Grammy-nominated Missy Raines was recently named International Bluegrass Music Association Bass Player of the Year, for the tenth time, more than any other bass player in the history of the organization. Missy Raines & Allegheny features some of the brightest young stars in bluegrass today with Tristan Scroggins on mandolin, Ellie Hakanson on fiddle, Ben Garnett on guitar, and Eli Gilbert on banjo.
Actor and Billboard Top 30 charting singer-songwriter Alicia Witt has played her piano-driven pop-rock music all over the world, including at the renowned Grand Ole Opry. She appeared in 2023 on Fox’s The Masked Singer, winning her first episode as Dandelion. Witt’s newest EP, Witness, came out in 2023; she released The Conduit in Fall 2021, which she co-produced, including single Chasing Shadows which spent 5 weeks on the Billboard Top 30 AC Radio chart. Previous releases include 15000 Days, produced by Grammy award-winning producer Jacquire King (Kings of Leon, Norah Jones , Dawes) and the Ben Folds produced Revisionary History, hailed by Nashville Scene as “a piano-pop gem that sounds by turns like “Grey Seal”-era Elton John ; an alt-universe Fiona Apple and a film-noir chanteuse notching her nights in cigarette burns on the fallboard.”
Located on the ancestral homelands of the Anishinaabe, the Ark is proud to partner with the University of Michigan Native American Student Association (NASA) and local singer songwriter and NASA alum Joe Reilly to host this concert in conjunction with the golden anniversary of the Ann Arbor Pow Wow.
Featuring Native American Music Award winners Keith Secola and Annie Humphrey, Joe Reilly and the Community Gardeners, and the All Nations Dancers, the concert will deliver Native folk music and pow wow dancing at its finest. You won’t want to miss this important chance to hear from some of Indian Country’s best performers and support our local Native community.
Singer-songwriter Colin Hay, most beloved for his intimate, confessional live shows is most widely known for being an influential and celebrated frontman. The range of artists who have chosen to cite him as a muse or who have found themselves on stage with him in the past year spans the genre landscape from heavy metal, to Americana, to Cuban rhythms and beyond. His inclusion as a playlist favorite from the likes of Metallica to The Lumineers reflects his continuing relevance and broad appeal.
Special Guest: Frances Luke Accord
The Ark 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesSongwriter May Erlewine travels the Midwest in the spring, offering an intimate evening of music and togetherness. May’s songs cut right to the heart of things, creating a space to feel and to enjoy a night of music and community. Joining Erlewine on guitar, the incredibly talented, Packy Lundholm. This tender duo has traveled the world together digging deep into each performance to bring you a very uniquely heart-full experience.
Jill Sobule’s work is at once deeply personal and socially conscious, seriously funny and derisively tragic. In a dozen albums spanning three decades of recording, the Denver-born songwriter/guitarist/singer has tackled such topics as the death penalty, anorexia nervosa, shoplifting, reproduction, the French Resistance, adolescent malaise, LGBTQ issues, and the Christian Right. Her hits include “I Kissed A Girl”—the first openly gay-themed song ever to crack the Billboard Top 20—and the alt-rock anthem “Supermodel” featured in the film “Clueless”.
Stringfever is a group of talented musicians who have lived and breathed music since a young age. Formed in 2003, and currently composed of three siblings and their cousin, this internationally acclaimed quartet has performed 1000+ Shows in 33 countries since 2004, from private performances for the British Royal family to a packed audience at Madison Square Garden. Stringfever’s selections range from inspiring classics to popular music; every performance engaging audiences with humor and energy.
Whether you're looking for your big break, want to perfect your live performance skills, or just want to perform live for the sheer fun of it, Open Stage nights offer supportive audiences and a terrific space. Performers have eight minutes (or two songs) each to do their thing. Doors open at 7:30, and names are drawn at 7:55 and 8:30. If your name isn't chosen, bring your raffle ticket with you next time, and you'll double your chances.
Vance was born and raised in the Philadelphia area. Starting out hoping to be an R&B and jazz singer once at college, there he discovered his affinity for the storytelling sensibilities of the acoustic singer-songwriter thing. Word spread like wildfire about Gilbert's stage-owning singing and playing, and Shawn Colvin invited him to be special guest on her 1992 Fat City tour where he took much of America by storm and by surprise. “With the voice of an angel, the wit of a devil, and the guitar playing of a god..” wrote the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
It's hard to believe, because each show is fresh and new, but the RFD Boys have been delighting Michigan audiences since 1969 with their fabulous musicianship and sly, exquisitely timed between-song humor. The RFD Boys are one of southeastern Michigan's most durable musical ensembles, and their shows capture a deep slice of musical Ann Arbor.
Opener: King Margo
The Ark 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesOver the course of her 25-year career, Susan Werner has earned a reputation as “one of the most innovative songwriters working today” (Chicago Tribune). With formidable chops on guitar (she began playing at age five) and piano (she was a guest on NPR’s Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz), along with a graduate degree in voice performance, she puts on shows that are a one-woman master class in musicianship. Her songs have been recorded by Tom Jones, Michael Feinstein, and Shemekia Copeland. Her latest recording of originals is “The Birds of Florida.”
Special Guest: Old Man Luedecke
The Ark 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesWhen Matt Andersen steps on stage, he brings a lifetime of music to every note he plays. His latest album, “The Big Bottle of Joy,” is all about hard-won celebration; a dozen songs infused with raw blues-rock, rollicking Americana, thoughtful folk, and ecstatic gospel. Andersen’s stage presence is informed by decades of cutting his teeth in dusty clubs, dim-lit bars, and grand theaters all over the world, delivering soulful performances that run the gamut from intimate to wall-shaking.