VAN WERT — Van Wert Live has announced
the long-anticipated Feel Good Friday featured artists for 2023.
Completely underwritten by The Van Wert County Foundation, this
power-packed roster features diverse musical talents that span
generations of hits as well as some unexpected mash-ups. There are 10
free Friday night concerts from June 2 to Aug. 4 in downtown Fountain
Park, inside Van Wert’s DORA District. Food concessions, coordinated by
The Van Wert Parks & Recreation to benefit Van Wert’s nonprofit
organizations as well as the festivities of Mainstreet’s
Fourth Fridays, make downtown the perfect summer destination for family
fun. The music begins at 7:30 p.m. Fountain Park memories await with
Feel Good Friday swag sponsored by Laudick’s Jewelry and plenty of
feel-good times with friends in the sunshine.
Before the touring artists begin to arrive, The Van Wert Area Community Concert Band, directed by Richard Sherrick,
will warm up the stage and our hearts on Friday, May 26 with a kick-off
to the sounds of summer with Van Wert’s own hometown musical heroes.
JUNE
2: Van Wert turns up the volume to summer on Peony Festival Friday with
jukebox heroes, Head Games: A Tribute To Foreigner. This Atlanta-based
band perfectly recreates the music of one of the best-known musical
groups in history. Head Games plays all of the top songs that bring back
the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s hits that blared from hot cars cruising down
Main Street Van Wert. This First Friday of June may “Feel Like the First
Time” at Fountain Park.
JUNE 9: The
Michael Weber Show is an explosive rock group fronted by guitar phenom
and Akron-native, Michael Weber. He was the winner of MTV’s “Amazingness” television talent/variety show hosted by Rob Dyrdek and has performed on stage with numerous Grammy winners and Rock Hall inductees, including Counting Crows, Nils Lofgren (E-Street Band), Jim Peterik
(Survivor), and regularly with garage rock legends, The Shadows of
Knight (“Gloria”). Michael and his band are an explosive musical group
that defies genre definition. The band is a powerful unit of rock n’
roll action merging influences from different genres of music, including
but not limited to rock-a-billy, jazz, post-punk, folk, Afro-Latin, and
the blues. The band leader and namesake is a musical ingenue who is a
composer, musician, and producer and so much more. Like an Elvis of a
new era, you will be blown away by this eccentric and charismatic
performer who may be responsible for the start of a distinct genre of
their own.
JUNE 16: Attaboy
bursts on the scene with alternative music that is uplifting and
lasting with a catchy rock sound. This wildly popular indie-pop band
with faith-infused music will have Fountain Park praising the warmth of
summer and free live entertainment. Attaboy
has performed for more than two thousand audiences across North America
and Europe and has the talent to put their music on the top of just
about any charts list. Attaboy songs have a mixture of somber and power that is not only memorable but incredibly uplifting.
JUNE
23: Ya Mon! Summer is not complete without Reggae! For more than 20
years now, The Ark Band, previously known as the Saint Lucian reggae
band, has been spreading the joy of roots rock reggae all over the
United States. Terry and Eustace Bobb,
are revered as the Saint Lucian rhythm twins because of their
distinctive drum and bass sound. After playing in nearly every state in
the country, they have received the accolade of America’s Best Reggae
Band. Combining heavenly harmonies with tight, crisp, performances with a
honed setlist that combines
originals with classic/current hits designed to entertain, educate and
enlighten all people. The Ark Band continues to be a force expressing
the love, peace, togetherness, and spirituality needed in our world
today.
JUNE 30: Adam Calvert is
a Country music star on the rise who brings the sound of Nashville to
Van Wert. Adam is known for his role on MTV’s hit musical reality show,
“Taking The Stage” which was nominated for a Teen Choice Award. After
winning ‘Single of the Year’ at the Josie Music Awards and sharing the
stage with three of the most talked about country artists today; HARDY,
Cooper Alan, and Jon Langston;
Calvert’s rise took flight. He has performed over 200 concerts across
30 different states this past year and will make his mark in the heart
of Van Wert this Summer.
JULY 7: Bringing the best of the American rock anthems is America’s #1 Bon Jovi Experience, CRUSH! The Crush Bon Jovi Tribute band has been wowing audiences with their live stage show and authentic musical renditions of Bon Jovi’s
greatest hits for the better part of a decade. At this concert, the
audience will witness a 100% full-on, no-holds-barred, electrifying
musical experience that has to be lived to tell. All the big hits
including Living on a Prayer, It’s My Life, You Give Love a Bad Name,
Wanted Dead or Alive, and much more will light up the Fountain Park
night. This arena-sized production with plenty of moving lights, smoke,
and pyrotechnics play a respective tribute to one of the greatest bands
in the world. Note: The bigger the hair the better when attending this
Feel Good Friday. Van Wert Live collaborates with The Van Wert Chamber
on this first Friday of festive fun in Downtown Van Wert.
JULY
14: Back by popular demand! The family concert of the Feel Good Friday
Series in 2022 makes a triumphant return! Get out the Disney costumes
and head to Fountain Park for family fun with the ultimate Disney cover
band The Little Mermen. The band’s repertoire covers all 82 years of the
Disney canon, including favorites from The Little Mermaid, The Lion
King, Mary Poppins, and Frozen. The group performs in full costume with
band members dressing up as characters from the films. This Friday night
will be jam-packed with nostalgic fun and sing-alongs. They are hailed by BuzzFeed
and Time Out New York as the premiere Disney cover experience. Come
join the fun as the Fountain Park stage opens up the window to a whole
new world! In case it needs reminding, Disney music is enjoyable for all
ages.
JULY 21: Just named one
of Rolling Stone’s “Bands to Watch,” Willow Hill, has cemented
themselves as one of Nashville’s newest and most unique country
sensations. Led by the charismatic husband and wife duo of Alexandra
Fields and CT Fields, Willow Hill‘s distinct modern twist on the classic
country sound (often described as Lady Gaga & Kenny Chesney forming a supergroup) has helped them develop a groundswell fanbase
that spans the entire globe. The duo and their full Nashville band,
tours up to 200 dates per year both internationally and nationally from
the US to the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany, South America,
Virgin Islands, Ireland, and many more. Infusing quirky fun-loving
energy and heartfelt storytelling into their bombastic live show, Willow
Hill has performed at Sturgis, Rocklahoma, Warped Tour, Summerfest (World’s Largest Music Festival), and have shared stages with national artists including Miranda Lambert, Pat Benatar, Zac Brown, Aaron Lewis, and Brett Eldredge, amongst many others.
JULY 28: Sweet Diezel
Jenkins will give Feel Good Friday an extra dose of funk. This group
mashes up hits of yesterday and today, adding a heavy hand of backyard
feel-good party vibe with a dash of gritty juke
joint smoky goodness. Think of your favorite place that has that
awesome jukebox: Everything from old-school hip-hop and MTV ‘90’s
R&B classics… All mixed & mashed! There is no song genre
off-limits for these mash-up marvels. From Classic Rock to Pop hits and
beyond, Sweet Diezel Jenkins
puts them on vinyl and lets your favorite DJ cut, scratch, and create
live mashups that take the party to the next level. This is Sweet Diezel Jenkins!
AUGUST 4: Reverend Peyton’s
Big Damn Band delivers a Blues party while playing substantive music
that honors its roots. Their performance is gritty, authentic music
with, as the good Reverend declared, “human hands playing real
instruments.” This band is American roots music at its finest, steeped
in traditions brought forward with a modern sensibility, performed with
skill and passion. It has been referred to as the tent revival, with
punk energy that is a refreshing splash of cold water to the face. The
Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band is like a 20-year-old bourbon in a room of vodka Red Bulls and PBRs;
vintage yet timeless, exciting and still welcoming. With his wife,
Breezy, serving as a one-woman amen corner, and Max laying down the
floppy-boot-stomp drums behind Peyton’s
National steel slide guitar, the result is a peculiarly infectious
blues crusade. This band is certain to put an exclamation mark finish to
the Feel Good Fridays of Summer.
The Van Wert Area Performing Arts Foundation presenting VWLive
events is powered by the Van Wert County Foundation. Annual sponsors
making live entertainment happen in Van Wert are Central Insurance,
First Federal Bank of Van Wert, and Statewide Ford-Lincoln. The box
office is located within the Niswonger
Performing Arts Center, 10700 State Route 118 S, Van Wert. More
information on Feel Good Fridays ‘23 and the artists can be found at vanwertlive.com.