Island Hopper Songwriters Fest offers full weekend of events on Fort Myers Beach
The Island Hopper Songwriters Festival kicked off last week across Southwest Florida including performances in Cape Coral.
The showcase, which continues through Sunday, will feature more than 60 performers and 80 free performances at 20 venues among Cape Coral, Fort Myers and Captiva and Fort Myers Beach when all is said and done.
The fest wraps on Fort Myers Beach this weekend with numerous performances Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The festival includes nine ticketed performances headlined by country music artist Chris Young, who will close out the festival on Fort Myers Beach at the Pink Shell Beach Resort and Marina’s pool party on Sept. 28.
The festival that began Sept. 19 features “top-tier talent,” said Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau Communications Manager Miram Dotson. The festival is a collaboration between the county’s tourism bureau, Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) and iHeart Radio.
In Cape Coral, five different venues — including Gather, High Tide Social House, Nauti Mermaid, The Westin Cape Coral, and the Silver King beach shuttle — saw live performances on Monday and Tuesday.
Headliner “LOCASH” kicked things off in Cape Coral on Monday with a ticketed performance at 7 p.m. The platinum-selling duo have earned eight charting singles including platinum-selling breakout, “I Love this Life.” In addition to writing their own songs, they have written songs for artists like Keith Urban, Tim McGraw and had a 2020 smash hit, “Famous Friends” with Kane Brown.
“Island Hopper was really fun,” said Valeria Zanella Voisin, marketing director with Gather, which was a host to performances on Tuesday. “We had four wonderful musicians and a lot of people that came out to enjoy them. We really hope that next year we can come back and have a ticketed event on Monday, too. It makes a huge difference on the experience.”
At Nauti Mermaid Briz and Lady and Alan Bradford played at 7 p.m. on on Sept. 23, while Tim James and Claire Liparulo performed at 8:15. Lilly MacPhee performed on the Silver King Boat Cruise at 6 p.m.
Joni Caswell, who lives in Fort Myers, said this year’s event is her fifth time attending.
“I just love hearing all the stories from the artists that wrote the songs,” she said. “The stories are definitely the best part of live music for me.”
Bradford, who noted that playing and touring with Tom Chapin was one of his career highlights, said, “I wrote a lot of my songs before some of tonight’s song writers were even born. My first song this evening, ‘American Pride,’ I wrote in 1974 to all the veterans. Gosh, I’ve been playing guitar for almost 60 years.”
Of the Cape Coral venues, Dotson said, “The venues in the Cape, like the Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village, are the perfect place to take in great music with amazing talent. The resort is waterfront with a spectacular sunset, great food and great company. This year there is a songwriter sunset cruise aboard the Silver King departing from the Westin. It’s a unique way to listen to music from artist, Lilly MacPhee, on the water while the sun sets. Other places like High Tide Social House and Gather offer great food with multiple shows creating a laid-back, intimate setting to hear the stories behind the songs. All of these locations are walkable to each other and provide a great boost to local businesses.”
Other than LOCASH and MacPhee on the Silver King cruise, all performances in Cape Coral were free to attend.
Attendee Carol Miller said, “We book a trip every year for this. We started coming a few years ago from Illinois. It’s always great.”
There’s plenty more fun to be had across the region coming up this weekend.
Country music star Chris Young takes the stage at the Pink Shell Beach Resort and Marina this Sunday. As part of the annual Island Hopper Songwriters Festival pool party, he will be marking three years to the day Hurricane Ian brought unspeakable devastation to Fort Myers Beach.
The concert and the sprawling festival that will spread out over the beach this weekend with dozens of performances is expected to help boost the town through its continued recovery with songs ranging from country to rock and roll from some of Nashville’s most talented songwriters to musicians local to the area and beyond.
In addition to the Pink Shell, other Fort Myers Beach venues participating in the festival beginning this Friday and continuing through Sunday will include the town’s Bayside Veteran’s Park, DiamondHead Beach Resort, Margaritaville Beach Resort and the Yucatan Beach Stand Bar & Grill.
Last year, the festival almost didn’t get off the ground on Fort Myers Beach after Hurricane Helene threatened to spoil everybody’s plans,
Hurricane Helene had struck just days before the big pool party finale at the Pink Shell Beach Resort and Marina last year.
“Last year was such a testament to the love for the event,” Dotson said. “Everybody thought it was going to get canceled and the Pink Shell staff cleaned everything within a week. I was just blown away. That is so Fort Myers Beach.”
Two years earlier, the Island Hopper Songwriter’s Festival had closed out at the Pink Shell Beach Resort before a packed pool party just days before Hurricane Ian struck.
So far, all weather reports are pointing to smoother sailing for the festival.
“The fans come out,” Dotson said of the annual migration to Fort Myers Beach for the Island Hopper Songwriters Festival.
The festival attracts a lot of in-state visitors. The Tampa region in particular attracts a lot of festivalgoers, Dotson said.
“The idea is to get people to come in the slow season and boost tourism. The hotels will do special deals.”
For example, those staying at the Pink Shell Beach Resort and Marina on Sept. 28 will also get to see the pool party show with Chris Young for free.
Young’s hits include “Getting You Home (The Black Dress Song),” for which he was nominated for a Grammy Award. His numerous other hits which he sang and co-wrote include “I’m Comin’ Over,” “Voices” and “Think of You.”
Among the new shows and experiences on Fort Myers Beach this year will be Alair Custom Home’s “Canvas & Chords” experience on Saturday, Sept 27. The show will feature a performance by Katrina Cain and Danny Myrick at a custom home built by Alair Custom Home at 15 Bayview Blvd on Fort Myers Beach. Local artist Lacy McCrary will be painting during the performance. McCrary helped paint the Times Square mural where the former elevator shaft stood next to La Ola. That show starts at 4 p.m. with tickets on sale through the Island Hopper website. The show will benefit SWFL Reefs. “It will be a unique experience,” Dotson said.
While most of the artists who perform at the festival are based in Nashville, the festival also celebrates local musicians like Sheena Brook. The Lee County resident “has been with us from the beginning,” Dotson said.
Brook will be giving a free performance at Margaritaville Beach Resort on Fort Myers Beach on Friday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m.
Brian Sutherland, who grew up in Fort Myers and is based now in Nashville, will be playing four free shows on Fort Myers Beach this weekend with stops at the DiamondHead Beach Resort, Margaritaville, Bayside Veteran’s Park and the Yucatan Beach Stand Bar & Grill.
Nashville songwriter Adam Craig, who has written songs for George Strait and Blake Shelton, will be performing several shows on Fort Myers Beach from Sept. 26-28 including stops at Bayside Veteran’s Park, Margaritaville and the Yucatan Beach Stand Bar & Grill.
Dave Pahanish, a songwriter who has penned the #1 country hits “Without You” by Keith Urban, Toby Keith’s “American Ride”, and Jimmy Wayne’s “Do You Believe Me Now” will be playing free shows at DiamondHead Beach Resort and Margaritaville Sept. 26-28. He will be at Margaritaville on Friday, Sept. 26 at 7:15 p.m., at DiamondHead Beach Resort on Saturday, Sept. 27 at 6:45 p.m. and will be back at Margaritaville on Sunday, Sept. 28 at 3:30 p.m.
Other notable names performing on Fort Myers Beach include Claudia Hoyser, Megan Linville and Brian Ruby, who will be playing multiple shows across different venues across Fort Myers Beach from Friday, Sept. 26 through Sunday, Sept. 28.
The festival is also known for celebrating up-and-coming artists and this year they include pianist and singer Spring Pace, who will play at the DiamondHead Beach Resort on Saturday, Sept. 27.
A full list of the arts and venues participating in the Island Hopper Songwriter’s Festival can be found at: https://www.island-hopperfest.visitfortmyers.com.
Dotson said the goal of the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau is to attract visitors to Lee County to attend the festival and stay at local hotels. Dotson said the bureau hopes the festival will help bring back visitors who may have not returned since the hurricanes that have hit the area the last few years.
“A lot of our guests look forward to this event,” said Katja Kunz, marketing director for the Pink Shell Beach Resort and Marina.
Kunz said the resort is looking to sell out though there are still some rooms available.
“We are grateful to be able to be part of this memorable countywide event,” Kunz said.
The festival is a collaboration between the county’s tourism bureau, Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) and iHeart Radio.
Dotson said that closing out the festival on Fort Myers Beach at the Pink Shell Beach Resort each year helps bring the community together. “Fort Myers Beach is a special place,” Dotson said. “There is something special about the community.”
Fort Myers Beach Observer and Bulletin editor Nathan Mayberg contributed to this report.