The Ark

Ryan Montbleau
2022-11-15 20:00 - 23:00 (America/Detroit) | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
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For as long as he can remember, Ryan Montbleau’s been a seeker. From the jungles of Peru to the volcanoes of Hawaii, from the beaches of Costa Rica to the streets of Brooklyn, from the backseat of a 16-passenger van to backstage at Carnegie Hall, the acclaimed singer/songwriter has spent much of his life crisscrossing the globe on a perpetual search for meaning, purpose, and understanding. It’s a quest that’s guided him both personally and professionally over the years, one that’s come to define not only his music, but his very sense of self. And yet, listening to Ryan’s ambitious new multi-part album, Wood, Fire, Water, and Air, there is a profound sense of satisfaction in sitting still, a recognition that perhaps all those spiritual treasures he’s been chasing for so long were closer than he thought. “My whole adult life has been this journey of trying to figure out where home is,” Ryan reflects. “I think I’ve finally found it.” Rolling out across four distinct EPs, Wood, Fire, Water, and Air marks Ryan’s first studio release since putting down permanent roots in Burlington, Vermont, where he recently purchased a house after more than two decades of living on the road.

Augustana
2022-11-14 20:00 - 23:00
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Augustana is back with new music, and through its formation, its creator Dan Layus has stepped into a new musical universe. While the artist is well-known for anthemic indie-rock leaning hits like “Boston,” “Sweet and Low,” and “Steal Your Heart,” Augustana’s consistent march of new and ever-evolving material has embodied a refusal to settle artistically. Never has that been more clearly evident than with the artist’s latest studio album, “Everyday an Eternity: Solo Piano Works,” a genre-shaking full-length record that redefines what can be expected from this artist. Composing and performing a series of piano pieces that can easily live in the contemporary classical world, Dan Layus confidently chooses to leave his singing voice aside for the project and instead finds his lyricism echoing through the hammers and strings of the piano. The album finds the composer’s unique melodic and structural stylings effortlessly blending between the classical, the romantic, and the modern. Along the way, the unfamiliar terrain for the artist seems to become more familiar with each note, each modulation, each variation, as he makes his way out to the edge of musical expression and safely back home again.

Rachael Davis
2022-11-13 19:30 - 23:00
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Multi-instrumentalist Rachael Davis is as renowned for her expressive—and explosive—voice as she is for uniting the often disparate worlds of folk, blues, country, and pop. Rachael grew up not only in a family of musicians, but in an extended village of remarkable musicians and songwriters who nurtured and mentored her from the time she was born. Her clear tone and uncanny memory for just about every song she’s ever heard came early, and has served her well throughout her career. At eight she joined the family band Lake Effect, performing regularly at folk festivals throughout her home state of Michigan and around the U.S. By age 12, and continuing each year since, Rachael has brought the Wheatland Music Festival to its knees closing the Sunday morning gospel set with her stunning solo a capella version of “Amazing Grace.” “My slant on acoustic music can be explained by a mixed cassette tape that my father played during my early childhood while driving in our family’s Chevy Cavalier station wagon we nicknamed Iggy. On one side of the cassette was the soundtrack for the film The Big Chill. On the other was John Hartford’s ‘Areoplane,'” Rachael says. She describes her music as “Motown-Banjo.” Recently Rachael has collaborated in the critically acclaimed supergroup The Sweetwater Warblers, with Lindsay Lou and May Erlewine. Rachael Davis now lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband, critically acclaimed bassist, Dominic John Davis, with whom she performs as The Davis Duo. Together they cultivate a diverse community steeped in music, art, travel and love, and are raising a son and daughter at the center of it all.

Alex Cuba
2022-11-12 20:00 - 23:00
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Alex Cuba is a multiple Latin Grammy/Grammy/Juno winning singer-songwriter who is not tied to tradition; Alex has a vast musical vision. Born Alexis Puentes in Artemisa, Cuba, was immersed in music at a very young age, joining his father’s (respected guitarist and teacher Valentin Puentes) group of 24 guitarists. Alex then went on to study electric and upright bass and touring and recording nationally and internationally. Over eight albums and stops in British Columbia, Montreal, and New York, his music has deepened and grown more diverse. His musical evolution for years was all about searching for the simplicity and soul in Cuban music –taking apart the complex arrangements, mixing it with North American influences, adopting the melodic simplicity of pop music, looking to Cuban folk traditions for inspiration—he’s always exploring, always creating something fresh and new, and always, it seems, getting it just right.

Nervous But Excited
2022-11-11 20:00 - 23:00
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Since their hiatus in 2012, Kate Peterson and Sarah Cleaver of Nervous but Excited have spent the years over 700 miles apart, singing the melody lines in their own ways, just awaiting the right time to bring the harmonies back. It’s been exactly ten years since their sold-out finale at The Ark, and the stars have aligned for Kate and Sarah (and special guests?) to reunite at their favorite venue. As a thank you to The Ark for the years of support, Nervous but Excited is donating $5 from each ticket sale to the club.
Before you even ask, yes, there will be nerves and there will be excitement! These two straight-from-the-heart songwriters on stage together is an experience no one can predict–even them. A few things are certain – there will be vulnerability; there will be silliness. There will be moments that honor gratitude and grief. There will be open hearts, awkwardness, and most definitely, there will be laughter. And singalongs, always singalongs! Whatever the feeling, it will be palpable.
Pleasantly Aggressive Folk Duo Nervous but Excited is two songwriters, two singers, three guitars, a banjo, a mandolin, a ukulele, dead-on harmony, some vaguely choreographed dancing, and an impressive amount of laughter. Their original repertoire ranges in topic from smart, introspective narratives to the tactfully political… interspersed with songs of love and loss that will undoubtedly tug on your heartstrings. Their harmonies have been described as the kind that build so smoothly until suddenly they start to shake your insides.
This performance will be interpreted in American Sign Language.

Rachael Yamagata
2022-11-10 20:00 - 23:00
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Says the Associated Press: “Along with the badassery, Yamagata brings a world-weary passion to her singing. Her voice is a soul-baring, sultry instrument that commands center stage at all times. She has that deliberate, I’ll-sing-the-note-when-I’m-ready pacing that helped make Amy Winehouse great, and before her Billie Holliday.” Rachael has released ten albums, with each and every one of them containing surprises. Her songs are all over television soundtracks, and she has collaborated with artists as diverse as Jason Mraz, Rhett Miller, Bright Eyes, Ryan Adams, Toots and the Maytals, and Ray Lamontagne. Spending some years in Chicago’s competitive songwriting scene, Rachael is now based in Woodstock, New York.
Opening for Rachael is songwriter/musician Sandy Bell. Bell has moved through a vibrant and textured musical constellation, playing most notably with the late but eternally brilliant Jeff Buckley as well as singing on the Bat for Lashes album “The Bride.” Bell’s debut solo album, “When I Leave Ohio,” was hailed by Stereo Embers Magazine as “…beautiful, resonant work that’s stark and painful—Bell’s songs have crushing, emotional exactitude that is nothing short of staggering.” Her new album is titled “Entelechy.” Music journalist Alex Green found “Entelechy” to be “filled with stirring melancholy and musical grace,” an album that “explores the geometry of both musical form and sorrow, while the cathartic transmutation of grief into promise will take you somewhere between the worlds of Harry Nilsson and Kate Bush.”

Rodney Crowell: Word For Word Tour
2022-11-09 20:00 - 23:00
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Rodney Crowell is one of country music’s most successful songwriters, but the deadly seriousness in his music was always there for those with ears to hear. “Dad drove a stock car to an early death / All I remember was a drunk man’s breath,” sang Waylon Jennings as he took Crowell’s “Ain’t Living Long Like This” to the top of the charts. Since the turn of the millennium, Crowell has been on a roll, releasing personal, ambitious albums to wide critical acclaim. With his autobiographical masterpiece “The Houston Kid,” he took an unflinching look at his own down-and-out upbringing. For this special event, audience members are invited to a rare experience as Rodney reads from his brand new book, Word For Word, shares stories, and performs the songs that have made him a renowned and prolific songwriter.
Buy Local! Preorder Rodney’s Book from Literati

Sons of the East
2022-11-07 20:00 - 23:00
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Australian band Sons of the East is an under-the-radar success story, racking up millions of streams and selling out shows across Europe and Australia without ever straying from their independent roots. And they built that impressive following through their incredible and energetic live shows, paired with a serious handful of exceptional original songs. So far the band has racked up more than 160 million streams on Spotify, 12 million streams on Apple Music and 40 million Youtube plays from around the world. The year 2022 has been a breakthrough for Sons of the East, with international touring leading up to the release of the group’s debut album. Says Vinyl Garden: “What we like about this band is their Australian twist and contemporary take on the more traditional Folk music style … But ultimately what really makes this band shine is their stage presence (they are a must see live).”

Peter Madcat Ruth's C.A.R.Ma Quartet
2022-11-06 19:30 - 23:00
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Peter Madcat Ruth is one of the best harmonica players on earth, a mainstay of Ann Arbor’s blues scene since the 1970s and a carrier of tradition who learned his art directly from Chicago’s masters of the blues harmonica. He’s performed in many countries, won a Grammy award, and remains a major force in blues harmonica nationally. Madcat has released many albums, both solo and with his Madcat Midnight Blues Journey band. His “More Real Folk Blues” album features harmonicas, ukulele, jaw harps, baritone guitar, banjo, banjo ukulele, high hat, cowbell, wood block, shakers, guiro, tambourine, and brushes on a pizza box, and, of course, vocals, and in concert he often appears with younger players in shows where almost anything might happen. Don’t miss this chance to see a Michigan legend. Tonight Madcat appears with his C.A.R.Ma. Quartet, featuring drummer/tabla player John Churchville, bassist Brennan Andes, and guitarist/vocalist Dan Ripke.

Luke Winslow-King
2022-06-10 16:00 - 19:00
Please Note: Proof of vaccination is required for admission at this time. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with guidelines and protocols in place at The Ark at the time of the show including all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and/or The Ark. Policies may be updated as circumstances evolve in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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Luke Winslow-King is a slide guitarist, singer, producer, and songwriter. He was raised in Cadillac, lived for 15 years in New Orleans, and is now back in the Mitten—good news for us! Luke’s work is an eclectic mix that combines Mississippi delta blues, folk music, traditional jazz, and roots rock & roll. Luke’s original songs blend contemporary ideas with styles from bygone eras, producing a sound that is both rustic and elegant. This along with his burgundy voice and versatile guitar have earned him a reputation as a musician who can deliver soulfully energetic and dynamic performances. He’s amassed a substantial catalog of music on the Chicago alt-country label Bloodshot Records, and if you haven’t heard his songs, well, now is the time!

Todd Snider: Pickin'. Grinnin'. Tellin' Stories. Takin' Requests.
2022-03-12 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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You don’t often hear about an artist reinventing their sound twenty albums into a celebrated career. But for Todd Snider, his latest release, First Agnostic Church of Hope and Wonder, isn’t so much a sudden change in direction as an arrival after years of searching.
Since debuting in 1994, Snider has gone through his own incarnations. His first single “Talking Seattle Blues” was a head fake that might’ve pointed to goofy novelty songs. But he quickly showed that his artistic quiver was much deeper and more interesting. A storyteller who works a similar creative soil to John Prine and Shel Silverstein, Snider’s best songs are both sad and funny, political and entertaining, and always written with a poet’s eye and a stand-up comedian’s sensibility about the follies of human condition. While he’s made twenty fine albums, it’s on stage where Snider is even more potent, with between-song banter that weaves subtle emotional threads through his sets. A road dog who loves the road, Snider has toured with Emmylou Harris, John Prine, Jimmy Buffett, and appeared at festivals like Farm Aid, Newport Folk Fest, Lockn’ and Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
The other key framing device for the new songs is the album’s colorful title. “If the gods of folk didn’t want no funk, they shouldn’t have started none,” Snider says with a chuckle. “2020 was a terrible year, and it kept taking people that I loved. So I kept feeling funky, and the church idea came out of that. I’ve always had the First Agnostic Church of Hope and Wonder in mind. Aren’t we always hoping for something and wondering ‘What the fuck?’ We hope there’s a God. We wonder if there is. We hope you’re coming. We wonder if you will.”
“I started realizing because I had this church, in my mind, that I could make up different kinds of songs,” he continues. “I don’t usually like bossy kinds of songs, where someone tells you to breathe. Me and Neal Casal used to say, I don’t have to know when to fold ‘em. I don’t have to live like I’m dying.’ I’m always telling the radio when I’m listening to it, ‘No, I don’t!’ But this is a reverend thing. I have a reverend license. I married Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires, and my tour manager and his wife. So it just felt like this natural thing for it to be on Sunday mornings where I can do like these pseudo-sermons.”
He playfully undermines typical sermon themes like faith can move mountains – on “Turn Me Loose (I’ll Never Be the Same”), he reckons “Mountains can get around just fine on their own – and finding meaning on mystical sojourns – “Oh, shit, I quit my job,” the truth seeker on “The Get Together” realizes in a panic. “The record is the story of a preacher who starts this church that is total bullshit,” Todd says. “People start giving him money anyway, but then they start asking him questions. So then he prays to God and God helps him. But the moral of the story is that God’s hilarious.”
It feels appropriate that with his latest album, Snider may play a similar inspirational role for the parishioners in his church. “I’d like it to feel like a drum circle or a revival for listeners. I’d like it to feel like a hippie summer, where you take acid and listen to the songs by a beautiful lake. There’s a thing called effervescence – that feeling that you’re present, alive. I’d like for people to have a moment with this record. I think about records that will come into my life and they’ll help put a little more salt on the moment. That’s what I’m going for. But then, who knows if anyone will like the record. I dig it. I know it’s a cliché for people to say, ‘This is how I’ve been meaning to sound forever.’ But I swear, that’s how it feels.”
Nashville-based singer/songwriter Aaron Lee Tasjan opens.
Photo credit: Stacie Huckeba

Laith Al-Saadi
2022-03-11 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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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 poised to bring his 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, B.B. King, Aretha Franklin, Paul Rodgers and recently opened for Bob Seger on his farewell tour in January, 2019.
“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.”
Entertainment Weekly called Laith Al-Saadi “a power performer who is so legitimate and memorable.”
Audiences have agreed, propelling Al-Saadi’s most recent CD release, “REAL” to the top of the blues chart for five weeks and the top 20 album chart for two weeks. Laith also had four singles in the top ten iTunes singles charts, and his albums “In The Round” and “Long Time Coming” spent time at the top of the rock and album charts. Al-Saadi also received a Detroit Music Award in 2018 for Best New Recording for his Digital EP “A 75th Birthday Tribute to Jimi Hendrix.
Guitar World Magazine has called Laith Al-Saadi a cross between “Danny Gatton and Buddy Guy at their best,” and in 2006 Guitar Center crowned him one of the top four blues guitarists in the United States.

Alasdair Fraser & Natalie Haas
2022-03-10 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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The musical partnership between consummate performer Alasdair Fraser, “the Michael Jordan of Scottish fiddling”, and brilliant Californian cellist Natalie Haas spans the full spectrum between intimate chamber music and ecstatic dance energy. Over the last 20 years of creating a buzz at festivals and concert halls across the world, they have truly set the standard for fiddle and cello in traditional music. They continue to thrill audiences internationally with their virtuosic playing, their near-telepathic understanding and the joyful spontaneity and sheer physical presence of their music.
Fraser has a concert and recording career spanning over 30 years, with a long list of awards, accolades, radio and television credits, and feature performances on top movie soundtracks (Last of the Mohicans, Titanic, etc.). In 2011, he was inducted into the Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame. Haas, a graduate of the Juilliard School of Music, is one of the most sought after cellists in traditional music today. She has performed and recorded with a who’s who of the fiddle world including Mark O’Connor, Natalie MacMaster, Irish supergroups Solas and Altan, Liz Carroll, Dirk Powell, Brittany Haas, Darol Anger, Jeremy Kittel, Hanneke Cassel, Laura Cortese, and many more.
This seemingly unlikely pairing of fiddle and cello is the fulfillment of a long-standing musical dream for Fraser. His search eventually led him to find a cellist who could help return the cello to its historical role at the rhythmic heart of Scottish dance music, where it stood for hundreds of years before being relegated to the orchestra. The duo’s debut recording, Fire & Grace, won the coveted the Scots Trad Music “Album of the Year” award, the Scottish equivalent of a Grammy. Since its release, the two have gone on to record five more critically acclaimed albums that blend a profound understanding of the Scottish tradition with cutting-edge string explorations. In additional to performing, they both have motivated generations of string players through their teaching at fiddle camps across the globe.
Photo credit: Irene Young

TIME OUT Tour: The Accidentals featuring Kim Richey, Maia Sharp and Beth Nielsen Chapman
2022-03-09 20:00 - 22:00
.Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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The Accidentals present TIME OUT: Songwriters in the Round, an evening of stories and songs featuring: The Accidentals’ Sav Buist and Katie Larson with Kim Richey, Beth Nielsen Chapman, and Maia Sharp.

TIME OUT is an unforgettable songwriters in the round concert, reminiscent of a night at the legendary Blue Bird Cafe, where award-winning writers swap personal stories and inspirational songs in an intimate setting. TIME OUT is a lyric lover’s dream.

The Accidentals (Sav Buist and Katie Larson) spent the better part of the last year writing songs for a TIME OUT album with writers who inspired them to create, including Hall of Fame writer Beth Nielsen Chapman (Willie Nelson, Elton John, Faith Hill), barrier-breaking Kim Richey, and Maia Sharp (Bonnie Raitt, Dixie Chicks, Cher), among others. After a sold-out, thirteen-city tour and fifteen weeks at top ten radio, they decided to record TIME OUT 2. With the release of the second TIME OUT comes another round of compelling co-written songs and this incredible lineup. We hope you’ll join us for a TIME OUT!

Bruce Cockburn
2022-03-08 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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One of Canada’s finest artists, Bruce Cockburn has enjoyed an illustrious career shaped by politics, spirituality, and musical diversity. His remarkable journey has seen him embrace folk, jazz, rock, and worldbeat styles while travelling to such far-flung places as Guatemala, Mali, Mozambique, and Nepal, and writing memorable songs about his ever-expanding world of wonders. “My job,” he explains, “is to try and trap the spirit of things in the scratches of pen on paper and the pulling of notes out of metal.”
That scratching and pulling has earned Cockburn high praise as an exceptional songwriter and a revered guitarist. His songs of romance, protest, and spiritual discovery are among the best to have emerged from Canada over the last 50 years. His guitar playing, both acoustic and electric, has placed him in the company of the world’s top instrumentalists. And he remains deeply respected for his activism on issues from native rights and land mines to the environment and Third World debt, working for organizations such as Oxfam, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, and Friends of the Earth.
Throughout his career, Cockburn has deftly captured the joy, pain, fear, and faith of human experience in song. Whether singing about retreating to the country or going up against chaos, tackling imperialist lies or embracing ecclesiastical truths, he has always expressed a tough yet hopeful stance: to kick at the darkness till it bleeds daylight. “We can’t settle for things as they are,” he once warned. “If you don’t tackle the problems, they’re going to get worse.”
For his many achievements, the Ottawa-born artist has been honoured with 13 Juno Awards, an induction into both the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, as well as the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, and has been made an Officer of the Order of Canada. But he never rests on his laurels. “I’d rather think about what I’m going to do next,” says Cockburn. “My models for graceful aging are guys like John Lee Hooker and Mississippi John Hurt, who never stop working till they drop, as I fully expect to be doing, and just getting better as musicians and as human beings.”
His commitment to growth has made Bruce Cockburn both an exemplary citizen and a legendary artist whose prized songbook will be celebrated for many years to come.

Joshua Radin
2022-03-07 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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After 16 years, eight albums, and hundreds of shows, Joshua Radin still treats music as an antidote to any ailment. The LA-based singer/songwriter finds healing in between waves of acoustic eloquence and dyed-in-the-wool Americana storytelling. On his ninth album The Ghost And The Wall [Nettwerk], the troubadour continues a cycle of catharsis meant to be shared among any and all receptive hearts.
Since 2004, he’s affected countless listeners with palpable transparency, selling over 1 million records, generating 1 billion+ streams, and garnering a gold plaque for single “I’d Rather Be With You.” Landing north of 150 film, television, and commercial syncs, his voice courses throughout the zeitgeist. Among many highlights, First Ladies Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden personally handpicked “Brand New Day” for a commercial in support of the troops. In addition to memorable performances on Ellen, The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Conan, and Today Show, he famously serenaded avowed super fan Ellen DeGeneres and Portia DeRossi during their wedding. Beyond sold out headline shows on four continents, he’s performed alongside Ed Sheeran, Sara Bareilles, Ingrid Michaelson, Sheryl Crow, Tori Amos, Imogen Heap, and more. He also remains a committed philanthropist, supporting charities like Little Kids Rock and North Shore Animal League America (NSALA), among others.
The Ghost And The Wall was produced entirely remotely by Jonathan Wilson [Father John Misty, Conor Oberst, Dawes}.
Folk-rock band Tow’rs opens.

We Banjo 3
2022-03-06 19:30
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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Debuting in the U.S. in 2012, We Banjo 3 has since emerged as fast-rising touring darlings in the country that two of the members now call home. The Galway, Ireland, and Nashville-based quartet––comprised of two sets of brothers, Enda & Fergal Scahill and Martin & David Howley––continually push musical boundaries while maintaining an unwavering devotion to the essential audience experience. WB3seamlessly converge the shared and varied traditions of Americana, Bluegrass, and Celtic music with popsensible songcraft to create a truly unique and gratifying signature sound. Brilliantly commanded instruments––banjo, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and percussion––effortlessly elevate lead singer David Howley’s propulsive voice. Live on stage, their songs carry the listener along until, at the perfect moment, the band crescendos into catchy choruses with pitch perfect harmonies. We Banjo 3 deliver their music with such palpable rapport, stunning precision, and infectious energy, it’s impossible to pigeonhole what kind of listener might suddenly consider themselves a WB3 fan. With recent stunning performances at such broad ranging festivals Merlefest, BottleRock, Summercamp, ROMP, Wintergrass and others, enthusiasts of almost every genre of music are taking notice. Actor/comedian and musician Steve Martin says of the band, “We Banjo 3…are making waves…here in America. They are playing the banjo in a style that I didn’t even know could be played like that.” Northwest Cultural Blog said, “There are few adjectives left to describe the authenticity and the electrifying experience you get when you first see/hear We Banjo 3 live on stage…It’s the incorporation of each and every one of its members, their individual charisma, their energy, their passion and their very soul, that makes them one of the greatest live musical acts the world has to offer today.”
We Banjo 3 released their 6th CD, Roots To Rise Live, in July of 2019 in conjunction of the band’s summer and fall 2019 U.S. tours. Recorded at The Ark in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the CD features a mix of original material, traditional compositions, select cover songs, and two previously unreleased tunes. The CD debuted at the beginning of August at # 1 on Billboard’s Bluegrass Albums Chart spending 4 weeks in the peak position. The band’s 2018 studio recording, Haven, spent 3 weeks at # 1 on that chart, marking the first time an Irish band held the # 1 position on this chart. When Haven re-entered the chart at # 5 in August 2019, joining Roots To Rise Live at the #1 position, WB3 made history again as the only Irish band to hold two top-5 chart positions simultaneously. Of Roots To Rise Live, Songlines Magazine reviewed “…this album by Celtgrass pioneers We Banjo 3 scorches its way through a rollercoaster set colliding their native Galway heritage with liberal helpings of blistering bluegrass and a telling nod to pop music.”
We Banjo 3 is committed to giving back to the community, and raising awareness around the issue of mental health is a cause that is dear to their hearts. Toward this effort, We Banjo 3 donate $2.00 for every t-shirt and CD sold on their U.S. tours to organizations that work to provide mental health resources. In 2019, WB3 raised $7500.00 for Mental Health America, the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promoting the mental health of all Americans. For 2020, We Banjo 3 is pleased to partner with start-up not-for-profit Backline. Backline works to support the mental health of music industry professionals and their families by providing streamlined access to mental health and wellness services and educational resources specific to the work and lifestyle of the music industry community. For more information on Backline, visit www.backline.care.

We Banjo 3
2022-03-05 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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Debuting in the U.S. in 2012, We Banjo 3 has since emerged as fast-rising touring darlings in the country that two of the members now call home. The Galway, Ireland, and Nashville-based quartet––comprised of two sets of brothers, Enda & Fergal Scahill and Martin & David Howley––continually push musical boundaries while maintaining an unwavering devotion to the essential audience experience. WB3seamlessly converge the shared and varied traditions of Americana, Bluegrass, and Celtic music with popsensible songcraft to create a truly unique and gratifying signature sound. Brilliantly commanded instruments––banjo, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and percussion––effortlessly elevate lead singer David Howley’s propulsive voice. Live on stage, their songs carry the listener along until, at the perfect moment, the band crescendos into catchy choruses with pitch perfect harmonies. We Banjo 3 deliver their music with such palpable rapport, stunning precision, and infectious energy, it’s impossible to pigeonhole what kind of listener might suddenly consider themselves a WB3 fan. With recent stunning performances at such broad ranging festivals Merlefest, BottleRock, Summercamp, ROMP, Wintergrass and others, enthusiasts of almost every genre of music are taking notice. Actor/comedian and musician Steve Martin says of the band, “We Banjo 3…are making waves…here in America. They are playing the banjo in a style that I didn’t even know could be played like that.” Northwest Cultural Blog said, “There are few adjectives left to describe the authenticity and the electrifying experience you get when you first see/hear We Banjo 3 live on stage…It’s the incorporation of each and every one of its members, their individual charisma, their energy, their passion and their very soul, that makes them one of the greatest live musical acts the world has to offer today.”
We Banjo 3 released their 6th CD, Roots To Rise Live, in July of 2019 in conjunction of the band’s summer and fall 2019 U.S. tours. Recorded at The Ark in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the CD features a mix of original material, traditional compositions, select cover songs, and two previously unreleased tunes. The CD debuted at the beginning of August at # 1 on Billboard’s Bluegrass Albums Chart spending 4 weeks in the peak position. The band’s 2018 studio recording, Haven, spent 3 weeks at # 1 on that chart, marking the first time an Irish band held the # 1 position on this chart. When Haven re-entered the chart at # 5 in August 2019, joining Roots To Rise Live at the #1 position, WB3 made history again as the only Irish band to hold two top-5 chart positions simultaneously. Of Roots To Rise Live, Songlines Magazine reviewed “…this album by Celtgrass pioneers We Banjo 3 scorches its way through a rollercoaster set colliding their native Galway heritage with liberal helpings of blistering bluegrass and a telling nod to pop music.”
We Banjo 3 is committed to giving back to the community, and raising awareness around the issue of mental health is a cause that is dear to their hearts. Toward this effort, We Banjo 3 donate $2.00 for every t-shirt and CD sold on their U.S. tours to organizations that work to provide mental health resources. In 2019, WB3 raised $7500.00 for Mental Health America, the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promoting the mental health of all Americans. For 2020, We Banjo 3 is pleased to partner with start-up not-for-profit Backline. Backline works to support the mental health of music industry professionals and their families by providing streamlined access to mental health and wellness services and educational resources specific to the work and lifestyle of the music industry community. For more information on Backline, visit www.backline.care.
Presented with support from The RFD Boys

Martin Sexton
2022-03-04 20:00 - 23:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
COVID-19 FAQ
Singer-songwriter Martin Sexton is like an ultra-active antenna, adventuring through the static to grab a clear signal. When he dials in on one station, he then quickly shifts to the next one. This everchanging attention span drives his family crazy, but it’s ingrained in Martin, dating back to his childhood when he would tear through television primetime programming.
This ability to hone in on little defining moments suits Martin as a songwriter as evident by his latest EP, 2020 Vision. This is Martin’s first release in 6 years, and it is a poetically emotive and an elegantly evocative pandemic scrapbook. “In one song, I’m building a treehouse with my son. In another song, I’m crossing America and seeing the beauty in people rising through adversity and loving each other,” Martin details.
Up next, the road is calling Martin as tour dates are being booked in this post-vaccine chapter. 2020 Vision will always have its lessons and remain in Martin’s sight, even as the miles out on the road put pandemic life in the rearview mirror. One of those lessons is the power of togetherness. Martin says: “My mission statement for the past 15 years has been unity through music, and I am committed to sharing peace and harmony through my songs.”
Opener Chris Trapper is a storyteller. With his soulful, honeyed tenor, sly humor and an uncanny knack for melody, Chris has traveled the world over, performing to a dedicated and ever growing fan base with nothing but his guitar and his songs.

JigJam
2022-03-02 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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JigJam are a multi-award winning quartet from the heart of the midlands in Ireland. Blending the best of traditional Irish music with Bluegrass and Americana in a new genre which has been branded as ‘I-Grass’ (Irish influenced Bluegrass), their onstage energy along with their virtuosic musical ability has captivated audiences throughout the world.
Jamie McKeogh, Cathal Guinan and Daithi Melia all hail from Tullamore, Co.Offaly with Co. Tipperary born Gavin Strappe completing the quartet. All four members grew up immersed in Irish traditional music and culture which is reflected by the band collectively achieving over twenty All-Ireland titles at Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann competitions. They have now developed their own unique style of music influenced by American Folk music whilst staying true to their Irish roots. Described as ‘The best Irish group so far in bluegrass’ this sharply dressed outfit deliver an energy-fuelled, foot-stomping live performance. All multi-instrumentalists, JigJam interchange between banjos, guitars, fiddles, mandolins and double bass onstage which creates an experience which is pleasing to both the eye and the ear.
JigJam have recorded two studio albums (OH BOY! 2014 & HELLO WORLD 2016) to critical acclaim as well as a live album (LIVE IN TULLAMORE 2017).
They have made a huge impact on the Irish American circuit performing as a headline act at all the major festivals including the world-renowned Tellruide Bluegrass Festival and Milwaukee Irish Fest as well as touring various parts of the UK and Europe.
Photo credit: Colin Gillen/framelight.ie

John Moreland
2022-02-28 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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Over the last half a dozen years or so, John Moreland’s honesty has stunned us––and stung. As he put hurts we didn’t even realize we had or shared into his songs, we sang along. And we felt better. But there has always been far more to Moreland than sad songs. Today, his earthbound poetry remains potent, but in addition to his world-weary candor, Moreland’s music smolders with gentle wisdom, flashes of wit and joy, and compassion. And once again, as we listen, we feel better. Austin-based songwriter Will Johnson (Centro-matic) opens.

Black Jake & the Carnies
2022-02-27 19:30
This show has been cancelled. Purchases made will be automatically refunded by MUTO. Contact MUTO at muto-tix@umich.edu with questions.
COVID-19 FAQ
Think of a carnival, or indeed a carny, and it’s very likely that images of bearded ladies, mustachioed strongmen, trapeze artists, wolf boys, monkey mermaids and the like will come flooding into your mind. Add a healthy dash of punk rock and oldie timey music, and you have Black Jake & the Carnies.
These men create sounds that make Tod Browning’s Freaks look positively conventional. The glorious dichotomy is that the tunes are catchy enough to be disconcertingly accessible. You are, indeed, one of us.
“The idea for Black Jake and the Carnies came to Jake in 1999, when he had an ecstatic vision of a band playing fast-paced music on traditional instruments, full of entertaining gimmicks, props, and crowd interaction,” says the band. “The original incarnation of the band started in 2002, and played one disastrous Halloween Show at Trinity House Theater before breaking up. Jake kept the vision alive and kept writing songs over the next four years until one day in 2006 he decided to get a band back together. A few guys who knew some guys down the street eventually turned into a new Black Jake & the Carnies overnight.”
The band, comprised of Black Jake (banjo, vocals, kick drum, tambourine, songwriting), Kyle Kipp (guitar, backing vocals), Wally Jarvis (hand percussion, accordion, harmonica, backing vocals), Ozzie Andrews (bass), and Gary Ritter (Fiddle, Mandolin, backing vocals), are five hard-working men from Southeast Michigan who wallow in the imagery of sideshows and carnivals. “When you grow up in a small town, you have hair down your back and everyone’s a redneck, you get called a freak a lot,” Jake told Detroit’s Metro Times in 2011. “So I get attracted to the outcasts, the freaks, being somebody who’s on display.”
He’s not wrong. When Black Jake & the Carnies played a prison show in Belgium as part of the Belgium/Netherlands/Germany tour in 2011, the touring company said that they were the only band they’d ever seen who got the prisoners to jump up out of their seats and dance. And everybody knows how hard convicts are to please.
Photo Credit: Philamonjaro

35th Annual Storytelling Festival
2022-02-26 19:30 - 23:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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The Ark’s 2022 Storytelling Festival on February 26 features six local and regional storytellers, presenting a sampler of styles and story types. The program celebrates diversity in the art of story, and includes true personal stories, tall tales, folk tales, a story from literature, and a couple of songs from the folk tradition. This program not only entertains, it also gives a window into the reason that the oral tradition of storytelling is the most enduring adventure in human history.
Storytellers include four members of the Ann Arbor Storytellers Guild – Steve Daut, MC, Lorelle Otis, Jane Fink, and Rich Swanson. In addition, we are delighted to welcome Barbara Schutzgruber from the Lansing Storytellers, and Larry Castleberry from the Detroit Association of Black Storytellers as featured storytellers tonight.
Also available as a Virtual concert on our Facebook Live page and YouTube channel. Free! Tip jar available.
Watch the Livestream on The Ark’s Facebook Live page
Watch the Livestream on The Ark’s YouTube channel

Allison Russell
2022-02-25 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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Though deep and wide may be the world, it is within dim and narrow rooms – airless and mundane – that the true stories of our lives are enacted; are bartered and brokered – enslaved and empowered; held in and sung out.
And Song most surely began as a cry or a prayer – though no need discerning between the two, for they are the same – and both sacred: the prayer and the wail becoming Song as soon as shared.
Some of us come, later in life, to find our knees; while others slip young into trauma like a quarry stone gone under, held down by the weight of their own world.
Many of those, alas, never come back up. But those able are wont to be luminous, struggle having landed their hearts on the outside of their bodies: a swinging lantern within that aforementioned dim room – where stories are unraveled, thus to be reconstructed … purposefully reanimated.
It was also within such a room that Allison Russell – singer, songwriter, poet, and activist – bore witness to herself in descent. But the abused child she was played mother to the brave woman and fierce artist she would become – surviving being one of only two options, and not the most likely.
Blessed be.
Allison’s new album, Outside Child – that draws water from the dark well of a violent past — is her first solo offering, she also being a pivotal voice in two bands: Birds of Chicago and Our Native Daughters. And telling her own story sounds now to have made her free – not from it all, but free within it: to reframe and reclaim her identity and its singular authority.
The songs themselves – though iron-hard in their concerns – are exultant: exercising haunted dream like clean bedsheets snapped and hung out into broad daylight, and with the romantic poet’s lust for living and audacity of endurance.
Nina Simone comes to mind, as well Edith Piaf: two shamanistic practitioners who turned their faces into the blade of storm and roared back dignity and hope.
This music, no less – no less – is a triumph: a courageous work – burnished and bright; unspeakably beautiful as she sings the unspeakable.
Above all, it is an act of remarkable generosity: a cathartic, soulful, buoyant and redeeming gift to us all and, one must believe, to herself as well.
-Joe Henry, Bath, Maine

Enter the Haggis
2022-02-24 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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For more than 20 years, Toronto’s Enter The Haggis has been bringing a rock edge to contemporary celtic music by effortlessly melding bagpipes and fiddles with classic rock n’ roll instrumentation and AAA-friendly vocals. It all comes together to make this 5-piece unit a favorite of the festival circuit (Milwaukee Irish Festival & Dublin Irish Festival among many others,) the morning show circuit (Live with Regis and Kelly and A&E’s Breakfast With The Arts) and the 10s of thousands of fans, the self-described “Haggis Heads,” who have purchased their records, donated more than $150,000 to finance 3 albums, and made their most recent effort debut at #9 on the Billboard Heatseakers chart. It should be of no surprise then that Enter The Haggis has become a critical favorite, receiving praise from The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Washington Post and Canada’s Globe and Mail.

Marielle Kraft
2022-02-22 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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When you hear Marielle Kraft’s music or experience her candid live shows, you feel as though you already know her. The Nashville-based indie pop singer/songwriter, originally from Rhode Island, displays craftsmanship beyond her years, evident through her use of salient detail, raw emotion, and poignant word choice to describe moments “exactly as they feel.”
In spring 2018, she was crowned Grand Champion of the Mid-Atlantic Singer-Songwriter Competition, and the following June she delivered a Tedx Talk at Firefly 2018, discussing the importance of honesty rooted in her songwriting process.
Marielle Kraft’s debut studio EP, “The Deep End” officially released on July 12th, 2019, is described by The Music Mermaid as “song after song of mini pop addictions.” In February 2020, Marielle Kraft co-released an “anthemic” and “heart-filled” single with Joshua Howard entitled “In It Together”, which quickly gained traction across platforms.
Her October 23rd single, “Portland,” breathtakingly captures the moment we find ourselves in, and speaks volumes of the young artist’s songwriting abilities.
Marielle Kraft has shared stages with names as big as Jon McLaughlin, Ava Max, and Betty Who. Her “winning personality,” “genuine connection,” and “gift for story telling” on stage have fueled the ever-growing crowds at each of her shows, with no signs of slowing down.
Without missing a beat, Marielle Kraft released back to back singles to kick off 2021, both of which found major traction on Tiktok before becoming fully studio produced releases. “Everyone But Me” (February 19th) and “We Were Never Friends” (March 24th) feature a more developed sound than seen from Marielle before, and have cultivated her biggest streaming debuts to date. With more new releases on the way, Kraft is on track for an even bigger 2021.
Since leaving her full-time teaching career to pursue a life committed to creating music, Marielle Kraft has promise to follow suit to artists like Julia Michaels and Maisie Peters as the young songwriter makes a growing impact in the indie pop scene.
This is a FREE show. Nonperishables accepted for Food Gatherers.

Bettye LaVette
2022-02-20 19:30 - 23:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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Hailed by the New York Times as “one of the great soul interpreters of her generation”, Bettye LaVette is a vocalist who can take any type of song and make it completely her own. To quote the late, great George Jones, “Bettye is truly a singer’s singer”.
Her career began in 1962, at the age of 16, in Detroit, Michigan. Her first single “My Man – He’s a Loving Man”, was released on Atlantic Records. This led to tours with headliners such as Ben E. King, Clyde McPhatter and then up-and-comer, Otis Redding. She recorded for numerous major labels, including Atco, Epic, and Motown, over the course of the 1960s through the 1980s. She also worked alongside Charles “Honi” Coles and Cab Calloway in the touring company of the Toni Award winning musical, Bubbling Brown Sugar.
The 2000’s started what she calls her “Fifth Career”. Her CD, A Woman Like Me, won the W.C. Handy Award in 2004 for Comeback Blues Album of the Year. She was also given a prestigious Pioneer Award by The Rhythm & Blues Foundation, was inducted into the Detroit Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame, given an Unsung Award by the National R&B Society, and inducted into The Blues Hall of Fame by the Blues Foundation. She has received Blues Music Awards for Best Contemporary Female Blues Singer and Best Soul Blues Female Artist. Since 2002, she has released 8 albums, 5 of which have received Grammy nominations.
In 2017, she signed with Verve Records and has since recorded 2 albums, both of which were produced by Steve Jordan, were critically acclaimed, and received Grammy nominations. The first was Things Have Changed, an album consisting of all Bob Dylan songs. Her latest, Blackbirds, is Bettye’s homage to the Black female singers of the 1950s who came before her.
Fans, critics and artists have nothing but high praise for her live show and her vocal prowess. Now, at 75 years old and in her 59th year in show business, she is still performing with the ferocity of a woman half her age. She is one of very few of her contemporaries who were recording during the birth of soul music in the 1960s and is still creating vital recordings today.

Peter Mulvey
2022-02-19 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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To call Peter Mulvey an acoustic singer-songwriter and guitarist just doesn’t cover it. He’s equally—and tremendously on all counts—gifted as a singer, writer, and guitarist. Says the Irish Examiner: “Peter Mulvey is one of the most accomplished guitarists you’re ever likely to hear … utterly original … it is nigh on impossible to explain him to the uninitiated … his intelligent and sometimes complex songs engage both hemispheres of the listener’s brain.” Peter grew up in Milwaukee, made his debut on the streets of Dublin, and moved to Boston, performing in subways and finally clubs. His latest album was produced by Ani DiFranco, whom he befriended when she added a verse to his song “Take Down Your Flag,” about the shootings at the AME Emanuel Church in Charleston, South Carolina. “I heard a young folksinger at a festival last summer sing a line about how our job is to sing the people through, and I think that young man is right as rain,” Peter says. “I’m doing my best.” Peter returns from his MC slot at the 2019 Ann Arbor Folk Festival with a new album, “There Is Another World.”
The sound of SistaStrings can’t be described in one word. This Milwaukee-based sister duo combines their classical background with R&B and a touch of gospel influence that culminates in a “vibey, lush sound.” With thick string harmonies between violin and cello and soulful voices, SistaStrings takes you on a journey.

John McCutcheon
2022-02-18 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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John McCutcheon’s art grew out of his absolute mastery of American traditional music and instruments. He’s a legend of the guitar, the hammered dulcimer, and several other instruments, and a prolific songwriter, and there’s nobody more qualified to own the folkmusic.com domain name! The result is a body of classic American song, rooted in the best our musical tradition has to offer. John McCutcheon is a voice for peace, a community organizer, a writer, a literacy campaigner, and a performer who has packed concert halls on four continents. The Washington Post calls John’s concerts “little feats of magic,” and as a storyteller he’s been compared with Will Rogers.

The Ark's Open Stage
2022-02-16 20:00
Please Note: Proof of Vaccination is required for admission. By purchasing a ticket you agree that you and your guests will comply with all laws, orders, ordinances, regulations and health and safety guidance adopted by the State of Michigan, the County of Washtenaw and The Ark, including any guidelines in place at the time of the show. Attendees who do not comply will be asked to leave. Policies will be updated as circumstances and requirements change in our community. Please review The Ark’s current COVID-related information before attending a show.
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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. Fifteen performers have eight minutes (or two songs) each to do their thing. Sign-up: doors open at 7:30 p.m. At 7:45 we randomly select the names for the first half, and at 8:30 we draw names for the second half. If your name isn’t chosen, bring your raffle ticket with you to the next Open Stage (often the first and third Wednesdays of the month–check our calendar or website, theark.org), and you’ll double your chances.
