Live music lovers: Get ready to hop
Love live music?
Get ready to get your fill — the Island Hopper Songwriter Fest is back.
The 10-day music festival now in its 12th year will feature more than 80 performances at a multitude of venues across four communities — and most of those shows are free.
Kicking off Sept. 18-20 on Captiva, the artist-packed extravaganza moves to Cape Coral on Sept. 21-22, to Fort Myers Sept. 23-24, and wraps up on Fort Myers Beach Sept. 25-27.
The big names for the event include platinum-selling Edwin McCain — who will headline the “Westin Unplugged” component here in the Cape on Monday — and LOCASH in the “Stars on the River” concert to be held at the Caloosa Sound Amphitheater in Fort Myers next Wednesday.
In addition to The Westin Cape Coral Resort, Cape Coral venues include Gather, High Tide Social House, Nauti Mermaid and Silver King at The Westin among the 27 venues hosting performances.
Tagged as offering “Amazing Live Music, from Downtown to the Beaches,” the Island Hopper Songwriter Fest offers benefits to all who participate.
Venues draw traffic during the slower time between summer and season.
Artists, including talented but lesser-known musicians and singer-songwriters, get an opportunity to not only shine but to do so in front of audiences that are there for the music.
And those who appreciate venues where the vibe enhances the audience-performer bond get not an opportunity, but opportunities, to feel the music.
For live music aficionados, it doesn’t get any better than this.
CJ Haddad’s report in today’s Breeze hits the high points.
The Island Hopper Songwriter Fest website, island-hopperfest.visitfortmyers.com, has the details — the full schedule of performances and venues, list of participating artists, and a look at the ticketed events featuring nationally renowned acts.
Check out, too, the website’s “Top 10 Reasons for the Island Hopper Songwriter Fest” for a fun countdown and why people attend what is Southwest Florida’s largest live music festival.
Our thanks to the organizers — the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau in collaboration with BMI (Broadcast Music Inc.), iHeartRadio’s Cat Country 107.1 and the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association — and all of the sponsors.
This is among the events we look forward to all year.
Breeze editorial