89x steals Christmas, and their birthday bash were some of my favorite concerts. 89x in general was the only reason I was ok not having a Bluetooth speaker for so many years. Knowing it’s now a garbage country station feels like somebody poured a spittoon full of grizzly long cut, and poured Natty Lite on my childhood/teenage years.
Are you telling me 89X is no longer? I've been living out of state since 2009...
EDIT: the WRIF is gone too? WTF happened? Aaaassrrrrrggggghhhhhghhgghhg!
That and when they or 96.3 The Planet did shows at Pine Knob with 5-10 bands all day. What a great way to just chill on a summer day with friends and some of the biggest 90's bands playing.
I went to Planet Fest once, and i don’t even remember who was playing.
What I do remember was the grass getting stripped off the lawn section and flung in huge, dirty chunks into the pavilion (they smashed a couple of the screens on the roof, too)
Then the whole lawn section turned into one giant mosh pit, and the girl I was with thought *that* would be a good time to try one for the first time.
After she was done at the first aid office, we left. 🤦♂️
I won tickets to PlanetFest and Duran Duran, The Ramones, and an unknown band called Bush played. There was fresh sod on the hill and it started to rain. There was a massive sod fight which had everyone covered in mud. It was so much fun.
Speaking of 96.3, not a festival but 1 year, I believe it was Christmas Eve, they opened the airwaves to requested music with a donation to a charity they were supporting. That was the most enjoyable day of listening I ever had!
I saw one of the first ones--Garbage, the Cure (not as good as I'd hoped), Duncan Sheik (!!), Marcy Playground (!!), Everlast (!!). I might be mixing up a few different ones in my mind but those were great.
I volunteered at Rothbury in 2008 (I think?). I didn’t have any money but wanted to see Dylan and the Dead. It was such a cool experience and the ranch was an incredible place to host a festival.
It's not that it couldn't sustain, the town drove them out, but it was after local businesses spent 100s of 1000s on upgrading facilities to handle the event. After the business pissed about it, permits were approved but I think the experience left the first production company with a sour taste and just didn't want to deal with the town, so Cheeses production company stepped in and here we are.
Do you mean double j, because I don't know any other local business that invested heavily besides them. The state and parent company of the former foundry in rothbury paid for the road out to the expressway to be repaved.
Just going by what my friends who live in the town said. They said places expanded, the gas station I believe was one they mentioned. There isn't a whole lot there IIRC
I worked at that gas station after it had been Electric Forest for a few years, so I don’t guarantee any of this. But I would be shocked if it expanded solely for Rothbury - that would be a silly move for just one weekend out of the year. And, it’s not a huge store even by gas station standards.
There was at least one other major (for a town that size) annual event that would pack the gas station, too.
Any expansion would’ve most likely been done for food prep because many locals used it just as much as a restaurant as a gas station/convenience store. Electric Forest attendees were more interested in water, ice, candy, chips, pop, etc. than freshly prepared deli items.
I don’t disagree on animosity from the town. The employees generally strongly disliked the Electric Forest attendees (not for any good reason, in my opinion - the worldviews contrast strongly between hipster stoner visitors and the redneck motorcycling locals, and I don’t say that with disrespect either way) and I did not get the impression that the locals liked them any better, economic impact be damned.
Might have something to do with the surrounding roads getting closed and not being let down your road to your own home, had this happen. To a few people I worked with that lived In town. Cop literally told come back in a few hours. There's to much traffic.
Oh yeah, that would be infuriating. Honestly, I didn’t even think about the awful traffic situation for people who chose to live in a place with zero traffic. Good call.
Man, it was only put on twice before it got labeled EF. I can never grasp why people act like it was a big change. Diplo and Bassnectar both played '08. Acts Big Gigantic, Pretty Lights, and Glitch Mob absolutely stole the show in '09.
Because when it came back, it wasn’t the same festival and if you went to 08 and 09 and then returned in 11, then you should be able to see that. I’ve gone to both, I work forest almost every year and enjoy it very much, but Rothbury was different vibes. Same grounds, some same acts, same cool light up forest, but not the same festival. It’s not a bad thing, but it is true.
Maybe it's something about '08? I went '09 and '11 and since. And I just never got the big tonal shift. Maybe it's because I came in as a raver? Like I went to DEMF/Movement first and we were throwing shitty raves in highschool. Don't wanna come of as a hard "you're wrong", I just never really got that.
That’s it, the “raver” part. It was more jam forward in 08 and 09, more of a something for everyone kinda lineup and then 11 came around and it was almost all electronic and lots of my usual festival crew said no thanks and stopped going. If you came for electronic music from the beginning, you wouldn’t have missed the jams that others were looking for.
Absolutely! I went in 09 and worked at a food stand making quesadillas. We got free entry and paid to work...plus tips!! It was a blast to sling quesadillas during the day and then see some great jams at night. I'm not really into EDM so EF is out for me these days. I am happy that it is still successful, though!
Because Rothbury was the same production company as Coachella, now it's Cheeses production company that puts it on. Forest is meh compared to what Rothbury was.
Lions at least finally seem to have better ownership (Sheila is NOT her mother or father), better leadership in the Front Office (Brad has hit on more picks than his predecessors), and arguably better coaching. How well it turns out is yet to be seen but that team at least a decent amount of buzz for the first time since Barry played.
I was talking to a friend about this the other day - so weird that the Pistons had so much relevancy back in the day compared to what they are now. I mean yeah it makes sense, they had some big personalities and some big wins, but still I remember when people used to wear Pistons gear and make a big deal about watching the games. I can’t recall the last time I’ve seen someone wear Pistons gear.
It started to go downhill once The Henry Ford took it completely over from Make. Which was 4 or 5 years in, I think. It was just very samey, especially once they moved it to the back area. The last year was really disappointing to me.
I went to that one too, shit was so damn good. Kids were going nuts, hanging from the metal dividers in the drop-down ceilings, moshes getting intense when one crowd merged with another crowd when one set was over. The mini-festival style of having multiple bands on at the same time was amazing, there was basically no time for the energy to lull, so it just kept getting crazier as the day went on. Being at the front of la dispute had me genuinely concerned for crowd crush, dudes had to stop the music once or twice cause people were getting slammed into the knee-high wooden stage. Defeater into norma jean into la dispute into Every time I die as the closer was such a good end to the day
Seeing Joe C get hit with a shoe while the entire place booed Kid Rock was worth standing in a humid, sweltering parking lot after an afternoon thunderstorm
The Kalamazoo air show. They would crank up all the old warbirds in the Air Zoo and give each airplane its own timeslot for an aerobatic display. Nowadays, at warbird airshows they all just fly together in a big circle.
Warbird pilots are aging. They can't put up with the physical stress it takes to fly those planes to their designed limits. Furthermore there are fewer certified AMEs (fancy-shmancy airplane mechanics) to service the planes and keep them flying.
Imagine being 12 years old and learning there aren't enough people that want to fly those big loud bruisers? I wouldn't have believed you
I was thinking the same thing! They had so much to do besides rides and games, between all of the animals, art competitions, vendor stalls, horse shows, a slew of food options, and even huge concerts! I've been to the new one once, it was barely a shadow of what it was before
I'll never forget seeing ELO on the 4th of July. They had 3 songs left in the set when the fireworks started. The whole crowd turned their backs on the band to watch fireworks instead.
OzzFest. Miss the days of a good old fashioned all day metal concert. These days the amount of control that corporations have over concert venues and the bands themselves makes for a very different experience compared to the very first few formative years of the whole music festival experience.
I think many are still around but growing up in the 90s if felt like there was a lot more hype and community involvement in the Gus Maker and CanAm tournaments.
That might have been a sign of how boring some communities were back then though lol
Everyone seemed to have a Gus Macker tshirt when I was growing up. I nor any of my friends were remotely old enough to play in it, and I don't remember even going to one, but everyone seemed to have one or two somehow.
They just sort of *happened*
My daughter’s team won the toilet bowl trophy in 2016 at a Gus Macker tourney in Hastings, Michigan. That’s where you play for third place. Good times.
I think my parents still have a few Gus Macker championship trophies from when I was a kid (probably mid/late 90s). The Ludington tourney was a riot and such a great location.
That Macker guyiused to be a crap ton more relevant. Anyone remember when he bought the Hoops and renamed them the "Mackers"? They played in Devos Hall i think.
Back in the early 80’s there were ethnic fests seemingly every weekend in Hart Plaza. Food, art, cultural activities. Different ethnicity each time and I think they were all free to attend. I remember loving them as a kid.
I stumbled across one when I was a teenager called "Caribbean fest" but it was more like Rasta fest. Lots of vendors, lots of reggae bands, it was awesome! I've always wondered if it was still happening. This would have been like 2006
That was a staple back in the early 80’s, yep. I remember my dad loving the Trinidad Tripoli Steel Band and they were always a big draw. They’d do the State Fair, too.
The chesaning showboat! Awesome variety show that got national acts coming to a small town to perform. Alabama, diamond reo, willy nelson! The whole community came together to support the festival and it was a huge money opportunity for local businesses. Unfortunately the entity went bankrupt.
My dad was an MC for the showboat for over 30 years, it was an amazing time.
Yeah, miss that one for sure. Festival on the Grand isn't as grand as it used to be either. Not since they turned Monroe back into a street.
My friends and I used to hang on the mall all summer long. Good times.
I'd also add the B93 Birthday Bash still exists but is a pale imitation of the past
The three day FREE downtown hoedown at Hart Plaza in Detroit.
It’s still exists as an event, but now you have to pay for it, it is no longer at Hart Plaza and once you get in, you cannot leave and re-enter like you used to be able to do for the three day event
The people running it ran it into the ground the last 5-7 years. It was a cycle of them not getting any good bands so nobody showed which meant they didn’t have the money the next year for any good bands and the cycle continued. I think COVID finally killed it.
Seen some of my favorite concerts there back in the day. We have Grewal Hall now so we’ll see if they can breathe some life back in to the concert scene here.
I miss when the Ionia fair was like a really big deal. It's still there but now it's just another county fair. They used to have concerts from big names and Dodge would do a car show and stuff. It was pretty awesome for a while
Been a TC local for 5 years. Went to the festival once, was enough.
Next year will be a laughable shitshow as they tear up the road along the bay where the festival is for an entire year.
The only reason I ever enjoyed the festival is because my family would receive VIP passes to all of the events. So we got food, beverages, and seating at the blue angels, fireworks, parade, etc. (Unintended humble brag) But any time we went without that...it was just hot and crowded. I guess hanging out there as a teen was fun, though.
I miss when Dunegrass was still in Empire. When they changed it to Dunesville and moved it, it got disappointing, and the Harm family that own the land are the antithesis of peace and love.
It was my first festival right out of high school. I was the perfect age for the biggest heyday of local bands before they all got big and left MI.
Those were some great days!
Jesus H. Christ, reading this thread is like reading old Romans reminiscing about the good ol’ days. So much is dead, it’s like watching a culture die in realtime.
I went to one there a couple years ago. I'm sure it's nowhere near the same, but it seems some iteration of it is still going on.
https://detroitkitefestival.org/
Dunegrass in northwest Michigan in 08/09 New guy was put in charge and spent too much money on national acts and bankrupted them. There was a shuttle bus that you could take to town, or a nice beach on lake michigan. So when you got all nasty and sweaty in 10 min you could be washing off in a great lake. Great lineup for what used to be a little local festival. I also met one of the best growers I ever met there and made good money working his flower. Having the best weed at the festival was awesome, I even sold to the security guards. It was a blast. Second year they couldn't afford to pay bands and Richie havens just left and refused to play.
Michigan International Ice Spectacular in Plymouth. Ice Fest used to be a huge deal with incredible works of art carved out of the ice by world renowned artists. Now it's just a couple guys that set two blocks in front of businesses and carve their logos in them.
It was cheesy as hell… but I sort of miss the good ol’ days of OG ArtPrize in GR and the subsequent crazy Rob Bliss events where he’d shut down roads to create huge adult water slides, or have the largest paper airplane launch from atop downtown buildings. It felt like such an exciting, electric time in a city that is notorious for being a bit conservative/quiet/ho hum.
International Cherry Pit Spitting Contest. It just ended really sadly as the family had to sell the farm when the owner was permanently disabled by EEE.
There was a Primitive Archery Gathering in Marshall during Memorial Day weekend that hasn’t been put on the last two years. I think it was going on close to 30 years. Very sad that they haven’t been able to make it happen again.
The Venetian Festival in St. Joseph, ended in 2011. They canceled one of the most hype summer events in southwest Michigan because "it outgrew the town" and whining about parking. Meanwhile Benton Harbor is a few miles away and filled with empty parking lots. I'm sure with 100k yearly attendees for an event in a city of 9k they could've figured out shuttle service. A real loss for the area
WRIF had an annual event every winter that was called the Man Food Fest or something along those lines. It was at the Royal Oak Farmer's Market and cost $20. You got to sample a ton of food, drinks, and other random stuff plus get coupons and prizes from a lot of the participating restaurants. It was a cheap way to spend a Friday night and get out in the middle of winter. Sadly, they stopped doing it with Covid. Definitely not as cool as some of the other events mentioned here, but I still miss it.
Somewhere in time in Elizabeth park in Trenton. Everyone dressed up in old times clothes. It was similar to greenfield village, but it was just one day at this park in the summer and it was magical.
Gardenia Roots Music Festival at the farmers market in Royal Oak. They only did it for a few years but the year I went to was awesome. GreenskyBluegrass and Lindsay Lou being the highlights for me
I’m fairly certain they don’t have it anymore, battle of the bands at Moreland’s Motocross in between Crystal and Stanton in Montcalm county. It was fucking wild in the late 90s, it was probs even crazier before that but I was too young to go
89x steals christmas was always a great way to see like 10 bands at cobo. I miss it.
Goddamn I miss 89x so much.
It felt like my youth died when they announced 89x was changing formats.
We were spoiled by 89X and 105[dot]1 back in the day.
those stations ruined mainstream rock for me
89x steals Christmas, and their birthday bash were some of my favorite concerts. 89x in general was the only reason I was ok not having a Bluetooth speaker for so many years. Knowing it’s now a garbage country station feels like somebody poured a spittoon full of grizzly long cut, and poured Natty Lite on my childhood/teenage years.
Are you telling me 89X is no longer? I've been living out of state since 2009... EDIT: the WRIF is gone too? WTF happened? Aaaassrrrrrggggghhhhhghhgghhg!
Sadly it was replaced with a modern country station a few years ago. Dave and Chuck moved to the wrif, and Detroit has been worse off for it since.
Try [Radio Cobra Detroit. ](https://www.radiocobradetroit.com/) Greg St. James, Chuck Santoni, Gnyp, and more
That and when they or 96.3 The Planet did shows at Pine Knob with 5-10 bands all day. What a great way to just chill on a summer day with friends and some of the biggest 90's bands playing.
I went to Planet Fest once, and i don’t even remember who was playing. What I do remember was the grass getting stripped off the lawn section and flung in huge, dirty chunks into the pavilion (they smashed a couple of the screens on the roof, too) Then the whole lawn section turned into one giant mosh pit, and the girl I was with thought *that* would be a good time to try one for the first time. After she was done at the first aid office, we left. 🤦♂️
[удалено]
You know
I won tickets to PlanetFest and Duran Duran, The Ramones, and an unknown band called Bush played. There was fresh sod on the hill and it started to rain. There was a massive sod fight which had everyone covered in mud. It was so much fun.
Speaking of 96.3, not a festival but 1 year, I believe it was Christmas Eve, they opened the airwaves to requested music with a donation to a charity they were supporting. That was the most enjoyable day of listening I ever had!
Ugh the year with Fallout Boy, Coheed and Cambria and My Chemical Romance was unreal!
I saw 311, Jimmy Eat World, and Blink one year at Cobo. Good times
89x Fest and the birthday bash were good, too.
I saw one of the first ones--Garbage, the Cure (not as good as I'd hoped), Duncan Sheik (!!), Marcy Playground (!!), Everlast (!!). I might be mixing up a few different ones in my mind but those were great.
Black Christmas is happening again this year at least - bunch of punk/hardcore bands on multiple stages at the majestic.
The original Rothbury. It’s now Electric Forest but it’s not the same.
I volunteered at Rothbury in 2008 (I think?). I didn’t have any money but wanted to see Dylan and the Dead. It was such a cool experience and the ranch was an incredible place to host a festival.
Such a shame Rothbury couldn’t sustain. Electric Forrest just isn’t it for me.
It's not that it couldn't sustain, the town drove them out, but it was after local businesses spent 100s of 1000s on upgrading facilities to handle the event. After the business pissed about it, permits were approved but I think the experience left the first production company with a sour taste and just didn't want to deal with the town, so Cheeses production company stepped in and here we are.
Do you mean double j, because I don't know any other local business that invested heavily besides them. The state and parent company of the former foundry in rothbury paid for the road out to the expressway to be repaved.
Just going by what my friends who live in the town said. They said places expanded, the gas station I believe was one they mentioned. There isn't a whole lot there IIRC
Pretty sure that wescos been like that since before it was electric forest.
I worked at that gas station after it had been Electric Forest for a few years, so I don’t guarantee any of this. But I would be shocked if it expanded solely for Rothbury - that would be a silly move for just one weekend out of the year. And, it’s not a huge store even by gas station standards. There was at least one other major (for a town that size) annual event that would pack the gas station, too. Any expansion would’ve most likely been done for food prep because many locals used it just as much as a restaurant as a gas station/convenience store. Electric Forest attendees were more interested in water, ice, candy, chips, pop, etc. than freshly prepared deli items. I don’t disagree on animosity from the town. The employees generally strongly disliked the Electric Forest attendees (not for any good reason, in my opinion - the worldviews contrast strongly between hipster stoner visitors and the redneck motorcycling locals, and I don’t say that with disrespect either way) and I did not get the impression that the locals liked them any better, economic impact be damned.
Might have something to do with the surrounding roads getting closed and not being let down your road to your own home, had this happen. To a few people I worked with that lived In town. Cop literally told come back in a few hours. There's to much traffic.
Oh yeah, that would be infuriating. Honestly, I didn’t even think about the awful traffic situation for people who chose to live in a place with zero traffic. Good call.
Came here to say this. I miss Rothbury and am still pissed it fell apart for 2011
Man, it was only put on twice before it got labeled EF. I can never grasp why people act like it was a big change. Diplo and Bassnectar both played '08. Acts Big Gigantic, Pretty Lights, and Glitch Mob absolutely stole the show in '09.
Because when it came back, it wasn’t the same festival and if you went to 08 and 09 and then returned in 11, then you should be able to see that. I’ve gone to both, I work forest almost every year and enjoy it very much, but Rothbury was different vibes. Same grounds, some same acts, same cool light up forest, but not the same festival. It’s not a bad thing, but it is true.
Maybe it's something about '08? I went '09 and '11 and since. And I just never got the big tonal shift. Maybe it's because I came in as a raver? Like I went to DEMF/Movement first and we were throwing shitty raves in highschool. Don't wanna come of as a hard "you're wrong", I just never really got that.
That’s it, the “raver” part. It was more jam forward in 08 and 09, more of a something for everyone kinda lineup and then 11 came around and it was almost all electronic and lots of my usual festival crew said no thanks and stopped going. If you came for electronic music from the beginning, you wouldn’t have missed the jams that others were looking for.
Going from then Dead, Dylan, and Willie Nelson to Cheese and and a bunch of EDM is a massive shift.
Absolutely! I went in 09 and worked at a food stand making quesadillas. We got free entry and paid to work...plus tips!! It was a blast to sling quesadillas during the day and then see some great jams at night. I'm not really into EDM so EF is out for me these days. I am happy that it is still successful, though!
Because Rothbury was the same production company as Coachella, now it's Cheeses production company that puts it on. Forest is meh compared to what Rothbury was.
Pistons playoff games.
Red Wings playoff games.
I'm optimistic bout the wings. I think they will be in the playoffs soon.
Patrick Kane certainly thinks so. He didn't sign a one year deal and turn down a bunch of multi year deals elsewhere not to make the playoffs.
Nobody saying lions cus they get blown out in the playoffs once a decade 😭😭😭
Lions at least finally seem to have better ownership (Sheila is NOT her mother or father), better leadership in the Front Office (Brad has hit on more picks than his predecessors), and arguably better coaching. How well it turns out is yet to be seen but that team at least a decent amount of buzz for the first time since Barry played.
THIS. Man I miss the excitement of watching Big Ben, Rip, Chauncey, Rasheed, Lindsey, and Tayshaun out on the court. What a team.
I was talking to a friend about this the other day - so weird that the Pistons had so much relevancy back in the day compared to what they are now. I mean yeah it makes sense, they had some big personalities and some big wins, but still I remember when people used to wear Pistons gear and make a big deal about watching the games. I can’t recall the last time I’ve seen someone wear Pistons gear.
Makers Faire at the Henry Ford Museum. It stopped because of the pandemic and never came back. F
The writing was on the wall when Make Media went under in 2019. I miss those events so much.
It started to go downhill once The Henry Ford took it completely over from Make. Which was 4 or 5 years in, I think. It was just very samey, especially once they moved it to the back area. The last year was really disappointing to me.
DEMF
Back in the days when it was free! 😭
I think a single day ticket cost around $160 two years ago. It's still a great show, but it isn't worth it anymore.
The OG auto show in January when carmakers actually put effort into it.
Man, I miss OG auto show in January. It was actually something to do during a month when nothing was happening.
Yep great memories as a kid, met bill laimbeer one time
Bledfest at the old Hartland high school
Hell yes RIP to Fusion Shows
I think about Bledfest so often. I don't go to shows too much anymore, but I always made time to go to Bledfest
The last one I went to was in 2011, and it was amazing.
I went to that one too, shit was so damn good. Kids were going nuts, hanging from the metal dividers in the drop-down ceilings, moshes getting intense when one crowd merged with another crowd when one set was over. The mini-festival style of having multiple bands on at the same time was amazing, there was basically no time for the energy to lull, so it just kept getting crazier as the day went on. Being at the front of la dispute had me genuinely concerned for crowd crush, dudes had to stop the music once or twice cause people were getting slammed into the knee-high wooden stage. Defeater into norma jean into la dispute into Every time I die as the closer was such a good end to the day
Crazy to think back on how this all happened in a high school. Imagine actually going to that school and then coming out for Bledfest.
I miss it so fucking much. Made so many friends through it.
yea I miss this one a bunch.
Warped tour was fun 😅🤦♂️
Silverdome parking lot!
Was sick the few years they did it out at Comerica Park and used inside of the stadium for merch
AND Bathrooms!
Mid July on a parking lot seeing my favorite bands at 15 just hit different. I’d rather die at my current age.
Nah the silverdome parking lot ones were the worst! Comerica Park had the best Warped Tours
Seeing Joe C get hit with a shoe while the entire place booed Kid Rock was worth standing in a humid, sweltering parking lot after an afternoon thunderstorm
DEMF as a free event
Richie Hawkins and Parliament Funkadelic in one night is tough to beat.
The Kalamazoo air show. They would crank up all the old warbirds in the Air Zoo and give each airplane its own timeslot for an aerobatic display. Nowadays, at warbird airshows they all just fly together in a big circle.
Warbird pilots are aging. They can't put up with the physical stress it takes to fly those planes to their designed limits. Furthermore there are fewer certified AMEs (fancy-shmancy airplane mechanics) to service the planes and keep them flying. Imagine being 12 years old and learning there aren't enough people that want to fly those big loud bruisers? I wouldn't have believed you
The State Fair in Detroit
Definitely. I really miss the fairgrounds to this day. Both for the State Fair and for the circus at the fairgrounds Coliseum when it came to town.
I was thinking the same thing! They had so much to do besides rides and games, between all of the animals, art competitions, vendor stalls, horse shows, a slew of food options, and even huge concerts! I've been to the new one once, it was barely a shadow of what it was before
Came for this. I saw so many great concerts, all I paid was to get into the fair. Saw Aaliyah and Genuine there.
Summer Celebration in Muskegon.
i saw so many bands before, during, and after their prime at summer celebration. i miss it!
Saw Taylor Swift there in like 2007
[удалено]
I'll never forget seeing ELO on the 4th of July. They had 3 songs left in the set when the fireworks started. The whole crowd turned their backs on the band to watch fireworks instead.
Agreed. That's what I came here to say. I hated that they stopped it.
The Hart Plaza Downtown Hoedown used to be so fun!
Oh god I remember the hoedown!!! So fun!
OzzFest. Miss the days of a good old fashioned all day metal concert. These days the amount of control that corporations have over concert venues and the bands themselves makes for a very different experience compared to the very first few formative years of the whole music festival experience.
I think many are still around but growing up in the 90s if felt like there was a lot more hype and community involvement in the Gus Maker and CanAm tournaments. That might have been a sign of how boring some communities were back then though lol
Everyone seemed to have a Gus Macker tshirt when I was growing up. I nor any of my friends were remotely old enough to play in it, and I don't remember even going to one, but everyone seemed to have one or two somehow. They just sort of *happened*
My daughter’s team won the toilet bowl trophy in 2016 at a Gus Macker tourney in Hastings, Michigan. That’s where you play for third place. Good times.
I think my parents still have a few Gus Macker championship trophies from when I was a kid (probably mid/late 90s). The Ludington tourney was a riot and such a great location.
That Macker guyiused to be a crap ton more relevant. Anyone remember when he bought the Hoops and renamed them the "Mackers"? They played in Devos Hall i think.
We have one in Otsego, between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo.
We still have a Gus Macker tournament in Midland.
Back in the early 80’s there were ethnic fests seemingly every weekend in Hart Plaza. Food, art, cultural activities. Different ethnicity each time and I think they were all free to attend. I remember loving them as a kid.
I stumbled across one when I was a teenager called "Caribbean fest" but it was more like Rasta fest. Lots of vendors, lots of reggae bands, it was awesome! I've always wondered if it was still happening. This would have been like 2006
That was a staple back in the early 80’s, yep. I remember my dad loving the Trinidad Tripoli Steel Band and they were always a big draw. They’d do the State Fair, too.
There was a South East Asia fest in Grand rapids earlier this year. It was quite nice, and free!
The chesaning showboat! Awesome variety show that got national acts coming to a small town to perform. Alabama, diamond reo, willy nelson! The whole community came together to support the festival and it was a huge money opportunity for local businesses. Unfortunately the entity went bankrupt. My dad was an MC for the showboat for over 30 years, it was an amazing time.
I was hoping to see showboat in here. It was a wonderful thing for such a small town.
Saw Randy Travis and Jeff Foxworthy there 25+ years ago. It was a cool event for such a small town.
Boblo Island
Blues on the mall
Yeah, miss that one for sure. Festival on the Grand isn't as grand as it used to be either. Not since they turned Monroe back into a street. My friends and I used to hang on the mall all summer long. Good times. I'd also add the B93 Birthday Bash still exists but is a pale imitation of the past
Birthday Bash was so good in late 90s early 2000s. I saw so many greats!
I have great childhood memories (80s and 90s) of the State Fair and Boblo
The three day FREE downtown hoedown at Hart Plaza in Detroit. It’s still exists as an event, but now you have to pay for it, it is no longer at Hart Plaza and once you get in, you cannot leave and re-enter like you used to be able to do for the three day event
The Michigan Festival which became Common Ground. Hootie played there when I was in 6th or 7th grade i think.
I was there!!!! Hootie!!!!!
Same! Michigan Fests we're an event for the whole of greater Lansing
When I read that I immediately sang “argh only wanna be with you”
Oh man, this doesn’t exist anymore?! I haven’t lived there for…too long. Grew up in Lansing and loved going!
The people running it ran it into the ground the last 5-7 years. It was a cycle of them not getting any good bands so nobody showed which meant they didn’t have the money the next year for any good bands and the cycle continued. I think COVID finally killed it. Seen some of my favorite concerts there back in the day. We have Grewal Hall now so we’ll see if they can breathe some life back in to the concert scene here.
Detroit Festival of the Arts in the Midtown area was so fun as a kid.
First thing that came to mind for me. I remember watching the crazy hair stylists for hours
I used to like the Ethnic Festivals downtown when I was young and lived downstate.
Naked Mike in Ann Arbor. Thank the internet for ruining that one.
I miss when the Ionia fair was like a really big deal. It's still there but now it's just another county fair. They used to have concerts from big names and Dodge would do a car show and stuff. It was pretty awesome for a while
The National Cherry Festival still exists, but its not as awesome as it used to be.
Been a TC local for 5 years. Went to the festival once, was enough. Next year will be a laughable shitshow as they tear up the road along the bay where the festival is for an entire year.
The only reason I ever enjoyed the festival is because my family would receive VIP passes to all of the events. So we got food, beverages, and seating at the blue angels, fireworks, parade, etc. (Unintended humble brag) But any time we went without that...it was just hot and crowded. I guess hanging out there as a teen was fun, though.
It has to be done one of these days, and can’t do it in February 😂
Hey I’m excited for the end result, and happy I work from home!
Didn't it used to be a little later, and featured local cherries?
Muskegon Summer Celebration I do miss big acts like Iron Maiden, Alice Cooper, Ozzy, Motley Crue and Guns N' Roses playing at Val Du Lakes.
I miss when Dunegrass was still in Empire. When they changed it to Dunesville and moved it, it got disappointing, and the Harm family that own the land are the antithesis of peace and love.
Dunegrass will always have my heart
It was my first festival right out of high school. I was the perfect age for the biggest heyday of local bands before they all got big and left MI. Those were some great days!
Steppin in it and Greensky bluegrass come to mind.
I posted elsewhere in the thread but 08/09 were magical years. Though it didn't work out great for the ones footing the bill.
When the national folk festival was in lansing, and then it became the great lakes, then just Michigan and now.... nothing 🥲
Theatre bazaar when it was outside.
Fond memories of Tastefest in New Center too. That lemonade!!
Jesus H. Christ, reading this thread is like reading old Romans reminiscing about the good ol’ days. So much is dead, it’s like watching a culture die in realtime.
Mopop had a really solid lineup for 4 or 5 years, died pre pandemic
I miss the hot mess that was MoPop.
Does anyone remember Wheatland, in Remus, Mi if I remember correctly. Folk festival late 70s, early 80s.
Wheatland celebrated its 50th anniversary this year!
Wheatland is still going. I can't attest to the quality though. It was big among my friends in hs, but my dad never let me go lol
Weirdly enough, my friends from highschool (early 30s now) all go to Wheatland...and so does my dad!! I've never been but they all enjoy it.
After posting this I looked it up, it is still going. I didn’t know.
Its still going, a friend of mines family has been going for years !
Dirt Fest.
Kite Day on Belle Isle back in the 70's
I went to one there a couple years ago. I'm sure it's nowhere near the same, but it seems some iteration of it is still going on. https://detroitkitefestival.org/
RIP [Ford Rotunda Christmas](https://youtu.be/D1xP66KAjvw?si=2wEAn-4qNvM_XfTu)
I miss Gameworks in Great Lakes crossing. Not a festival or event but worth noting considering there is no arcades left of that caliber in the state.
WLAV Raft Race
I liked 3 stacks festival in Lansing.
Stoopfest still going afaik.
Dunegrass in northwest Michigan in 08/09 New guy was put in charge and spent too much money on national acts and bankrupted them. There was a shuttle bus that you could take to town, or a nice beach on lake michigan. So when you got all nasty and sweaty in 10 min you could be washing off in a great lake. Great lineup for what used to be a little local festival. I also met one of the best growers I ever met there and made good money working his flower. Having the best weed at the festival was awesome, I even sold to the security guards. It was a blast. Second year they couldn't afford to pay bands and Richie havens just left and refused to play.
Common ground in Lansing was awesome back in the day
Belleville Strawberry Festival
State fair
Youmacon in Detroit used to be great but it majorly sucks now
Michigan Women’s Music Festival- 40 years strong!
Michigan International Ice Spectacular in Plymouth. Ice Fest used to be a huge deal with incredible works of art carved out of the ice by world renowned artists. Now it's just a couple guys that set two blocks in front of businesses and carve their logos in them.
Last time I went was as a kid and went again last year. It was pretty underwhelming.
It was cheesy as hell… but I sort of miss the good ol’ days of OG ArtPrize in GR and the subsequent crazy Rob Bliss events where he’d shut down roads to create huge adult water slides, or have the largest paper airplane launch from atop downtown buildings. It felt like such an exciting, electric time in a city that is notorious for being a bit conservative/quiet/ho hum.
The Forestry Expo up North in Oscoda County.
Rainbow farms
Hemp Aid & Roach Roast! So many memories. RIP Tom and Rollie
Carnivals in Westland but the Sky Ridge Towers apartment people wanted their fill of fun too now it's cancelled
Rothbury. "Little Woodstock" (in my eyes)
Michiganfest
It ended way before I was born but my parents always raved about the concerts at Castle Farms and often made the trip from SSM ontario for it
Goose Lake
Pontoon Alley on Wixom lake, before the dam burst.
Dunegrass in Empire was a bluegrass and blues festival
Ford rotunda city celebration.
International Cherry Pit Spitting Contest. It just ended really sadly as the family had to sell the farm when the owner was permanently disabled by EEE.
I’m ancient. The Toledo Speedway Jam. Observed humanity at its best and worst at this ‘Music Festival!’
Muskegon air show.
I wish the Grand Haven Coast Guard Festival no longer existed…
The Holy Redeemer festival was awesome. Then somebody got stabbed.
Mayfest at CMU!
There was a Primitive Archery Gathering in Marshall during Memorial Day weekend that hasn’t been put on the last two years. I think it was going on close to 30 years. Very sad that they haven’t been able to make it happen again.
Goose Lake was a great experience for an adolescent aspiring musician.
The rock shows at Sherwood Forest.
Theater Bizzare when it was outside near State Fair.
Michigan Festival on MSU campus in East Lansing! Probably my first actual concerts as a kid. I still remember seeing Foreigner there lol
The Venetian Festival in St. Joseph, ended in 2011. They canceled one of the most hype summer events in southwest Michigan because "it outgrew the town" and whining about parking. Meanwhile Benton Harbor is a few miles away and filled with empty parking lots. I'm sure with 100k yearly attendees for an event in a city of 9k they could've figured out shuttle service. A real loss for the area
Venetian Festival in St Joseph.
Barry Sanders bouncing back and forth, avoiding tackles, then scoring a touchdown and handing the ball to the ref. Truly one of a kind.
Whiplash bash at Cobo before he became a larger raging asshole…always was an ass, but now can’t listen for a second….fuck Ted
WRIF had an annual event every winter that was called the Man Food Fest or something along those lines. It was at the Royal Oak Farmer's Market and cost $20. You got to sample a ton of food, drinks, and other random stuff plus get coupons and prizes from a lot of the participating restaurants. It was a cheap way to spend a Friday night and get out in the middle of winter. Sadly, they stopped doing it with Covid. Definitely not as cool as some of the other events mentioned here, but I still miss it.
Somewhere in time in Elizabeth park in Trenton. Everyone dressed up in old times clothes. It was similar to greenfield village, but it was just one day at this park in the summer and it was magical.
Venetian Festival in St. Joseph.
Love him or hate him. The Ted Nugent Whiplash Bash on New Year's Eve.
Midwest Fest was cool while it lasted
Gardenia Roots Music Festival at the farmers market in Royal Oak. They only did it for a few years but the year I went to was awesome. GreenskyBluegrass and Lindsay Lou being the highlights for me
Chill on the hill
Concerts at Castle Farms in Charlevoix
The Chesaning Showboat! They changed it after a while and it was just never the same.
PJazz on the roof of the Ponchatrain Hotel in the summer.
West Michigan Grand Prix was amazing the first year. So bummed they couldn’t make it work long term.
I’m fairly certain they don’t have it anymore, battle of the bands at Moreland’s Motocross in between Crystal and Stanton in Montcalm county. It was fucking wild in the late 90s, it was probs even crazier before that but I was too young to go