The Ark

Palmyra
2025-09-23 20:00 - 23:00 (America/Detroit) | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Established in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, Palmyra captures the collective spirit of three Virginia natives: Teddy Chipouras, Mānoa Bell, and Sasha Landon.
Palmyra straddles at least two musical worlds. They are, on one hand, a band from the South that plays traditional instruments and indeed once lived in the old-time locus of Floyd, Virginia. Comparisons to and a kinship with The Avett Brothers and even Old Crow Medicine Show are inevitable. On the other hand, Palmyra writes about grief, gender dysphoria and identity, and coming of age in songs that flirt with soul, post-rock, and even emo; the South, too, is the place of My Morning Jacket, Band of Horses, Cat Power, and now, Palmyra.
The band’s first full length LP, Restless, is out March 2025 on Oh Boy Records. Framed by moments of struggle, solidarity, and hard-won growth, Restless is an unqualified ringer for anyone who loves the space where the roar of indie rock collides with raw folk.
The Ark’s Artist Spotlight Series is made possible with support from Ford Philanthropy. It is presented live, and also livestreamed on The Ark’s Facebook page.
Tonight’s show is FREE (nonperishables accepted for Food Gatherers).

Ron Sexsmith
2025-09-24 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Ron Sexsmith is a three time Juno award winning songwriter from Ontario, Canada. He has written and recorded an extensive and acclaimed catalog of studio albums and original songs, beginning with his self titled debut in 1995. Ron is set to release his eighteenth studio album, Hangover Terrace, this August.
In the past few decades as a headlining artist, Ron has performed at some of the most prestigious venues in the world, such as Massey Hall, Carnegie Hall, London’s Royal Albert Hall, as well as The London Palladium.
A child of melody, his music has been described as a hybrid of Canadian folk heroes such as Gordon Lightfoot and Leonard Cohen mingled with that of The Kinks, Beatles and other British invasion acts of his formative years.
His songs have been covered by many revered artists such as Rod Stewart, kd Lang, Emmylou Harris, Michael Buble, Feist, Elvis Costello, and Stevie Nicks to name only a few.
In 2017, Ron penned his first novel ‘Deer Life, A Fairy Tale’ published worldwide by Dundurn Press Limited. He has written a ‘yet to be released’ complete musical score to accompany the tale, for his vision to bring the story to the stage as musical theatre or to adapt to film. Ron will be making his theatrical composer debut in 2025 with the internationally renowned Stratford Festival production of ‘As You Like It’ in Stratford, Ontario, Canada. He currently lives in Perth County, Ontario with his wife, his piano, and his vinyl record collection and continues to be inspired to write, record and perform live worldwide.

Issues and Ale: NCAA's New World Order
2025-09-25 19:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
College sports are undergoing seismic changes – whether it’s the landmark House legal settlement, the introduction of Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) money for athletes, or the use of the transfer portal. Join Morning Edition host Doug Tribou as he moderates a panel of sports experts, including bestselling author and sports commentator John U. Bacon, in a discussion about the collegiate sports environment. The panel will look at the immediate effects of the House settlement, explain what fans can expect in the coming years, and take questions from the audience. This event is part of the popular series, Issues & Ale, from Michigan Public, the state’s largest public radio network.

John Craigie
2025-09-26 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
John Craigie has mastered the art of creating live shows that feel more like intimate conversations than performances. Infusing humor, wit, and poignant storytelling, his shows are a space where audience members feel like old friends. Whether he’s headlining solo or sharing the stage with longtime collaborators, Craigie’s ability to make his crowd laugh, reflect, and connect is second to none. As he prepares to release Greatest Hits… Just Kidding… Live – No Hits, his latest live album captures the warmth and spontaneity of these memorable nights.
At this point, there have been quite a few good shows in the rearview…
As a tried-and-true performer, he has regularly sold out solo tours in addition to hitting the road with the likes of Langhorne Slim, Brett Dennen, Mason Jennings, Bella White and Jack Johnson. He has picked up fans with sets at Newport Folk Festival, Pickathon, Edmonton Folk Festival, and High Sierra Music Festival. Including numerous European tours and his first Australian tour in spring of 2024 Moreover, his annual river trip on the Tuolumne River—just outside of Yosemite in California—has remained a hit with his audience, hosting one sellout after another. Giving back as much as possible, he notably launched the #KeepItWarm Tour during the holidays. By donating $1 from every ticket sale, this headline run has raised money for regional non-profits with the goal of fighting food insecurity. An avowed Beatles acolyte, he has performed acoustic renditions of the albums Abbey Road and Let It Be live in front of packed crowds and partnered with Record Store Day for limited-edition vinyl releases of those concerts.
Simultaneously, his catalog has continued to reel in tens of millions of streams fueled by favorites such as “I Am California,” “Highway Blood,” “Don’t Ask,” and “Microdose.” Maintaining a prolific pace, 2024’s Pagan Church saw him join forces with TK & The Holy Know-Nothings. Among many highlights, it logged six weeks at #1 on the Americana Radio Albums Chart. Inciting critical applause, Pop Matters raved, “All of Craigie’s songs are made of something truly ineffable,” and American Highways assured, “Along with excellent musicianship across the album, there are genuinely pretty moments on ‘Pagan Church.’” Meanwhile, he joined forces with Langhorne Slim for a duet song “Out On The Road.”
To him, the live albums seek to achieve a sound where the listener will feel like they’re in the venue, sitting and experiencing the show with the rest of the crowd.

Willi Carlisle
2025-09-27 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Folksinger Willi Carlisle holds tight the conviction that love is bigger than hate, and no-one is expendable. Carlisle’s music has always been a dance between absurdity, spectacle, and philosophy. On his fourth studio album, Winged Victory, Carlisle returns with his signature blend of traditionally-rooted folk music and kaleidoscope of oddball characters to confer with his core tenets in more overt and provocative ways.
Carlisle delivers Victory as the next chapter in his long-running direct address to the hope that by understanding our collective suffering we might be free of it. He’s intent on creating art and a well-rounded life in a broken world. The idea began with 2022’s Peculiar, Missouri when Carlisle proclaimed “your heart’s a big tent, everybody gets in.” After gathering together all the world’s weirdos and misfits under the big tent, with 2024’s Critterland, Carlisle let them loose into the world. Now, on Winged Victory, they speak for themselves, unencumbered by social expectations.
Victory, Carlisle’s first self-produced album, will be released June 27 via Signature Sounds. It both indulges a few of his wildest dreams (including a version of Richard Thompson’s “Beeswing,” among several traditional folk song covers), and feels like the inevitable sequel to Critterland’s charismatic menagerie of chaos. Though occasionally raunchy, and routinely provocative, Victory is not afraid to make a spectacle for the sake of a point. Victory should be understood as a reflection. It revels in the beauty of tiny, monetarily-worthless moments and things, offering with them a consideration of our innate humanity.

Scott Miller
2025-09-28 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Recently inducted to the East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame, fiery roots-rock singer/songwriter Scott Miller returned to his native Virginia to tend the family farm while continuing to release and perform new music informed by that rural area, history, and Appalachia. The Staunton native first made a name for himself in the 90s as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter with the superb pop/rock band the V-Roys before establishing himself as a gifted and eclectic solo artist, first with his ad hoc group the Commonwealth and later on his own.

Selwyn Birchwood
2025-09-29 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Although award-winning Florida musician Selwyn Birchwood is firmly rooted in the tradition, the young guitarist, lap steel player, songwriter and vocalist sets a course for the future of the blues with his visionary, original music. Birchwood, whose band features the pulsating interplay of his blistering guitar with Regi Oliver’s driving baritone sax, deploys a singular sound and style all his own. He calls it “Electric Swamp Funkin’ Blues,” an intoxicating mix of deep blues, blistering, psychedelic-tinged rock, booty-shaking funk and sweet Southern soul, played and sung with the fire-and-brimstone fervor of a revival tent preacher with a hellhound on his trail. Tastemaker Americana music magazine No Depression says, “Selwyn Birchwood reaches back in the blues tradition to launch something out of this world.”
On his new release, Exorcist (his fourth for Alligator and sixth overall), Birchwood delivers the most far-reaching, musically adventurous album of his career.
Live, Birchwood is a force of nature. His ability to win over an audience–any audience–is proven night after night on the bandstand. With his warm, magnetic personality, Birchwood is as down-to-earth as his music is thought-provoking and electrifying. With his band feeding off his energy, the 6’3″ musician roams the stage barefoot, ripping out memorable guitar licks with ease, his soulful, rocks-and-gravel vocals firing up his fans. When he sits down to play his lap steel, he takes the crowd to a whole other level, with the music exorcising any bad times and troubles.

American Aquarium
2025-10-01 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
For nearly two decades, American Aquarium have pushed toward that rare form of rock-and-roll that’s revelatory in every sense. “For us the sweet spot is when you’ve got a rock band that makes you scream along to every word, and it’s not until you’re coming down at three a.m. that you realize those words are saying something real about your life,” says frontman BJ Barham. “That’s what made us fall in love with music in the first place, and that’s the goal in everything we do.” On their new album The Fear of Standing Still, the North Carolina-bred band embody that dynamic with more intensity than ever before, endlessly matching their gritty breed of country-rock with Barham’s bravest and most incisive songwriting to date. As he reflects on matters both personal and sociocultural—e.g., the complexity of Southern identity, the intersection of generational trauma and the dismantling of reproductive rights—American Aquarium instill every moment of The Fear of Standing Still with equal parts unbridled spirit and illuminating empathy.
VIP upgrade for tonight’s show available through the artist here.

VOICES ft. Jade Nicole and Ki5
2025-10-02 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Jade Nicole is a singer/songwriter and background vocalist from the Metro Detroit area. Since a teenager, Jade has used songwriting as a tool to understand the world around them and the world within them. This process began a decade long journey of finding their voice, getting comfortable with sharing, and trusting in their vision and dreams. Now, with the goal of inviting people to cry at their shows, Jade shares personal and vulnerable stories of their life and relationships through deeply honest lyrics and heartfelt melodies. Over time, Jade learned that their art is most powerful when it is shared with others, vulnerably and with intention. To be witnessed is to be alive, and this is something dear to the heart of this artist.
Prepare to be spellbound as the mesmerizing loop station magic of Ki5 reimagines your favorite R&B, pop, and soul hits with the finesse of an a cappella virtuoso. His performance is a soul-stirring experience that transcends genres and defies expectations. Once again, he’s not just bringing you music – he’s taking you on an exhilarating journey through the sonic universe as soulfully written vocal lines collide in real time.
Drawing inspiration from musical luminaries like Reggie Watts, Bobby McFerrin, and Bon Iver, Ki5’s authentic, empathetic, and liberating style is nothing short of transformative. His artistry has catapulted him to the spotlight, sharing stages with legends such as Erykah Badu, CeCe Peniston, and Reggie Watts – a testament to his boundless versatility as both an artist and a show-stopping performer.
Voices is a series of artist-cultivated concerts at The Ark conceived and created by Ann Arbor musician Kyler Wilkins, AKA vocal looping artist Ki5. The series seeks to expand the representation of Michigan BIPOC artists and audiences at The Ark. Each show, intentional time will be taken to get to know each artist in the form of brief interviews and musical breaks to have them speak about their journey as musicians and performers with the hope that people in the audience are more connected to and inspired by those voices.

Laith Al-Saadi's Birthday Bash 2025
2025-10-03 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
In 2016, Laith Al-Saadi won America’s hearts and a spot in the Season 10 finale of NBC’s “The Voice.” Now he’s bringing an authentic blend of blues, soul and classic rock to audiences around the nation and the world. Laith Al-Saadi has always had the perfect combination of Midwestern hustle and incredible musical chops—honed at the University of Michigan school of music in his hometown of Ann Arbor, and on stages across the country working with legends like Taj Mahal, Luther Allison, Buddy Guy, Son Seals, Gregg Allman, and B.B. King.
“Laith is one of the most diverse talents we have,” said Maroon 5 frontman and “The Voice” coach Adam Levine. “Incredible guitar player, incredible singer.” Audiences have agreed, propelling Laith’s album “REAL” to the top of the blues chart for five weeks and the top 20 album chart for two weeks. Guitar Center has crowned him one of the top four blues guitarists in the United States. Come celebrate this annual Ann Arbor tradition!

Eilen Jewell
2025-10-04 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Hailed by American Songwriter as one of America’s most intriguing, creative, and idiosyncratic voices, Eilen Jewell rises from the ashes on her captivating new album, Get Behind The Wheel, picking up the pieces of her shattered world and finding new purpose and meaning after watching her marriage, her band, and what felt like her entire career fall apart in a series of spectacular, heartbreaking implosions. Co produced by multi instrumental wizard Will Kimbrough (Todd Snider, Hayes Carll), the collection pushes the acclaimed singer and songwriters trademark blend of vintage roots noir into more psychedelic territory, with spacious, cinematic arrangements complementing her revelatory explorations of grief, loss, resilience, and redemption.
An Idaho native, Jewell built her career the old fashioned way, touring relentlessly with the kind of undeniable live show that converts the uninitiated into instant acolytes. Over the course of nine albums, she has crisscrossed the globe countless times and shared bills with the likes of Lucinda Williams, Loretta Lynn, Mavis Staples, Wanda Jackson, George Jones, and Emmylou Harris, Rolling Stone lauded Jewell’s clever writing, while, NPR declared that she has a sweet and clear voice with a killer instinct lurking beneath the shiny surface, and The Washington Post mused that if Neko Case, Madeleine Peyroux and Billie Holiday had a baby girl who grew up to front a rockabilly band, she would probably sound a lot like Eilen Jewell.

The Ark and Michigan Theater present “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
2025-10-05 13:30 - 23:00 | Michigan Theater, 603 East Liberty, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
In partnership with the Michigan Theater, The Ark is delighted to present a special screening of “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” The screening is part of The Ark’s year-long celebration of its 60th Anniversary as well as the 25th anniversary of the beloved film.

Cris Williamson
2025-10-05 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Cris Williamson returns to the Ark for a celebration and special 50th Anniversary solo presentation of the beloved Changer and the Changed, the album that became the soundtrack of a movement.
“The Changer” as it is often called, is a seminal album in feminist music history. Released in 1975 on Olivia Records, an all-women recording company, the album is considered a cornerstone of women’s music. NPR’s Music Critic Ann Powers has praised the album as a work that explores themes of loss, grief, and renewal, suggesting it’s a portal that allows listeners to travel through time and return refreshed. The album’s impact is significant, with Powers and others highlighting its enduring influence on the folk, pop, and feminist music movements.
“Even though it’s over 50 years old, The Changer and the Changed seems to still hold water, and continue to refresh those who find it. I’m honored to claim it, and thrilled to perform it. What a joy to play these old songs. It feels new every time!” – Cris
Come join Cris in celebration, and bring your memories.

JFDR
2025-10-06 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Due to unforeseen circumstances this show has been cancelled. Refunds have been processed from point of purchase.
JFDR is Jófríður Ákadóttir, a musician and film score composer from Iceland. As a 14 year old in Reykjavik, Ákadóttir began her musical career exploring the vast universe of experimental music while retaining a massive heart at her core. Over the past 12 years, Ákadóttir has released 12 records, including as a member of Pascal Pinon & Samaris, collaborated with renowned artists Ólafur Arnalds and Damien Rice, scored the award winning Icelandic film Backyard Village and garnered fans across the world – including Björk who cites Ákadóttir as an inspiration.

In 2024, she won the Icelandic Music Award for album of the year in the category Pop, Rock, Rap, and Electronica for her album Museum.

The Ark's Open Stage
2025-10-07 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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.
Why play Open Stage at the Ark? Do it to be heard. Do it so you know you can. Do it to take your music to the masses. If you’re not interested in getting on stage tonight, get your practice in at being a great audience member and observer of new music.

Lori McKenna
2025-10-08 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
From her home base in Boston, Lori McKenna has carved out an enviable niche for herself as one of Nashville’s most in-demand songwriters, all while maintaining a prolific and remarkably consistent career as a solo artist. The release of her anticipated album, 1988, adds to a series of landmark years for McKenna and follows three widely acclaimed albums: 2016’s The Bird & The Rifle, 2018’s The Tree and 2020’s The Balladeer, of which the Associated Press praised, “McKenna has by now long established herself as one of the best songwriters working in any genre. And she does it again and again,” while The Tennessean asserted, “one of the sharpest pens in modern country and folk songwriting.”
In addition to her career as a solo artist, McKenna continues to enjoy success as one of the music industry’s most in-demand songwriters. In 2023, she was nominated for a Grammy for Best Country Song for co-writing “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault),” performed by Taylor Swift. In 2017, McKenna became the first woman to win the Academy of Country Music’s Songwriter of the Year award and the first woman to win the Country Music Association’s Song of the Year award two years in a row. She also won back-to-back Grammys for Best Country Song: for “Girl Crush,” performed by Little Big Town, in 2016 and “Humble and Kind,” performed by Tim McGraw, in 2017. In 2021, McKenna won her third Best Country Song Grammy for co-writing “Crowded Table,” performed by the Highwomen, with Brandi Carlile and Natalie Hemby. In addition to writing songs for a multitude of award-winning artists — including Hunter Hayes, Faith Hill, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood — McKenna also co-wrote “Always Remember Us This Way,” which was featured in the Oscar-winning 2018 film “A Star Is Born.”

The Kentucky Gentlemen
2025-10-09 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
The Kentucky Gentlemen are reshaping country and soul music with their bold, genre-blending mix of country, R&B, and pop. Twin brothers Derek and Brandon Campbell captivate audiences with a sound rooted in their Kentucky upbringing and elevated by high-energy performances. Fresh off tour with Grammy nominated group The War & Treaty and shows with Global Superstar Estelle, the duo continues to rise as dynamic voices shaping the future of country music. They have earned over a million streams on hits like “To Leave Right Now,” “Neon Cowboy,” and “Made For Movin’ On” with recognition from EBONY, GLAAD, NPR, BET, and Rolling Stone.
Their debut album, Rhinestone Revolution, dropped this year, showcasing empowering anthems like “To Kill Me”, sultry ballads like “To the Moon” with vocals from Brittney Spencer and bangers like “Whiskey Does” continue to put them in the conversations with industry heavyweights.
From interviews with the Recording Academy and having been selected for the Academy of Country Music’s OnRamp program spotlighting them as the future of music and Nashville. The momentum continues to build and The Kentucky Gentlemen are proving they’re here to stay, solidifying their place as artists-to-watch in both the commercial and cultural evolution of country music.

Lucy Kaplansky
2025-10-10 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
This show has been postponed to Sunday, December 14 at 7:30pm. Tickets are valid for the new date. If unable to attend on the new date, ticket buyers have until July 7 to request a refund.
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Lucy Kaplansky is an acclaimed singer songwriter of rare talent, “a truly gifted performer with a bag full of enchanting songs” (The New Yorker). She has released nine critically acclaimed CDs, two of which were awarded Best Pop Album of the year by the Association for Independent Music. National Public Radio described her 2012 album Reunion as “a master class in making the personal universal,” and National Public Radio’s Scott Simon called her new album Last Days of Summer, released in June 2022, “Absolutely wonderful….utterly beautiful and affecting… Lucy sings songs from her life with resonance in ours.” Lucy was part of folk supergroup Cry Cry Cry with Dar Williams and Richard Shindell (which The New Yorker dubbed “a collection of lovely harmonizing and pure emotion”). Their album was an astonishing success in stores and on radio resulting in a national tour of sold-out concerts, as well as a national sold-out reunion tour in 2018.
Lucy’s new album, The Lucy Story, is a retrospective/history of her musical life.

The RFD Boys
2025-10-10 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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. They’re legends of Michigan bluegrass, but they’re more than that too. With an appearance on the cover of Bluegrass Unlimited, with songs recorded by the likes of the Country Gentlemen, and with performances alongside bluegrass greats like Bill Monroe and Ralph Stanley, the RFD Boys are a part of America’s bluegrass tradition. The RFD Boys are one of southeastern Michigan’s most durable musical ensembles, and their shows capture a deep slice of musical Ann Arbor. Their 50th-anniversary appearance at the Folk Festival was a special moment and introduced many listeners to Dan Roehrig, who joined the band on guitar, mandolin, and bass in mid-2018. Dan grew up listening to Doc Watson, Clarence White, and Tony Rice, and you can hear it in both his singing and guitar playing.
Tickets available at the door. There are no advance tickets sold for RFD Boys shows.

Vienna Teng
2025-10-11 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Songwriter Vienna Teng re-emerges this fall with her mashup song pair We’ve Got You – her first new music in over a decade – but her fans have been here the whole time. They’ve packed concert venues even in years between releases, crowdfunded an ambitious music video in hours, and joined by the hundreds when she launched her “music x climate action” Patreon in 2022.
That kind of devotion has poured forth since 2002’s Waking Hour, which landed her on NPR’s Weekend Edition, The Late Show with David Letterman, and the top of Amazon’s music charts. Across four more studio albums that followed – the chamber folk of Warm Strangers, the jazz-inflected Dreaming Through the Noise, the indie epic Inland Territory, the bright electro-pop in Aims – Vienna has paid homage to her genre-bending heroes like Paul Simon and Tori Amos, while carving a path all her own. Together with her captivating live performances and thoughtful online presence, her work has built a loyal following across generations and continents.
Vienna’s new mini-EP We’ve Got You reflects the complexity of her life over the past decade: climate change work, community building, parenthood. Two songs, each titled “We’ve Got You,” act like fraternal twins: one an indie-pop tribute to inspiring leaders, the other a chamber-folk paean to unsung caregivers. Played simultaneously, they reveal a new intricate whole: a mashup by design, and a love letter to social movements.
Appropriately, Vienna now also hosts climate action workshops on tour and online, which participants have described as “rocket fuel” and “the perfect antidote to despair.” It’s an exciting new chapter in the ever-evolving love story between an artist and her audience.

Shawn Phillips
2025-10-12 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
The man who taught Joni Mitchell her first guitar techniques, who also taught George Harrison of the Beatles his first lessons on Sitar, the man who wrote the music to Donovan’s “Season Of The Witch” and has played with many of the finest musicians in the world including Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood. He’s produced 27 albums and is known around the world for his refusal to bow down to commercialism in the music industry.
He has done what many singer/songwriters don’t do, which is to continue to evolve his creative skills in his concerts. When he comes into a venue, he brings the sounds of an entire Symphony Orchestra in real time and plays the songs so many love as close as possible to what was recorded on the albums. All in real time! All solo!

Gretchen Pleuss // Annie Bacon and her OSHEN
2025-10-14 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Fans of folk luminary Joni Mitchell and folk contemporary Madison Cunningham will appreciate Gretchen Pleuss’s “gorgeous arrangements and thought-provoking songwriting” – Dan Jarvis, Midwest Action. Having opened for acts like Glen Phillips, Steve Poltz, and Lisa Loeb, Pleuss is no stranger to the stage and never shies away from wearing her heart on her sleeve.
In addition to recording and performing, Gretchen is passionate about writing songs with others to assist in their healing journeys. She serves on the Board of Directors for Lost Voices, an organization that facilitates songwriting programs with youth who have experienced trauma. She also writes songs with combat veterans in workshops for Project D.R.E.W. (Delivering Restorative Energy to our Warriors)
“Fleetwood Mac would be fortunate to have such endearing well-written songs as these.” – Americana Highways – Annie Bacon is a writer and songwriter living in Ann Arbor, Michigan (via Maine and San Francisco). With her OSHEN she merges a literary writing style and folk-rock Americana sound to create rich and emotionally complex music. Bacon emerged from a loss-filled five years with 2024’s Storm, praised as “a landmark release” (Glide), “mature and sophisticated songwriting” (AmericanaUK), and “brilliant nostalgic elegance” (The Wild Is Calling). Her songs have been placed in films, nominated for awards, and covered by other artists. She also composed a folk opera, co-created a full-length musical, and writes fiction, most recently winning the Springfed Arts Prose Contest. She’ll be performing with her OSHEN harmony singer Cat Crocetto.

Cole Chaney
2025-10-15 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
When it comes to his latest album, In the Shadow of the Mountain, 25-year-old singer-songwriter Cole Chaney is pretty candid and blunt about who he is and what kind of music he wants to make — the result of which, this stunning offering from an artist wise beyond his age. “I’m not concerned with being labeled as ‘country,’ whatever that means. And I’m kind of fed up with the scene, it’s not what I’m into right now,” Chaney says. Pointing to his lifelong admiration for 1990s rock as a vital influence on the sonic landscape of the album, Chaney aimed to find a melodic balance between that raw and real rock sound and the bluegrass and folk music of his native Kentucky.

“I wanted to make something that sounded like Ralph Stanley went in and got backed up by Soundgarden,” Chaney notes. “I write what I listen to. And whatever I listen to is going to come out in my music.”

For Chaney, even though he’s only in his mid-twenties, his journey has been long and bountiful already. From growing up in rural Appalachia to going to welding school, only to leave it behind and take a leap of faith when an opportunity to pursue music emerged. That life-changing decision led to Chaney hitting the road and finding work at The Burl, a storied Lexington music venue. Chaney has come full circle with The Burl, by selling out the space on multiple occasions to fervent crowds, including the large outdoor stage.
With In the Shadow of the Mountain being the latest milestone for Chaney, what remains is this driven musician in search of not only himself and his sound, but also an audience just as hungry — for something new, something different, and yet something so familiar.

Lindsay Lou
2025-10-16 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Lindsay Lou is a siren songbird who made her way into the world of music with groups like The Flatbellys and The Sweet Water Warblers. Adopted by the jamgrass scene, frequently sitting in with bands like Greensky Bluegrass and writing and performing with Billy Strings, she has toured all the world with her sweet and powerful sound.
Hot off over a year of touring with a folk-rock-quartet to deliver her newest album, Queen of Time, Lindsay Lou has returned to a more intimate sound with what she’s calling her Honey Moon Trio. Featuring Wila Frank on guitar, fiddle and harmonies, Emma Rose on upright bass and harmonies, and Lou herself on lead vocals, guitar and banjo. The trio will be wrapping up a summer of playing music festivals around the country and making Lou’s annual autumn loop around Lake Michigan. They’ll be performing songs from Lou’s extensive discography as well as new arrangements of covers and trad songs. Expect three part harmony fit to sooth the soul, soulful lead singing, and flavors of bluegrass and americana.

Carrie Newcomer
2025-10-17 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Carrie Newcomer weaves her life and her art together, with music, community activism, and personal concerns all playing a role. She’s one of those people who exudes a spirituality that’s all her own, and she has to be seen in concert to be truly appreciated. Says novelist Barbara Kingsolver: “She’s a poet, storyteller, snake-charmer, good neighbor, friend and lover, minister of the wide-eyed gospel of hope and grace.” And you can forget all that and just luxuriate in her incredibly rich alto voice! Carrie has traveled to India and performed as a U.S. cultural ambassador, and local religion journalist David Crumm, writing on the ReadTheSpirit website, named her to his list of “10 Spiritual Sages to Watch.”

Carbon Leaf
2025-10-18 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Carbon Leaf’s fifteenth studio album, Time is the Playground, is both a call to action and an embrace of the moment. Marrying nostalgic storytelling to nuanced, folk-infused indie rock, the Richmond, Virginia band embroiders heartfelt melody and harmony with acoustic and electric instrumentation to create a 12-song rumination on time, love and personal growth that’s equal parts urgent epiphany and contented exhalation.
Originally formed as a college cover band in 1992 and with over 3,500 famously enthused live shows together, Carbon Leaf helped to define the aughts indie rock that they ultimately outgrew and outlasted. They first earned national recognition with “The Boxer,” a song that won the American Music Awards 2002 New Music Award and made Carbon Leaf the first unsigned band to perform before millions on the AMAs.
After a trio of charting albums for Vanguard Records, multiple songwriting awards and headlining shows, Carbon Leaf opted to return to the complete creative control of their indie roots. Guitarist Terry Clark, who co-founded the band with Privett and multi-instrumentalist Carter Gravatt, converted his garage into the band’s Two-Car Studio, where they’ve recorded releases for their own Constant Ivy imprint ever since. Carbon Leaf’s DIY spirit even extended to re-recording their three Vanguard albums in order to regain the rights.

Tommy Emmanuel CGP - Living In The Light Tour
2025-10-19 19:00 - 23:00 | Royal Oak Music Theatre, 318 W 4th St, Royal Oak, MI, 48067, United States
Hailed as “one of the best acoustic guitarists in the world” by NPR’s World Cafe, Tommy Emmanuel got his start at the age of six, when he first began touring his native Australia with his family’s band. As a teenager, he earned a reputation as a highly sought after sideman and session player, and by his early twenties, Emmanuel was playing on chart-topping hits and performing with acts like Air Supply and Men at Work. Inspired in part by his hero, Chet Atkins (who would later become a friend, mentor, and collaborator), Emmanuel stepped out on his own as a solo artist in 1979, releasing the first in a string of acclaimed instrumental albums that would make him an unlikely celebrity in his home country and beyond. In the decades that followed, he would go on to headline everywhere from the Sydney Opera House to Carnegie Hall; tour with luminaries like Eric Clapton and John Denver; win a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement; perform for a televised audience of more than two billion at the Sydney Olympics; and collaborate with a who’s who of fellow guitar greats, including Les Paul, Mark Knopfler, Joe Walsh, Richard Thompson, Jason Isbell, and Billy Strings.
Recorded in just four days, Emmanuel’s latest album, Living In The Light, stands as the most daring—and most rewarding—collection in the globetrotting fingerpicker’s remarkable catalog, fusing his pop, jazz, classical, and roots influences into a virtuosic masterwork as exhilarating as it is intimate.

David Nail
2025-10-19 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ticket prices on our website reflect all-in pricing for purchases made online or by phone. This means the price you see includes the ticket price plus MUTO’s ticket processing fee. Tickets may be purchased with no included fees in person at The Ark during box office hours.
Hailing from Kennett, Missouri, David Nail is well-respected up and down Music Row. Some might even call him a “tour de force” as his songs pull no punches in evoking the demons with which he has wrestled through much of his life. The GRAMMY-nominated multi-platinum singer/songwriter’s early releases, I’m About To Come Alive, The Sound Of A Million Dreams, I’m A Fire and Fighter, ignited his reputation as an innovator and creative risk-taker yet left Nail feeling restless. This led to the departure of the only record company home he’d ever known, MCA Nashville, where he’d formed friendships that endure even now.
Through dealing with his own journey of mental health and the feeling of needing to “rebel against what people expect you to be,” Nail began making his most organic work to date, David Nail & The Well Ravens, with Jason Hall and Andrew Petroff. That project liberated Nail and propelled him into his next adventure. Writing solo for the next few months led to his debut solo independent EP Oh, Mother, a reflective piece of work. Of the title track, Rolling Stone noted that “the song creeps in like a sunrise — quiet, restrained cello and keys are the only underpinning for Nail’s powerful vocals at first. But then it slowly builds to something more massive and majestic.” That release was followed by Bootheel 2020 and Bootheel 2021, projects dedicated to the singer/songwriter’s hometown in the “bootheel” of Missouri. Nail released an EP titled Best of Me in 2023 and the title track has seen heavy press support and country radio airplay.
2024 brought more touring than ever, two great single releases “If I Could Call” and “Why” featuring Aubrie Sellers. Nail plans on releasing the start of an excitingly different and elevated album project this year leaving behind any self-imposed restrictions. In Nail’s own words, “My philosophy has always been, I just hope to have a good enough year that I can have a next year while staying as true to myself as I possibly can.”

Seth Walker
2025-10-20 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Among the most prolific artists on the Americana scene today, Seth Walker is a multi-dimensional talent who combines a gift for melody and lyric alongside a rich, Gospel-drenched, Southern-inflected voice with a true blue knack for getting around on the guitar. With his 12th studio album Why The Worry, Walker further builds upon this reputation.
Set straight by the title’s mantra, Why The Worry finds the veteran singer-songwriter letting go of the worry about perception, the worry of over-preparation, and the worry that seeps in constantly from the news and noise of everyday life. Taking a page from Willie Nelson, Walker embraced the country music legend’s sage wisdom, “I’ve never seen worry accomplish anything, so I decided not to do it.” Indeed, the album was just about finished when Hurricane Helene hit Walker where he lives in the mountains around Asheville, and as a result, the record almost didn’t see light. As catastrophe took shape, the album’s importance wavered in his mind until the central theme came back into view. The worry wouldn’t undo any damage, and there was still service in song.
Growing up on a commune in rural North Carolina, the son of classically trained musicians, Walker played cello long before discovering the guitar in his 20s. When his introduction to the blues came via his Uncle Landon Walker, who was both a musician and disc jockey, his fate was forever sealed. Instantaneously, Seth was looking to artists like T-Bone Walker, Snooks Eaglin, and B.B. King as a wellspring of endless inspiration. The rest is history. He’s released twelve albums, broken into the Top 20 of the Americana Radio Charts, reached No. 2 on the Billboard Blues Album Chart and received praise from NPR, American Songwriter, No Depression and Relix, among others.
Alongside his extensive songwriting and recording pursuits, Walker is consistently touring and performing at venues and festivals around the world. Along with headline shows, he’s been invited to open for The Mavericks, Marc Broussard, The Wood Brothers, Raul Malo, Paul Thorn and Ruthie Foster, among others.
Prior to relocating to Asheville in 2020, Walker did stints residing in Austin, New Orleans and Nashville. He’s used those experiences wisely, soaking up the sounds and absorbing the musical lineage of these varied places. With a bluesman’s respect for roots and tradition, coupled with an appreciation for—and successful melding of—contemporary songwriting, Walker sublimely incorporates a range of styles with warmth and grace. Perhaps Country Standard Time said it best: “If you subscribe to the Big Tent theory of Americana, then Seth Walker—with his blend of blues, gospel, pop, R&B, rock, and a dash country—just might be your poster boy.”
Attendance to this show is free for Ark members at the Solo ($50) level and above.

Jesse Cook
2025-10-21 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Beyond his prolific accomplishments as a beloved Nuevo Flamenco guitarist over the past 25 years, Jesse Cook has honed his skills as a composer, producer, arranger, performer and, more recently, filmmaker and content creator. By the numbers, Jesse Cook has ten platinum and gold studio albums with combined sales exceeding two million copies, 700 million streams online, five concert DVDs and live discs, five PBS specials, a library of over 300 YouTube videos, a JUNO Award win and 11 nominations, three Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards, a Gemini Award, and an Acoustic Guitar Magazine Player’s Choice Silver Award to his credit.
Jesse started down many of those diverse paths before he started school. Born in Paris to photographer John Cook and TV producer-director Heather Cook, young Jesse also lived in Barcelona, where he picked up an interest in flamenco as a toddler. At six, after his parents divorced and he moved to Toronto with his mother, the prodigy attended the prestigious Eli Kassner Guitar Academy. During summers with his father in Arles in France, he soaked up more flamenco from neighbour Nicolas Reyes, leader of the world-renowned Gipsy Kings.
After attending the Royal Conservatory, York University and Berklee College, a comfortable career as a composer seemed in the cards — until an Ontario cable TV company aired his music on the listings channel. “Their switchboard got flooded with calls,” he recalls. “People even got my number somehow and started phoning me at home and asking for a CD. And I was saying, ‘I don’t have a CD, I’m a background composer guy. I don’t make records.’ But he soon changed that tune.
Seeing opportunity, Cook self-produced Tempest at home using an eight-track recorder and one microphone. Then he delivered the initial run of 1,000 CDs from the plant to the distributor in his car. Those humble beginnings quickly sparked a mighty international career, including an extensive discography of 14albums, and another two on the way. “It turns out I did the thing I said I’d never do, and somehow it worked out. In the U.S., it was a breakthrough gig at the Catalina Jazz Festival, where his playing earned a 10-minute standing ovation, sparked mob scenes — “It was like being The Beatles,” he marvels — and prompted one store to order enough copies of Tempest to land it at No.14 in Billboard.
In Poland, his 2004 live album Montreal took the country by storm. In India, he gained fame after one of his songs was plagiarized for a major Bollywood movie. (“In India, that’s allowed,” he explains. “They call it cultural appropriation — it obviously doesn’t mean the same thing there.”) In Iraq, his instrumentals scored the nightly news. Elsewhere, they’ve accompanied gymnastics and skating routines at the Olympics. “In Nagano, the Japanese skater and the Russian skater both competed using the same song. One of them won. I think I should have got bronze,” he jokes. So no wonder Cook also quips that his music “has had a way more interesting life” than he’s had.
But lately, that international appeal — reflected in a compositional style that mixes flamenco with everything from classical and jazz to Zydeco, blues and Brazilian samba — has become something he takes more seriously. “I’ve just always made the music that I love. But if music can come from around the world and interconnect so beautifully to create this beautiful tapestry, maybe there’s something that music can teach us.”
