Submissions Open For Music Hall Of Fame

There is a lack of connection between what I would call an older music scene and what is currently happening. There’s just a major disconnect,” local musician Amanda Rey says.

She worries that new musicians “are not quite aware of the history that precedes them in Northwest Arkansas, and that history is not so far removed,” she says. “We have living legends right here in our midst, so what I would like to provide is that connection.”

As a result, the Northwest Arkansas Musicians Connection has created the NWA Hall of Fame as a way to honor the past, present and future of the Northwest Arkansas local music scene. Inductees will “represent those who have made a significant contribution to the development and advancement of the music industry in Northwest Arkansas.”

Nominations are accepted not just for musicians and entertainers, Rey adds. “There are several people who are integral to what the music scene requires.”

Aside from current and “late and great” categories for musicians, there are nominations for photographers, the best festivals, production crew, education — even instrument makers. Rey says that in her decades on the Northwest Arkansas music scene, she’s had the privilege of not only performing on stage, but serving in several of the other roles vital to supporting local acts.

Submissions for the Hall of Fame are open on the website until July 31. The Class of 2023 will be announced in September, with in-person ceremonies being planned for winter. Find out more at nwamusiciansconnection.org.

In the meantime, the nominations will help NAMC to record what is happening now in local music, create a network of musicians and industry professions, and most importantly forge connections so that people can take care of each other.

NAMC was established as a Facebook group in 2011 by a group of musicians seeking to raise money for survivors of tornadoes that hit Denning and Altus. Since then the group has grown and continued to serve as a meeting point for musicians and music industry workers.

Rey says that money raised from all NWAMC events, donations and memberships will go directly to the Musicians Health & Wellness Connection, a charity fund dedicated exclusively to providing health care and wellness services to music industry workers in need.

“We’re trying to make sure that people get taken care of,” Rey explains. “We’re losing musicians to addiction. We’re losing musicians to poverty and the inability to thrive financially.”

She adds that too often she’s had to plan memorial shows for fellow musicians, and just this January she lost a band mate to violence.

“If I can prevent or try to help somebody get help, I would much rather do that than order candles to light at their memorial,” Rey concludes. Rey says that the program will not only focus on mental health, but physical help and financial assistance. She emphasizes that the organization’s overall goal is to “eradicate the term ‘starving artist.’”

Health care or social work professionals who would like to be listed in the organization’s directory should email info@nwamusiciansconnection.com.

Find out more at nwamusiciansconnection.org.

Ashley Cooke

Ashley Cooke performs a free show at 9 p.m. June 30 at SEVEN Bar inside Cherokee Casino & Hotel in West Siloam Springs. Her sun-kissed blend of two-lane pop is often inspired by true tales of love, loss and living, matching raw relatability and catchy hooks.

For more information on Cooke, visitashleycooke.com.

BENTONVILLE

• Circle of Thirds plays July 8; Mildenhall plays July 13 for the free Live on the Patio Concert Series at

Bike Rack Brewing, 801 S.E. Eighth St., Suite 61, in Bentonville.

• Brothers Osborne perform at 8 p.m. July 15. Coming up this fall are Rina Sawayama on Oct. 6; Wilco on

Oct. 27; and Wu-Tang Clan on Oct. 28 at The Momentary, 507 S.E. E St. • Chris Duarte performs at 6:30 p.m. June 27, and Bad Habit plays at 8 p.m. July 15, Oreo Blue with Blew Reed and the Flatheads perform at 8 p.m. Aug. 18 at Meteor Guitar Gallery, 128 W. Central Ave. meteorguitargallery.com.

• Big Piph & Tomorrow Maybe perform from 7 to 9 p.m. for the Summer Forest Concert series in the North Forest at Crystal Bridges.

Tickets are $20 ($16/members, free/youth ages 18 and younger). crystalbridges.org.

FAYETTEVILLE

• Gulley Park Concert Series continues at 7 p.m. Thursdays with

Funk Factory on June 29 for Kidz Night. Food trucks on-site, dogs on leashes, lawn chairs and blankets are welcome. fayetteville-ar.gov/concerts

• Patti Steel Band, The Vine Brothers and Dance Monkey Dance perform at 8 p.m. June 25; Idle Threat, American Arson, Weathered and Redwitch Johnny perform at 8 p.m. June 28; happy Hour with Ultra Suede starts at 6 p.m. and then Funk Factory keeps the party going staring at 9 p.m. June 30; Matt Heckler performs at 8 p.m. July 15; Pop Punk Nite with Van Full of Nuns, House Parties and Bluprint starts at 8:30 p.m. July 6 at George’s Majestic Lounge, 519 W. Dickson St. georgesmajesticlounge.com/shows.

• Gone Country plays at 7:30 p.m. July 21; coming up are Steel Panther at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 1; Colt Ford at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 3; Alter Bridge at 8 p.m. Aug. 17; and Steve Aoki at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 8 at JJ’s Live, 3615 N. Steele Blvd. jjslive.com.

• Jen Howard performs at 5:30 p.m. June 27; Amber Violet performs at 6 p.m. June 28; Mitch McKelvin plays at 7 p.m. June 29; Brian Reding performs at 7 p.m. June 30; Latin Dance Night happens at 6 p.m. July 2; James Miller plays at 6 p.m. July 4; and Peter Rexford performs at 6 p.m. July 6 at Six Twelve Coffeehouse & Bar, 3980 W. Wedington Drive in Fayetteville.

• Jude Brothers and Kalyn Fay perform at 7:30 p.m. July 15; Florist & Skullcrusher perform at 7 p.m. Aug. 19 (linktr.ee/onthemapshows) at Clapp Auditorium at Mount Sequoyah, 150 N. Skyline Drive.

• The Mountain Street Stage music series continues at 2 p.m. with Modeling on June 25; The Dead Horse Mountain Band July 2; Moriah Bailey July 9; Jumpsuit Jamie & the Can’t Wait to Play Boys July 16; The Irie Lions July 23; and Greenland Station Bluegrass Band July 30 at the

Fayetteville Public Library. The concerts are free. faylib.org.

LOWELL

• Tim Meadows performs July 7-8; Gianmarco Soresi July 13-15; a Mac and Magic! with magician George Reader at 1:30 p.m. July 9; Rob Schneider spends the week of July 9-14 with several shows (some have sold out) at The Grove Comedy Club, 808 S. Bloomington St. grovecomedy.com.

ROGERS

• Outlaw Music Festival featuring Willie Nelson and Family with Margo Price, Flatland Cavalry and Particle Kid heats up at 6 p.m. June 29. Tickets start at $39.50 at the Walmart

AMP, 5079 W. Northgate Road. waltonartscenter.org/AMP/upcomingconcerts. Next up is the Fireworks Spectacular with SoNA on July 4 and Fall Out Boy with Bring Me The Horizon, Royal the Serpent and CARR on July 11.

• Ozark Folk Jamboree kicks off with Arkansauce, Chucky Waggs and Ashtyn Barbaree at 6 p.m. June 30 and then picks back up at 5 p.m. July 1 with Eureka Strings, Front Porch, Rachel Ammons and Will Gunsleman for the Railyard Live concert series on the Butterfield Stage next to Railyard Park, 101 E. Cherry St., Rogers. Shows are free; tables and chairs are available for reservation. Next up is Cole Birmingham Band at 7 p.m July 7 and The Phenomenal Whitney Houston Tribute at 8 p.m. July 8. railyardlive.com.

RIVER VALLEY

• Live Wires perform at 8 p.m. June 28; James Strong plays at 8 p.m. July 7; Truck Stop Poets perform at 8 p.m. July 8; Last Call at 8 p.m. July 14; The Swade Diablos at 8 p.m. July 15; Joey Heard at 8 p.m. July 21; Sin of Saints, Fight Dream and The House On Bluff perform at 8 p.m. July 22 at Hero’s, 1002 Garrison Ave. in Fort Smith.

• The Hoppy Hour Comedy Show hosted by Chase Myska and featuring Kayla Angel, Lucas Aaron Smith, Adam Kessler and Conrad Lenzmeier starts at 7:30 p.m. July 8 at Fort Smith Brewing Company. Tickets are $12-$20. facebook.com/rivervalleycomics.

• Samantha Fish plays at 6:30 p.m. July 21; Buck Cherry plays at 6:30 p.m Aug. 23; Flatland Cavalry plays at 7 p.m. Oct. 20; and Phillip Phillips just announced a show on Oct. 27 at TempleLive, 200 N. 11th St. in Fort

Smith. 222-6186; fortsmith.templelive.com.

•Jacob Stelly and Joint Custody perform at 7 p.m. July 14 at Majestic Fort Smith, 817 Garrison Ave. in Fort Smith. majesticfortsmith.com.

• Rhonda Vincent performs at 7:30 p.m. July 21; Etta May and The Southern Fried Chicks perform at 7:30 p.m. July 22; Exile performs at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 1; Breaking Grass at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 26 at the ArcBest Performing Arts Center, 55 S. Seventh St.

• Performing at JJ’s Grill Fort Smith are Tory Eatmon on June 27; Jocko on June 29; and Egotrip is back June 30. Live music starts at 6 p.m. through the week and 7 p.m. on Friday & Saturday at 5400 Phoenix Ave. in Fort Smith.

• Peacemaker Music Festival returns to the River Valley July 28-29 with Shane Smith & the Saints, Marcus King, Muscadine Bloodline, 49 Winchester, Tanner Usrey, J.R. Carroll, Red Clay Strays, Slade Coulter, Joe Stamm Band, The Lowdown Drifters, The Weathered Souls, Taylor Hunnicut, Palmer Anthony, Reid Haughton, Meg McRee, Nolan Taylor, Maggie Antone and an After Party with Calder Allen. Tickets are $79.50-$479. More information at peacemakerfest.com.

SILOAM SPRINGS

• March to August performs at 7 p.m. July 28 at Creekside Taproom, 100-2 E. Alpine St. marchtoaugustmusic.com.

• Sons of Otis Malone will perform at 7:30 p.m. July 1 for the Siloam Music Festival at the Chautauqua Amphitheater in Memorial Park in downtown Siloam Springs. There will also be performances by a jazz band, community choir and children’s choir. The event will have a patriotic theme for Independence Day. discoversiloam.com.

SPRINGDALE

• Duo Divinas and Ensemble Ibérica perform at 6:30 p.m. June 29 at the LIVE! at Turnbow Concert Series at Turnbow Park on the Shiloh Square in downtown Springdale. downtownspringdale.org/live-atturnbow-concerts.

• Sip & Sing starts at 7 p.m. with Abbey Pierce and the Sinners on June 30 and The Rumors on July 1 at Tontitown Winery, 33. N. Barrington St. tontitownwinery.com.

WINSLOW

•Squirrel Jam starts at 5 p.m. June 25 at Ozark Folkways, 22733 U.S. 71 North. ozarkfolkways.org.

Send info about your upcoming concerts and events to Monica Hooper, music editor, at mhooper@nwaonline.com.

Rey

Cooke