson, ahead of their tunes and brews release. Learn more at this link.
Hundreds of free outdoor music-making events to be held across the state
Thirteen cities and counties in North Carolina will join forces to present hundreds of free outdoor musical events on Friday, June 21, for Make Music Day, a global music celebration on the summer solstice each year that brings people of all ages and skill levels together to make music.
This year, with support from the North Carolina Arts Council, Bertie County, Brunswick County, Catawba County, Kinston, McDowell County, Raleigh, Stanly County, Statesville, Stokes County, Surry County, Vance County, Wilmington and Winston-Salem are some of the 150+ U.S. communities hosting thousands of Make Music Day performances nationwide, as part of the world’s largest annual music event.
Make Music Day began in France in 1982 as the Fête de la Musique, and in the years since it has spread to thousands of cities across 120 countries. This year is the first time it has been celebrated across the state of North Carolina.
Distinct from a traditional music festival, Make Music Day celebrates and encourages the natural music maker in all of us, regardless of age, ethnicity, background, or skill level. Make Music Day is a free and open invitation for everyone to perform, teach, learn, and experience the joy of making music on the longest day of the year. Reimagining their cities and towns as stages, every kind of musician – young and old, amateur and professional, of every musical persuasion – pours onto streets, parks, plazas, porches, rooftops, gardens and other public spaces to celebrate, create and share their music with friends, neighbors, and strangers.
“North Carolina has proven to be fertile ground for a rich and diverse musical tapestry, with music and musicians that have impacted and been influenced by musical traditions from around the world,” said Jeff Bell, executive director of the North Carolina Arts Council. “It’s exciting to have communities all across our state participating in Make Music Day this year to highlight the joy that music can offer to participants and audiences alike. We hope that other communities are encouraged to take part in future Make Music Day celebrations.”
Highlights of Make Music North Carolina include:
· Brunswick County: It’s a crazy year in Brunswick, with all-day Kazoo-Fests at branch libraries Rourk (in Shallotte), Harper (in Southport), Barbee (in Oak Island), and Southwest Brunswick (in Calabash). Free kazoos will be distributed while supplies last. The Harper branch library hosts Beatles Trivia at 2 p.m. as well. From noon to 5 p.m., Waterway Music & Education in Southport will host a free guitar string change-out and give out free rhythm sticks while supplies last. The Music Traders store in Shallotte will host a music jam from 4-6 p.m. Free performances include Tina Smith, joined by family and friends, for an old-fashioned front porch jam session El Coqui in Shallotte from 4-7 p.m., The Entertainers outdoor community concert hosted by Oak Island Parks & Rec in Middleton Park from 6:30-8:30 p.m., and the Brunswick Big Band indoor concert from 7-9 p.m., full of swing & dance fun at the Leland Cultural Arts Center.
· Catawba County: Make Music Catawba County will be a countywide celebration of music from all walks of life, administered by Arts Culture Catawba. Events included so far are Street Jams in Downtown Hickory and Downtown Newton, an Open Mic Night with the Hickory Music Factory, and a Songwriters Session hosted by Cesar Cruz. Musicians of all skill levels are invited and welcome to join us as we create music all day long across our community.
· McDowell County: We’re thrilled to present a Jam + Harmonize + Open Mic from 5-7 p.m. hosted by the FCS String Band and Chorus. The FCS String Band and Chorus, led by Freddy Bradburn, will perform a set of both old-time and original songs. Following their set will be an opportunity for the audience to participate in a beginner-friendly harmonica melody led by Mr. Freddy, with 30 free harmonicas provided! After the harmonica lesson, individuals and groups may sign up to perform a song at the open mic session.
· Raleigh: For the second year, Make Music Raleigh will host a series of events across Raleigh and Wake County. Among them: The City of Raleigh Museum will feature several interactive events, including a harmonica workshop, an instrument zoo with orchestral instruments provided and curated by the N.C. Symphony, and a bucket drumming session at Campbell University School of Law. Azure Violins in the Mordecai neighborhood will host a ukulele learning/strumming session for everyone, including beginners, with loaner ukes available, as we learn to play a song in less than 30 minutes! The Raleigh Uke Jam and the Handsome Ladies of Raleigh also will lead open jams at local libraries. Bring your axes and join the fun!
· Statesville: Downtown Statesville will transform into a vibrant musical experience with live performances, workshops, open mics, drum circles, STEM classes, buskers, karaoke, and more at every turn, both indoors and outdoors. No matter your musical preference, there will be something for everyone to enjoy.
· Stanly County: The Stanly County Arts Council is excited to bring the joy of Make Music Day to Stanly County, an area with strong and deep roots in many genres of music. We’re partnering with music instructors from Music on Main and rBc Music Store to provide free workshops throughout the day in both Albemarle and Locust, including bucket drumming, ukulele, guitar, voice, harmonica, and How to Build a Rock Band. All library branches will have stations to create your own rhythm instruments; the Stanly County History Center will explore all the countries that participate in Make Music Day and what instruments they play; Chorale will show you how to make your own kazoo, and our local music stores will host Instrument Petting Zoos with the assistance of our Concert Band members as demonstrators. Local musicians also will play throughout the county in venues such as breweries, bakeries, coffee shops, park amphitheaters, courtyards and the porch of the Historic 1852 Snuggs House.
· Stokes County: Make Music Day in Stokes County is offering something for everyone with live music at five different locations — 1889 Taphouse, Sto Co Provisions, Daily Basket, Palmetto Theatre, and The Arts Place of Stokes, featuring a Youth Open Mic Night.
· Surry County: It’s Mount Airy’s first Mayberry Make Music Day! We welcome musicians of all genres, ages,and skill levels to learn drumming rhythms, perform karaoke, play with MAUI — Mount Airy’s ukulele group — sing along to pop and gospel tunes, participate in an open mic session with our local DJ, take in a Makey-Makey surprise, and more! Enjoy special highlights at Mount Airy’s own traditional Surry County music jam. Music sounds better in Mayberry.
· Wilmington: Make Music Day Wilmington will be hosted at the Harrelson Center, a downtown campus of nonprofits that has long welcomed the community for a variety of humanitarian services. With expansive outdoor spaces, the venue offers a perfect venue for performances including a ukulele group; the Hot Flashes, a band of middle-aged female rockers, and a DJ with international influences. Organizers are working to recruit people with marching band experience to create a Sousapalooza.
Any musician, amateur or professional, young or old, is invited to visit MakeMusicDay.org to find the nearest Make Music Day celebration and sign up to participate. Likewise, businesses, buildings, schools, churches, and other institutions can visit the website to offer their outdoor spaces as concert locations.
For links to participating communities throughout the state, visit makemusicday.org/nc.
For more information, contact Karen Loew of the Make Music Alliance: karen@makemusicday.org, 917-621-5174 or Rick Henderson of Make Music Day Raleigh at rhenderson58@yahoo.com.
About Make Music Day Held annually on June 21 to coincide with the summer solstice, Make Music Day is part of the international Fête de la Musique taking place in thousands of cities across 120 countries. The daylong musical free-for-all celebrates music in all its forms, encouraging people to band together and play in free public concerts. This year, over 150 U.S. cities are organizing Make Music celebrations, encompassing thousands of music making opportunities nationwide. Make Music Day is presented by The NAMM Foundation and coordinated by the nonprofit Make Music Alliance. For more information, please visit makemusicday.org.
According to ABC 11, the 2022 Dreamville Festival brought $6.7 million to the local economy. Restaurants, bars and retail shops saw a boost in tourism revenue. Many area hotels saw an average 92% capacity rate.
The Down Home Concert Series has another seven shows scheduled, all of them happening Friday nights at Fletcher Opera Theatre. The rest of the season breaks down as follows (tickets for all events are on sale at pinecone.org).
Appalachian Road Show invites you to come and sit a spell as the five-piece band weaves together songs and stories emanating from the mountains and hollers of North Carolina and Virginia, to the coal mines of West Virginia and Kentucky. The band was nominated for the coveted “Entertainer of the Year” Award at the 2023 International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Awards.
Greensky Bluegrass began making music in 2000 and stood out for their non-traditional take on bluegrass, where they fused rock and acoustic influences.
Known for their improvisation on stage as well as performing multiple sets at one show, this five-piece band began in Michigan and has since has seen many changes, particularly to their line up. However, what remains the same is their original sound, compelling performances and indisputable passion. As well as their original songs, the band has also covered The Rolling Stones, Prince, Aerosmith and Bruce Springsteen, just to name a few.
You can check out this unique group at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 18, at The Ritz in Raleigh. Tickets are $49 for general admission and can be found at this link.
From the good folks at Hopscotch: Act fast, y’all! These are the lowest prices available for 2024, and quantities are extremely limited. New for 2024: payment plans are available during checkout! Buy your 3-day GA or VIP passes for just 20% down, and split the remaining balance over four additional payments. For more info on payment plans, visit our website. We can’t wait to reunite with you all for another Hopscotch Music Festival in the heart of downtown Raleigh
The annual event has made Raleigh its home since 2013
As the World of Bluegrass festival kicks off its 11th year in Downtown Raleigh this week, the organization behind the event says 2024 will be its final year in the city.
The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) will no longer hold its five-day conference and festival in Raleigh beginning in 2025, organizers announced Wednesday following the IBMA 2023 Momentum Awards luncheon.
While the event has been a big driver of tourism and economic activity downtown since 2013, its numbers have fallen sharply since the pandemic. Raleigh officials say the plan is to replace the event with a new festival with an expanded scope.
The IBMA’s board of directors is conducting a site search and will announce a new host city by the end of the year.
In the meantime, organizers of the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA)’s World of Bluegrass, taking place Sept. 26-30, 2023, in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, say they are looking forward to a “normal” year after surviving two hurricanes and a pandemic over the past 11 years the festival has been held in the state’s capital.
This year’s weeklong bluegrass conference and festival offers both ticketed performances at Red Hat Amphitheater, the Raleigh Convention Center, the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts and other venues scattered throughout downtown as well as five additional free StreetFest Stages during WideOpen Bluegrass on Friday, Sept. 29-30.
The 11th annual event kicked off Tuesday with the annual Bluegrass Ramble Showcase and Business Conference. The award-winning band Special Consensus along with special guests launched the musical performances on Tuesday evening at the Lincoln Theatre.
“When the festival is in town every third person has a fiddle, guitar or banjo on their back,” said David Brower, festival producer and executive director of PineCone, the Raleigh-based non-profit that helps IBMA produce the festival. “It’s one of the best times of the year in downtown Raleigh.”
Bluegrass music’s self-described biggest event of the year is set to run in Raleigh through 2024 after which it will move on to a yet undisclosed location, organizers said during Wednesday’s Momentum Awards luncheon, sponsored by Campbell University School of Law. For the 11th year, PNC Bank returns as the presenting sponsor of IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC.
The 2023 winners of the Momentum Awards are:
Band of the Year – Crying Uncle Bluegrass Band of California
Vocalist of the Year – Carley Arrowood-Thrailkill
Instrumentalists of the Year – Bass player Maddie Dalton of Sister Sadie and Resophonic Guitar and Banjo player Gaven Largent of East Nash Grass
Mentor of the Year – Dan Boner, artist, director and professor at Eastern Tennessee State University’s Bluegrass, Old-Time and Roots Music Studies and IBMA Board Chair
Momentum Industry Involvement Award – Matt Hutchinson, host/producer of Bluegrass Jam Along podcast
The Industry Awards and the 34th Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Show, presented by Yamaha, will be announced on Thursday, Sept. 28, with hosts Ketch Secor and Molly Tuttle.
The Main Stage performances at Red Hat Amphitheater for this year’s festival will begin at 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
The daily lineup for the Main Stage performances at Red Hat Amphitheater includes:
Friday, Sept. 29
The Del McCoury Band
Mighty Poplar
Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper
AJ Lee & Blue Summit
Kids on Bluegrass
Saturday, Sept. 30
Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
Kruger Brothers play Doc Watson (with special guest Jerry Douglas)
The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys (with special guest Bobby Osborne)
Jake Blount, Kaia Kater & Tray Wellington
Missy Raines & Allegheny (with special guest Alison Brown)
“We are proud that IBMA Bluegrass Live! continues to provide stellar bluegrass music to more fans than any festival in the world,” said IBMA Interim Executive Director Paul Schiminger. “It is truly a celebration of our great music! The lineup on this year’s main stage at the Red Hat Amphitheater is an exciting mix of Hall of Famers and some of the most dynamic and creative artists in bluegrass. Don’t miss these unique and incredible performances!”
Brower added, “There’s a little something for everyone. The main stage at Red Hat Amphitheater has multiple Hall of Fame members, a brand-new super group, hot rising stars and a celebration of 100 years of Doc Watson. And then wait until folks see the lineup for the StreetFest stages that will line the streets of downtown Raleigh. You’re gonna be able to walk around and celebrate where we’ve been as a genre and at the same time get a sneak peek of where we might be headed.”
ABOUT IBMA
IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC is part of the five-day IBMA World of Bluegrass event, billed “The Most Important Week in Bluegrass,” which also includes the IBMA Business Conference, the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble showcase series and the 34th Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards. Tickets and hotel reservations are open now for the general public. More information is available at the IBMA World of Bluegrass website.
I am so excited to see The Midatlantic in this lineup for the first Folk ‘N’ Funk Music Festival at Bowstring Pizza and Brewyard in Raleigh! Grab your tickets starting at $15 now, as they are limited at this link.
Ketch Secor and Molly Tuttle to host this year’s show on September 28
From the good folks at the International Bluegrass Music Association: Ketch Secor and Molly Tuttle have been announced as hosts for the 34th Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Show, presented by Yamaha, on Thursday, Sept. 28 during the 2023 IBMA World of Bluegrass®.
Secor is the consummate entertainer: the merry ringmaster, mischievous busker, passionate professor, modern Beat, and unassuming virtuoso, all rolled into one. Ketch is best known as the founder and frontman of Old Crow Medicine Show, a two-time GRAMMY Award-winning juggernaut whose triumphs include induction into the Grand Ole Opry and double-platinum certification for their iconic hit single “Wagon Wheel.” The scope and potency of Ketch’s work has long since spilled over to include documentaries, writing and starring in variety shows, authoring a children’s book, composing a musical, and launching a school. His myriad projects also include serving as an advisor, historical consultant, and featured speaker in Ken Burns’ acclaimed 2019 documentary Country Music. “Whether I’m in front of an audience of concert-goers or a six-year-old, whether I’m using puppets or a banjo, I’m always trying to show people that they can be mesmerized by a story, by a person, by a character,” says Ketch. “By humanity, really. By one another.”
Jubilee, releasing August 25 via ATO Records, is a companion album to Old Crow Medicine Show’s critically-acclaimed 2022 release Paint This Town and marks the band’s 25-year anniversary. The album was co-produced with Matt Ross-Spang, and features several special guests including legendary soul singer Mavis Staples, singer/songwriter Sierra Ferrell, and Old Crow co-founder Willie Watson, who records with the band for the first time in over 10 years on their recent single “Miles Away.”
Since moving to Nashville in 2015, Tuttle has continued to receive widespread accolades, most recently earning seven 2023 IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards nominations: Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, Guitar Player of the Year, Album of the Year (Crooked Tree), Song of the Year (“Crooked Tree”), Instrumental Group of the Year and Collaborative Recording of the Year (“From My Mountain [Calling You]” with Peter Rowan and Lindsay Lou). Additionally, Tuttle also won Best Bluegrass Album at the 65th Annual GRAMMY Awards earlier this year (Crooked Tree), Album of the Year at the 2023 International Folk Music Awards, IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year in 2022, Instrumentalist of the Year at the 2018 Americana Music Awards, and IBMA Guitar Player of the Year in both 2017 and 2018.
Tuttle’s new album, City of Gold, was released last month on Nonesuch Records to critical praise. Once again produced by Tuttle and Jerry Douglas, City of Gold was inspired by Tuttle’s constant touring with Golden Highway these past few years and follows her 2022 release of Crooked Tree.
“I’m thrilled Ketch and Molly will host this year’s Awards Show,” said Paul Schiminger, Interim Executive Director of IBMA. “They are sure to make the ‘Biggest Night in Bluegrass’ a memorable and entertaining night for everyone gathered to celebrate a terrific year in bluegrass music!”
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