Mercy in the Mountains: A Blues and Soul Celebration benefitting Habitat for Humanity and LEAF Global Arts
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLY – NET TICKET PROCEEDS TO DIRECTLY BENEFIT HABITAT FOR HUMANITY AND LEAF GLOBAL ARTS – PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MERCY IN THE MOUNTAINS MAMA Winner of the 2025 MerleFest Band Competition. Melissa McKinney writes songs about the pain that every person inevitably experiences in their lives. She sings these songs as a cry for hope, healing, and inspiration. She is passionate about creating music in a way that makes a positive impact on the world. Melissa is the lead singer of MAMA—Melissa McKinney’s Band, a resident artist with LEAF Global Arts, the co-founder of Women to the Front Music Festival, a board member of AVLFest, and the director of The One Voice Project. Recently, she advanced to the finals of the International Blues competition in Memphis and was given the opportunity to sing at the historic Orpheum Theatre. Melissa’s biggest joy comes from performing alongside her daughter, K McKinney, who is also a musician, singer, and songwriter. MAD DOG BLUES BAND A blues and soul collective with roots in the 1990s, The Mad Dog Blues Band is made up of musicians and singers from Asheville, New York City, Washington D.C., and North Georgia. For this show, original members Mark McDaniel, Brian Harvey, Jacob Keller, Bob Walters, and Kate Brown Walters, are joined by a gifted group of performers including Andy Hunter, John Caldemeyer, Wes Snoddy, Mary Grace Walters, Ashley Berger and others. Their goal is to pay homage to the blues, roots, and soul music from the 50s, 60s, and 70s that laid the foundation for almost all popular music we have played and listened to since. ERIC FREEMAN Eric Freeman, aka The Blueridge Boy, is a genuine bluesman who shares classic acoustic blues from the Delta to the Piedmont — ragtime tunes, minstrel songs, plus a healthy dose of country and other favorites. Originally from a rural north-central Virginia community known as Gid Brown Hollow, Eric has traveled America playing the blues and living the hard life of a traveling blues man, sharing authentic roots music that is getting harder and harder to find. Brendan Boyle at Folk Arts Rare Records in San Diego says this about Eric: “He has brought the house down every time he’s played at Folk Arts. Eric has an in-depth knowledge of many different pre-war blues styles, and he never stops learning. He also has a deep understanding of what the blues is really all about.”
Jonathan Scales Fourchestra
ALL AGES SEATED SHOW LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLE JONATHAN SCALES FOURCHESTRA You’ve heard this before, but the whimsically named Jonathan Scales Fourchestra is really tough to describe. Veering from in-your-face, jaw dropping chops and passion, to those quiet moments when the background noise disappears and you hold your breath to take in a soundscape of solitude, the power trio of electric bass (E’Lon JD), drums (Maison Guidry), and steel pans (Jonathan Scales) combines elements of jazz, classical, and progressive rock, peppered with Latin rhythms and soulful outbursts of funk. From club and festival stages across North America and Europe, and tours of Africa, Southeast and Central Asia as a Cultural Ambassador for the US Department of State, to their NPR Tiny Desk Concert featuring Béla Fleck, the Fourchestra’s live shows make even the most jaded listeners forget where they are… even if just for a precious moment. (written by Tom Baggott)
Cosmic Supreme Tour featuring John Mark McMillan + Citizens
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY LIMITED NUMBER OF VIP PRE-SHOW EXPERIENCES: Early entry to the venue one hour before doors, Pre-show group Q&A with John Mark McMillan and Zach Bolen from Citizens, VIP Tour Laminate, VIP Cosmic Supreme signed poster, First access to merchandise JOHN MARK McMILLAN John Mark McMillan is something of an anomaly: an artist and Platinum-selling songwriter bending genres and defying categorization by carving out his own unique and independent path. With an ear for melody and a poet’s eye for metaphor, no topic has been off-limits. While each of his albums over the past decade have continued to explore new territory, it’s McMillan’s ability to give lyric and language to the human experience that many consider his greatest gift. CITIZENS Citizens, formerly known as Citizens & Saints, are an American Christian rock band from Seattle, Washington.
Country Brunch w/ Mucho Gumbo
– FREE SHOW!!! – ALL AGES – LIMITED SEATING IS FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED Country Brunch at The Grey Eagle – a music series for early birds. Country Brunch showcases a goldmine of local country bands that can usually only be found playing late nights in local and regional venues, and brings them out into the light of day for lovers of an early matinee show. The series runs monthly with a different band each month. FREE SHOW!! Show runs 11am-2pm. Food and drink available from The Grey Eagle Taqueria. Family friendly show! Come fill your Sunday day with food, drink, fun and some of the best live music Asheville has to offer – all in one place.
PATIO: Solar Hearts Acoustic
– ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVE SOLAR HEARTS ACOUSTIC Solar Hearts, a vibrant four-piece folk-pop band that’s been captivating local audiences for over a year, presents a special solo performance by lead vocalist and guitarist, Chris Hewat. With heartfelt songwriting and an intimate, stripped-back style, Chris creates a truly uplifting and memorable musical experience.
Tyler Hilton: Celebrating the Music of “One Tree Hill”
ALL AGES SEATED SHOW LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLE VIP MEET&GREET PACKAGES AVAILABLE INCLUDING: Early entry, Early merch access, Access to Pre-Show Soundcheck, Photo Op w/ Tyler VIP CHECK IN: 5:45PM TYLER HILTON From portraying Elvis Presley in Walk the Line and garnering a cult following as musician Chris Keller on the CW hit TV show One Tree Hill, to writing andtouring with the likes of Taylor Swift, Lady Antebellum and Joe Cocker, Tyler Hilton has enjoyed an award-winning career spanning music, film andtelevision. Born and raised in California, Tyler grew up in a family of talented musicians who had played for acts like Fleetwood Mac, George Harrison and Donovan.Performing with his family from an early age, Hilton became serious about songwriting at 14. At 15, he called into L.A.’s KLOS radio station to winconcert tickets and ended up wowing the hosts with an on-air performance. The station made him a regular guest and helped launch his debut record,which caught the ear of Warner Bros. Records, who signed him to record his second album The Tracks of Tyler Hilton, earning him two Top 40 singles.Tyler then landed the dream gig of portraying Elvis in Golden Globe-winning Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line, opposite Reese Witherspoon and JoaquinPhoenix. “I’d never done any kind of professional acting, but got quite the education from those two. They were pros, and so patient.” Two of hisrecordings featured on the film’s Grammy-winning soundtrack and his portrayal of the late legend helped launch an acting career which has sinceseen him star alongside Robert Downey Jr. in the 2007 film Charlie Bartlett and opposite Halle Berry in CBS series Extant. However, it was Tyler’s musical role in One Tree Hill that helped build the devoted, global fan base he has today. The series heavily featured songs from his third album, 2012’s Forget the Storm, which reached #2 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums Chart. Tyler also featured on the show’s soundtracks with fan favorites like “When the Stars Go Blue” and “Missing You.” “I played the worst kind of person on the show, and still the fans totally took me in and connected with my music. It was an incredible fan base to be a part of!” Following 2014’s Indian Summer, Tyler released his proudest body of work yet, 2019’s City on Fire, featuring a collaboration with Lady Antebellum’sCharles Kelley (an ex-roommate). The album, rooted in Hilton’s signature cinematic folk-rock stylings, was featured heavily in film and TV includingShowtime’s Shameless. The star-studded video for the record’s gritty lead single, “City on Fire,” was directed by Tyler’s wife, Megan Park, an award winning director, writer and actress. CASEY McQUILLEN Whether touring extensively across the U.S. and Europe, gaining a loyal fan base from the millions who watched her as a powerhouse vocalist on Season 13 of American Idol, appearing on The Kelly Clarkson Show, or having her most recent single played on CMT, MTV, and Sirius XM ‘The Pulse,’ Casey has accomplished so much in her short career.
Rakish
ALL AGES SEATED SHOW LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLE RAKISH Rooted in tradition with an ear toward the future, contemporary folk duo Rakish embody earnest musical exploration and an infectious playfulness on their new album Now, O Now. Fiddler Maura Shawn Scanlin, acclaimed for her expressive playing, was raised in North Carolina’s Appalachian Mountains. Her songwriting and clawhammer banjo technique hint at regional old-time ballads. Further north, guitarist Conor Hearn grew up steeped in the venerated Washington, D.C. Irish music scene and developed a keen interest in literature and poetry. His setting of James Joyce’s poetry on the title track as well as “Lightly Come or Lightly Go” epitomizes the duo’s approach: the dextrous alchemy of the old and the new into something wholly Rakish. The pair’s deep musical connection and unbridled love for pushing traditional sounds forward is striking. Just listen to the fiddling on “765” featuring trancey electronic dance production by Jamie Oshima or the epic tune “The Morning Glory” which is set atop an evocative, melancholic drone. It’s clear Rakish refuses to be pigeonholed into one genre and are most comfortable occupying the inbetween. On Now, O Now they journey through Celtic and Americana styles, deftly showcasing how to bring forth something new from the deep well of tradition.
**LOCATION CHANGE** Battle of the Brewery Bands Patio Show
THIS EVENT HAS MOVED AND WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE GREY EAGLE PATIO LOCATED AT 185 CLINGMAN AVE – ASHEVILLE, NC 28801 FREE SHOW ALL AGES STANDING ROOM ONLY BATTLE OF THE BREWERY BANDS Asheville breweries are bringing more than beer—they’re bringing the bands! Join us at The Hatch for a night of killer local music, cold brews, and friendly competition as brewery bands battle it out on stage.
LUCERO: Celebrating 20 years of “Nobody’s Darlings”
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY LUCERO Celebrating 20 years of “Nobody’s Darlings”, Lucero will play the album in its entirety followed by a set of songs from the band’s catalog. It would be difficult to find a band that is more self-aware than longtime touring band Lucero. Since forming in Memphis in the late 90’s, Lucero’s base musical hallmarks have remained similar to the band’s initial sound established with their first record The Attic Tapes. In the history of their expansive discography, Lucero has evolved and embraced everything from southern rock to Stax-inspired Memphis soul, whilst simultaneously maintaining their distinctive sonic foundations. Years later, dedicated fans of the group still flock to hear the band’s punchy driving rhythms, punk-rooted guitar licks, and lyrics that evoke the whiskey drenched sentimentality of Americana singer-songwriters. JESSICA LEA MAYFIELD Jessica Lea Mayfield is excited to announce an upcoming 10-date US tour featuring Homeschool (fresh solo project of Tom D’Agustino, formerly of Active Bird Community) as well as a show with long-time friends and collaborators, The Avett Brothers. Coinciding with the tour announcement, Mayfield is releasing the first visual off her upcoming record, for her latest single “Can You Feel It?” directed by Haley Wetherington and produced by Lindsey Gardner. Jessica Lea Mayfield is no stranger to creating on her own terms. Since 2020, Mayfield has been sprinkling new singles out one by one in lieu of the industry-standard full length LP, and is now presenting her first visual – a psychedelic world of her own for 2021’s “Can You Feel It?” Based on Mayfield and Wetherington’s love of furry friends, “Can You Feel It?” centers on a lonely Mayfield in need of companionship. On a gloomy NYC day, Mayfield finds herself being stalked by a stray cat who makes itself right at home in her depression chamber. She’s found a friend…or did the “friend” find her? Here, we’re introduced to the puppet version of toxoplasmosis, or toxo for short, a housepet borne parasite to which over half cat owners of the world have supposedly been exposed. Based on internet theory (i.e. rumor), toxo can make cat owners go insane. After napping with her newfound friend, Mayfield wakes up in a technicolor world of her own. Lonely no more, Mayfield finds joy dancing through an Alice in Wonderland like scene with her chaos-causing now human-sized feline friend (or foe). Playing on the contrast between mundane reality vs the boundless imagination of our minds, Wetherington and Mayfield create a world which is euphoric, playful and intriguing but a bit dark and disconcerting. The finale leaves us wondering if Mayfield will ever wake up from this dark dream, or if she’ll even want to.
THE BUDOS BAND at Hatch Amphitheater
THIS EVENT WILL TAKE PLACE AT HATCH AMPHITHEATER, LOCATED AT 45 SOUTH FRENCH BROAD AVE IN DOWNTOWN ASHEVILLE ALL AGES STANDING ROOM ONLY THE BUDOS BAND Two years after releasing the Frontier’s Edge EP, The Budos Band are returning with their first full-length since 2020’s Long in the Tooth. Titled simply VII, the new album sees them doing what they do best: laying down hypnotic, horn-spiked grooves that menace and mesmerize in equal measure. Produced by Budos guitarist Tom Brenneck with Simon Guzmán engineering, VII features 11 tightly constructed new tracks that draw on the group’s wide range of influences, sounding like only The Budos can. It’s music for getting down, for nighttime drives, and for alternate headspaces — a beguiling mix of mystery and rhythm that stands with the formidable work they’ve released in their two decades of recording. “We didn’t really go in there with a concept on VII,” drummer Brian Profilio says. “It was the first time in 2 years that we were together in a studio so we were like, ‘Let’s see what happens.’ We ended up writing 11 songs in three days.” These 11 songs run the gamut, featuring sweaty, hard-hitting funk workouts like “Escape from Ptenoda City” alongside explorations of Turkish psych in “Night Raid” and Zambian rock in the riff-heavy “Overlander.” It continues the stylistic evolution the group began with 2014’s striking, shake-things-up album Burnt Offering. “It’s almost like we’ve refined the sound we were going for on Burnt Offering,” Brenneck says of VII. “It’s not quite as raw.” “That’s the genreless aspect of the band,” saxophonist Jared Tankel agrees. “We’re not Afrobeat, we’re not Ethiopian jazz. We’re not world music. We’re not really funk, we’re not soul. We’re not rock. We’re just an amalgam of all these different sounds, so things pop out in all directions when you listen.” VII was recorded in California and serves as The Budos Band’s first full-length album on Diamond West, the independent label founded in 2023 by Tankel and Brenneck. It’s also the group’s first album to include instrumental contributions from percussionist Rich Tarrana, who previously played in the Frightnrs. All told, it succeeds in opening up some new sonic space while staying tethered to the intuitive, unique musicality that made them such a sensation from the jump. “Sometimes it’s like we’re speaking some esoteric language that no one else understands except us, and we’re doing it wrong,” Brenneck says. “It’s like how the Stones tried to play the blues and they missed the mark and they made something new — everything The Budos tries to do, we do wrong, and it sounds like The Budos.” BENNY TROKAN
