The Ark

The Decemberists
2024-05-22 19:00 - 23:00 (America/New_York) | Royal Oak Music Theatre, 318 W 4th St, Royal Oak, MI, 48067, United States
For over 20 years, The Decemberists have been one of the most original, daring, and thrilling American rock bands. Founded in the year 2000, The Decemberists’ distinctive brand of hyper-literate folk-rock set them apart from the start with the release of their debut EP 5 Songs in 2001. Since then, the band has released nine full-length albums that are unbound by genre and highly ambitious, ranging from Americana-leaning storytelling epics to elements of 70’s prog and hard rock.
Now the enduring indie band is back with their first new music in six years, “Burial Ground.” Already a fan-favorite after being debuted live last year, their latest single takes the overt fatalism of 2018’s I’ll Be Your Girl and infuses it with the jangle-pop of The Dentists and dreamy harmonies of The Beach Boys (performed with an assist from The Shins’ James Mercer). “‘Burial Ground’ is in that time-honored popsong tradition, a paean to hanging out in graveyards,” says songwriter Colin Meloy. “The melody hook came to me in a dream and I hummed it into my phone on waking. Most dream-songs are bad; this was the exception.”
The Decemberists will be on tour with more new music to come!

Luke Winslow-King featuring Roberto Luti
2024-05-21 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Originally from Cadillac, Michigan, Luke Winslow-King is a career rock & roll guitarist, singer, producer, and songwriter. Having spent more than 15 years in New Orleans, and recording his 2008 album (Old/New Baby) at Preservation Hall, he was named ‘Best Blues Artist’ by Gambit Magazine. His 2018 hit, ‘I’m Glad Trouble Don’t Last Always’ is nearing 10 million streams on Spotify. He was named a voting member of the Grammy Recording Academy in 2022. Now living in Calatayud, Spain, he continues to pursue his global quest; delivering honest, powerful, rustic, and authentic peoples music by stage and recording alike.
Joining Luke is Tuscan slide guitar maestro Roberto Luti. With his unorthodox, angular, and evocative slide guitar style, Luti made a name for himself during his nearly decade-long residency in New Orleans. He became an integral part of international recording project Playing For Change; laying the original tracks for songs which have accumulated over 100 million plays on YouTube collaborating with: Taj Mahal, Keb Mo, Buddy Guy, Keith Richards, Ringo Starr, Manu Chao, Toots and the Maytalls, and Dr. John.

Judy Collins
2024-05-20 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Judy Collins has inspired audiences with sublime vocals, boldly vulnerable songwriting, personal life triumphs, and a firm commitment to social activism. In the 1960s, she evoked both the idealism and steely determination of a generation united against social and environmental injustices. Five decades later, her luminescent presence shines brightly as new generations bask in the glow of her iconic 50-album body of work, and heed inspiration from her spiritual discipline to thrive in the music industry for half a century.
The award-winning singer-songwriter is esteemed for her imaginative interpretations of traditional and contemporary folk standards and her own poetically poignant original compositions. Her stunning rendition of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” from her landmark 1967 album, Wildflowers, has been entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Recently, contemporary and classic artists such as Rufus Wainwright, Shawn Colvin, Dolly Parton, Joan Baez, and Leonard Cohen honored her legacy with the album Born to the Breed: A Tribute to Judy Collins.
Judy is as creatively vigorous as ever, writing, touring worldwide, and nurturing fresh talent. She is a modern day Renaissance woman who is also an accomplished painter, filmmaker, record label head, musical mentor, and an in-demand keynote speaker for mental health and suicide prevention. She continues to create music of hope and healing that lights up the world and speaks to the heart.

Kitty Donohoe & Friends
2024-05-19 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
50 Years and Still Going Strong!
Michigan Emmy-winning songwriter Kitty Donohoe, based in Ann Arbor, is celebrating more than 50 years as a performing singer-songwriter. She recently received the 2024 Michigan Heritage Award for her 30 plus years of entertaining audiences with her original songs about our state, as well as being named a finalist and Outstanding Achievement Award for three of her songs by the Great American Song Contest in 2022. Drawing from her Irish, Canadian and American roots, Kitty backs herself on guitar, cittern and piano to write songs that can be uplifting, thought-provoking, celebratory, moody, quirky, humorous and everything in between! Tonight Kitty will be joined by several old friends including David Mosher, Carol Palms, The Yellow Room Gang, Mike Ball, Neil Woodward, Wanda Degen, David Reske, and more.
Also a children’s author, Kitty’s first kids book is the recipient of a Moonbeam Children’s Book Award and she’s working on books two and three. She’s also releasing an all-instrumental project this spring and hard at work at another full-length album.

Joshua Davis
2024-05-18 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Over the past twenty years, Michigan-based Joshua Davis has honed an impressive range of skills – songwriter, bandleader, guitarist, and vocalist among them – in the most honest possible fashion: night after night, song after song, show after show Davis simply delivered every performance as though his life depended on it. Investing himself in the American musical diaspora, he has explored the common thread connecting folk, blues, jazz, ragtime, and country forms – discovering his personal perspective as a composer in the process. “The music that moves me is imperfect, honest and raw.” Joshua explains, “Those qualities are what turned me on to Delta blues, to punk rock, to old soul, and traditional music from all over the globe. It’s all about feel. It’s ragged but right.” His versatility and ravenous musical curiosity has resulted in a divergent and fervent output. Joshua was a finalist on Season 8 of NBC’s “The Voice,” where he was the first contestant to sing an original song on the show.
Joshua will be joined by his band: bassist Zak Bunce, drummer Michael Shimmin, and multi-instrumentalist Drew Howard on pedal steel and electric guitar.

Jeffrey Martin
2024-05-17 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Portland, Oregon’s Jeffrey Martin is a minister’s son who can build a house with his bare hands. One night in middle school he stayed up under the covers with a flashlight and a DiscMan, listening to Reba McEntire’s “That’s the Night that the Lights Went Out in Georgia”’ on repeat until the DiscMan ran out of batteries. That night he became a songwriter, although he didn’t actually write a song until years later. Jeffrey holds a master’s degree in English. He worked his way through school as a carpenter, then, following graduation, spent four years teaching high school. Jeffrey writes music that probes the depths of the human experience and doesn’t shy away from its darkest corners. We were introduced to Jeffrey at last summer’s Ark Art Fair stage, and we’re looking forward to hearing more!

Katie Pruitt - Mantras Tour
2024-05-16 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Katie Pruitt is living proof of music’s power to transform the way we experience the world. Soon after the arrival of her acclaimed debut Expectations—a 2020 LP on which she documented her journey in growing up queer in the Christian South—the Georgia-bred singer / songwriter / guitarist heard from countless listeners that her songs had impacted their lives on an elemental level. With her sophomore album Mantras, the Nashville-based musician now looks inward to explore such matters as gender identity, self-compassion or the lack thereof, and the struggle for peace in times of chaos and uncertainty—ultimately arriving at a body of work that speaks to the strength in undoing harmful self-beliefs and fully living your truth.
Mainly produced by Collin Pastore and Jake Finch (both known for their work with boygenius and Lucy Dacus), Mantras delves deeper into the empathetic storytelling and incisive self-examination that defined Expectations—an album that earned Pruitt a nomination for Emerging Artist of the Year from the Americana Music Association, in addition to drawing praise from major outlets like Rolling Stone and Pitchfork. This time around, Pruitt sets her lived-in lyricism to a folk-leaning sound informed by her love for the more experimental edges of indie-rock, stacking her songs with plenty of propulsive grooves and overdriven guitars.
Looking over the tracklist to Mantras, Pruitt notes that a certain narrative thread emerged without her intention. “I didn’t realize it at the time, but the throughline for this record ended up being my own personal journey of letting go and learning how to love myself again—it begins with tension, frustration, and fear and resolves to a place of acceptance, surrender, and stillness,” she says. “I hope when people hear the record they feel what I felt after writing it, which was a sense of trusting myself and trusting that—no matter how bad things look—there’s always hope where there’s fear. I know that so much of the time we feel alone in our pain, so hopefully these songs help everyone to see that they can work through those big life changes and end up loving themselves a lot more.”

ZG Smith
2024-05-15 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
The son of an English professor mother and a shipwreck diver/underwater archaeologist father, indie-folk singer-songwriter, artist, and Los Angeles native ZG Smith has called Nashville home for a decade. Before moving to Tennessee, he spent his youth surfing, dialing in complex percussion routines on an award-winning high school drumline, experimenting with various elicit substances, and eventually earning a bachelor’s degree in Ethnomusicology, with a focus on Brazilian percussion, from UCLA. Since moving to Music City in his mid-twenties, he’s racked up a formidable cache of musical successes including touring extensively throughout the US, Canada, and Europe, being frontman, primary songwriter, and founding member of Americana duo Smooth Hound Smith, and sharing stages with acts like The Chicks, Trombone Shorty, Collective Soul, and Devon Gilfillian. His poignant and ethereal debut solo EP, Nighttime Animal, was released in February of 2023 and has garnered airplay and attention from musical curators and press outlets alike, not the least of which include Minneapolis’s The Current, NPR’s World Cafe, Nashville’s Lightning 100, PopMatters, The Bluegrass Situation, NashvilleSCENE, UnderTheRadar, and more. He is currently touring selectively and working on new music.

Grant-Lee Phillips
2024-05-14 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Audiences first discovered Grant-Lee Phillips’ thoughtful, literate songwriting in context of the rock band Grant Lee Buffalo, a trio which found success with the 1993 debut Fuzzy. The title track catapulted the group to international recognition. Grant Lee Buffalo followed up Fuzzy with 1994’s Mighty Joe Moon (an album featuring the modern rock hit “Mockingbirds”) and two more well-received full-lengths, 1996’s Copperopolis and 1998’s Jubilee. Beginning with his 2000 solo debut Ladies’ Love Oracle, Phillips opened another chapter in his career, as a folk- and Americana-focused artist crafting songs and stories rich with details and humanity. He returns to The Ark with his 10th solo album, “All That You Can Dream,” as well as the 25th anniversary vinyl reissue of his first solo album, “Ladies Love Oracle,” recorded in 1999.

Community High Jazz Blowout
2024-05-13 18:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Ann Arbor’s Community High Jazz is one of the best programs of its kind anywhere. The Ark is proud to host this year’s students on stage for two shows: one at 6:00 and another at 8:00.

Robbie Fulks & Scott Miller
2024-05-12 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Robbie Fulks is a singer, recording artist, instrumentalist, composer, and songwriter. His current release, “Bluegrass Vacation” on Compass Records, returns him to his bluegrass roots, with a large group of masterful musicians including Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Justin Moses, Ronnie McCoury, Alison Brown, David Grier, Tim O’Brien, Todd Phillips, John Cowan, Brennen Leigh, Randy Kohrs, Sierra Hull, Stuart Duncan, Shad Cobb, and Chris Eldridge. Across 11 new original songs (and one freewheeling interpretation of the Delmore Brothers), Robbie covers themes like small-town blues, the endurance of childhood memory, inebriation, love, divorce, the role of music in strengthening family bonds, losing a loved one to Alzheimer’s, and bluegrass itself.
Recently inducted to the East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame, fiery roots-rock singer/songwriter Scott Miller returned to his native Virginia to tend the family farm while continuing to release and perform new music informed by that rural area, history, and Appalachia. “[Miller combines] the emotional honesty and intelligence of a singer/songwriter with the swagger and enthusiasm of a rock & roller… a gifted and eclectic solo artist.” (AllMusic.com) Recently on tour with Patty Griffin, Robbie Fulks, Paul Thorn, Robin & Linda Williams, and American Aquarium.

The Ballroom Thieves
2024-05-11 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
As acclaimed indie folk band The Ballroom Thieves wrote and recorded their upcoming album, one central question emerged as the theme: “What if we could all just be a little more tender?” The duo – Calin Peters (vocals, cello, bass) and Martin Earley (vocals, guitar) – started to ponder what they could do to be more self-aware of their mental health and of those around them in a world oversaturated by social media, pop-culture, and digital consumption. The result is a personal, lush, 10-track collection of thoughts on the human experience called Sundust.
For more than a decade, Earley and Peters have been combining their thoughts and musical abilities. They’ve toured the US dozens of times, ventured into Europe, Canada, and even managed a journey from Maine to Hawaii to Alaska in one trip, all to play their music for the dedicated fanbase they’ve been steadily growing, person by person. The two have played beautiful theaters like Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood, well-loved festivals like Newport Folk, and legendary rooms like LA’s Troubadour. They’ve been known to power slide across stages on bloody knees with their full band and silence packed rooms for 90 minutes with their lyrics and harmonies, accompanied only by a cello and an acoustic guitar during their more intimate duo shows.
Their most personal album to date, Sundust is about self-awareness, breaking down walls that trauma creates, and healing from harshness, but it’s also about finding the glimmers, the striking beauty of being a person, and a longing for connection with healthy people. Sundust will be released on April 12 via Nettwerk.

Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway
2024-05-11 19:00 - 23:00 | The Majestic Theatre, 4140 Woodward Ave., Detroit, Michigan, 48201, United States
Grammy winner Molly Tuttle brings her band to The Majestic Theatre with their new album, City of Gold. One of the most compelling new voices in the roots music world, Molly Tuttle is a virtuosic multi-instrumentalist and singer/songwriter with a lifelong love of bluegrass, a genre the Northern California-bred artist first discovered thanks to her father (a music teacher and multi-instrumentalist) and grandfather (a banjo player whose Illinois farm she visited often throughout her childhood).
City of Gold, the follow-up to 2022’s Crooked Tree—a widely lauded LP that won the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album, with Tuttle earning a Best New Artist nomination—the Northern California-raised musician’s fourth full-length album brings those narratives to a resplendent form of bluegrass rooted in her virtuosic guitar playing. Like Crooked Tree, whose accolades also include an International Folk Music Award for Album of the Year, City of Gold, is co-produced with bluegrass legend Jerry Douglas, showcasing the extraordinary musicianship that made Tuttle the first woman ever named Guitar Player of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association. But this time around, the Nashville-based singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist chose to record with her live band for the first time—a move that lends a potent new energy to her exquisitely crafted sound. “When I was a kid we took a field trip to Coloma, California, to learn about the gold rush,” says Tuttle in revealing the inspiration behind City of Gold. “Just like gold fever, music has always captivated me and driven me to great lengths to explore its depths.” Noting that City of Gold “celebrates the music of my heart, the land where I grew up, and the stories I heard along the way,” Tuttle found her band essential to every aspect of the LP.

The Okee Dokee Brothers
2024-05-11 14:00 - 15:00, 2024-05-11 11:00 - 13:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
As childhood friends growing up in Denver, Colorado, Joe Mailander and Justin Lansing were always exploring the outdoors. Whether it was rafting down their neighborhood creek or discovering hiking trails through the Rocky Mountains, Joe and Justin were born adventurers. Now, as the GRAMMY® Award-winning Okee Dokee Brothers, they have put this passion for the outdoors at the heart of their Americana Folk music.
Joe and Justin record and perform family music with a goal to inspire children and their parents to step outside and get creative. They believe this can motivate kids to gain a greater respect for the natural world, their communities, and themselves. The five-time Parents’ Choice Award winners have garnered praise from the likes of NPR’s All Things Considered and USA Today, and have been called “two of family music’s best songwriters.”

Joe Jencks // Deidre McCalla
2024-05-10 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Deidre McCalla’s songwriting reveals an unyieldingly honest perspective expressed with a lyric touch that relentlessly celebrates the power and diversity of the human spirit. Deidre has shared the stage with a long list of notables that includes Suzanne Vega, Tracy Chapman, Holly Near, Odetta, Cris Williamson, and Sweet Honey in the Rock. Her current release, “Endless Grace,” dominated the June 2022 Folk Radio Charts as the number-one song “Shoulder To The Wheel, won the 19th Annual International Acoustic Music Award for Best Folk/Americana/Roots Song.
Chicago-based singer and activist Joe Jencks (you may remember him from the fine trio act Brother Sun, which he co-founded) has performed with such artists as Pete Seeger, Utah Phillips, Joe Glazer, and Charlie King. A Joe Jencks concert, says the Seattle Folklore Society’s Brad Warren, is “an occasion for singing, a contagious rising up of voices, an act of joy and defiance.” Joe’s songs have traveled to every continent via his own performances, radio, CDs, webcasts, and other musicians. He is noted for his unique merging of musical beauty, social consciousness, and spiritual exploration. Joe Jencks weaves a diverse web of stories with brilliant musical skill, ensnaring even the most rigid of hearts, inviting them to open. His songs invite us to live inside of our passions and our beliefs.
This show is free for Ark members at the Solo ($50) level and above!

Alan Doyle
2024-05-10 19:00 - 23:00 | Royal Oak Music Theatre, 318 W 4th St, Royal Oak, MI, 48067, United States
Welcome Home Tour
Alan Doyle— actor, producer, best-selling author, and best-known as lead singer for Newfoundland’s beloved Great Big Sea these past 20+ years— hardly needs an introduction. With five solo albums under his belt, Doyle has been touring the world with his ace six-piece band for the last decade. In late 2014, Doyle released his best-selling memoir Where I Belong, followed by A Newfoundlander In Canada released in October 2017, and All Together now released in November 2020. Amidst these projects, Doyle found time to write music for and appear on CBC’s Republic of Doyle, guest on CBC’s Murdoch Mysteries, a role in 2014’s Winter’s Tale and 2010’s Robin Hood. With his 2022 live album “Here, Tonight” and a recent JUNO nomination for his 2021 album “Back to the Harbour”, Doyle chalks up a lot of where he is right now to luck. “I’m the luckiest guy I’ve ever even heard of,” he says. “This was all I ever wanted, a life in the music business, singing concerts.”
Doyle hails from Petty Harbour, NL, and formed Great Big Sea in 1993 with Sean McCann, Bob Hallett, and Darrell Power, in which they fused traditional Newfoundland music with their own pop sensibilities. Their nine albums, double-disc hits retrospective, and two DVD releases have all been declared Gold or Platinum and have sold a combined 1.2 million copies in Canada.

John Hiatt
2024-05-09 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
A master lyricist and satirical storyteller, John Hiatt delivers songs filled with tales of redemption, relationships and surrendering on his own terms. Hiatt’s finest album is 1987’s Bring the Family; other catalog highlights include the pop and rock of 1983’s Riding with the King, the rough-hewn blues-rock of 2008’s Same Old Man, and 2021’s Leftover Feelings. His lyrics and melodies have graced more than 20 studio albums, have been recorded by Bob Dylan, Emmylou Harris, B.B. King, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt and scores of others, and have earned him a place in the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, a BMI Troubadour award, and a lifetime achievement in songwriting designation from the Americana Music Association.
Tonight’s show is sponsored by Blue LLama Jazz Club

The Ark's Open Stage
2024-05-08 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Whether you’re looking for your big break, want to perfect your live performance skills, or just want to perform live for the sheer fun of it, Open Stage nights offer supportive audiences and a terrific space. Performers have eight minutes (or two songs) each to do their thing. Doors open at 7:30, and names are drawn at 7:55 and 8:30. If your name isn’t chosen, bring your raffle ticket with you next time, and you’ll double your chances.
Why play Open Stage at the Ark? Do it to be heard. Do it so you know you can. Do it to take your music to the masses. Tremendous local performers like Dick Siegel, Misty Lyn, and Matt Watroba spent time honing their craft on Open Stage audiences. Even nationally recognized talents like Mary Chapin Carpenter, Gilda Radner, and David Alan Grier paid their dues here. If you’re not interested in getting on stage tonight, get your practice in at being a great audience member and observer of new music.

Los Straitjackets
2024-05-07 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Los Straitjackets are the leading practitioners of the lost art of the guitar instrumental. Using the music of the Ventures, The Shadows, and with Link Wray and Dick Dale as a jumping off point, the band has taken their unique, high energy brand of original rock & roll around the world. Clad in their trademark Lucha Libre Mexican wrestling masks, the ‘Jackets’ have delivered their trademark guitar licks across 30 years, 16 albums, thousands of concerts and dozens of films and TV shows. Viva Los Straitjackets!
Opening is Wasted Major, a six man band and brotherhood joined together by their shared love of classic rock, southern rock, country, and each other. Formed in 2021 at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, the group has played up and down Broadway in Nashville, America’s southeast, and has rocked stages across Europe.

Eric Gales
2024-05-06 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Eric Gales is a blues firebrand. Over 30 years and 18 albums, his passion for the music and his boundless desire to keep it vital has never waned, even when his own light dimmed due to his substance struggles. Throughout it all, he continued to reinvigorate the art form with personal revelation in his lyrics and bold stylistic twists in his guitar playing and songwriting.
Five years sober, creatively rejuvenated, and sagely insightful, Eric is ready for the fight of his career. Aptly, he calls his masterful new album “Crown.” Here, Eric opens like never before, sharing his struggles with substance abuse, his hopes about a new era of sobriety and unbridled creativity, and his personal reflections on racism. The songs are delivered with clarity and feature Eric’s personal experiences and hope for positive change. In addition, the 16-track collection boasts his finest singing, songwriting, and his signature guitar playing that burns throughout. Produced by Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith, this is Eric at his most boldly vulnerable, uncompromisingly political, and unflinchingly confident.

The Mammals
2024-05-05 19:30 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
The Mammals are folksingers Ruth Ungar, Mike Merenda, and a cohort of compelling collaborators who form a touring quintet on the fiddle, banjo, guitar, organ, bass, and drums. Over the past 20 years they have quietly composed a canon of original songs (“Some of the best songwriting of their generation” – LA Times) that both reflect our culture and offer a vision of how the world might yet be. “These days we sing about what we’re for over what we’re against,” says singer/songwriter, Mike Merenda, and what they’re for is “nothing short of sublime” according to (Americana UK).
A rough and tumble decade in the 00’s forged The Mammals identity as “subversive acoustic traditionalists” (Boston Globe) or a “party band with a conscience.” Re-emerging in 2017 from a hibernation period during-which the band’s founders explored new songwriting terrain as the duo Mike + Ruthy, The Mammals “don’t suffer from multiple genre syndrome, they celebrate it as if gleefully aware that the sound barriers separating old-timey music, vintage pop and contemporary folk are as permeable as cotton” (Washington Post). Their latest album, Nonet, “marshalls the defiant spirit needed to heal a damaged world” (No Depression).
In 2023 they released a series of singles recorded at their own Humble Abode Music, as well as issuing bonus material from 2020’s landmark album Nonet.

Jill Jack
2024-05-04 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Jill Jack’s annual birthday bash has become a New Year’s tradition at The Ark! Jill’s magical connection to her audience is the result of her generous artistry. By combining her gifts as a conceptual visionary with a warm gathering of musical influences, Jill touches that secret heart of ours with her melodies and lyrics. In her hometown of Detroit, Jill needs no further explanation. She’s been lauded in equal measure to her talents: Since 1997 she’s won dozens of Detroit Music Awards in every conceivable category that applies to a singer-songwriter. Jill extends the tradition of the confessional (i.e. achingly open, unafraid of intimacy) singer-songwriter, and is proud of that style and its continuation. You get all of Jill Jack in a performance—her blend of folk and rock traditions, her open humor. Jill’s generous spirit has benefited plenty of other musicians around the Detroit area, so come and wish her a happy birthday!
This show has been rescheduled from an earlier date. Tickets purchased for the original date will be honored for tonight’s show. If unable to attend on this new date, ticket holders have until February 15th to request a refund.

Carrie Newcomer
2024-05-03 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Carrie Newcomer weaves her life and her art together, with music, community activism, and personal concerns all playing a role. She’s one of those people who exudes a spirituality that’s all her own, and she has to be seen in concert to be truly appreciated. Says novelist Barbara Kingsolver: “She’s a poet, storyteller, snake-charmer, good neighbor, friend and lover, minister of the wide-eyed gospel of hope and grace.” And you can forget all that and just luxuriate in her incredibly rich alto voice! Carrie has traveled to India and performed as a U.S. cultural ambassador, and local religion journalist David Crumm, writing on the ReadTheSpirit website, named her to his list of “10 Spiritual Sages to Watch.” Carrie always comes to The Ark with new music, and this time she’s bringing a brand new album, “A Great Wild Mercy.”

For Pete's Sake
2024-05-02 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
On hiatus since 2019, “For Pete’s Sake”, an all-star, in-the-round celebration of the songs and life of Pete Seeger, returns to The Ark! This year’s revival of the longtime Ark tradition features Michigan music favorites San, Laz, & Emily Slomovits; host of “No Roots – No Fruit” podcast and popular community singer, Matt Watroba; folk-roots singer-songwriter and beloved troubadour, Chris Buhalis; Hollerfest prime mover and prolific singer-songwriter/performer, Billy King; Michigan folk royalty, Annie & Rod Capps; legendary writer of classics like “Angelo’s” and “What Would Brando Do” and a do-not-miss performer, Dick Siegel; and songwriter, performer, and active proponent of our southeast Michigan music scene, Judy Banker – coming together to celebrate Pete’s birthday by sharing stories and, in the true Seeger style, lots of singalongs. All proceeds from this event go to support The Ark.
In the spirit of Pete’s belief in the power of singing together, we are making the concert available via LIVE STREAM so you all can join us from wherever you are.

Earthwork Collective Spring Tour
2024-05-01 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Earthwork Music is a collective steward of community, collaboration, and creativity. Earthwork Music members will be banding together for a special tour across Michigan’s Lower Peninsula performing their songs and telling their stories.
This year’s lineup:
Nicholas James Thomasma
Dede Alder
Josh Holcomb
Sari Brown
Ralston Bowles
Ben Traverse
Gregory Stovetop
Elisabeth Pixley-Fink
Samantha Cooper
Chris Good
Mark Lavengood
Sarah Cohen
Vince Russo
Amber Hasan
Audra Kubat
Joe Reilly
Graham Parsons
Mike Savina
Jordan Hamilton

The Arcadian Wild
2024-04-30 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
The Arcadian Wild is a four-piece indie folk/pop group from Nashville, TN. Led by songwriters Isaac Horn and Lincoln Mick and Bailey Warren on fiddle, The Arcadian Wild confidently inhabits and explores an intersection of genre, blending the traditional with the contemporary. Combining elements of progressive bluegrass, folk, and formal vocal music, The Arcadian Wild offer up songs of invitation; calls to come and see, to find refuge and rest, to journey and wonder, to laugh and cry, to share joy and community and sing along.
The band’s 2023 album, “Welcome,” marks the start of a captivating new chapter for the genre-bending trio, who returned to the studio with renewed purpose and insight after devoting the last few years to a series of critically acclaimed singles and EPs. Like much of the band’s catalog, the album blurs the lines between chamber folk and progressive bluegrass, drawing on everything from country and classical to pop and choral music with lush harmonies and dazzling fretwork, but this time around there’s a rawness to the writing, an embrace of candor and simplicity that cuts straight to the heart of things like never before. The result is perhaps the most arresting collection yet from a band known for its ability to stop listeners dead in their tracks, an exquisitely beautiful celebration of community, connection, and the power of belonging that feels tailor-made for these challenging times.

George Crotty Trio
2024-04-29 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
George Crotty has forged his own exciting vocabulary on the cello, pushing the boundaries of the cello as a jazz instrument. Following his graduation from the Berklee College of Music, Crotty immersed himself in New York’s jazz and world music scenes, playing with several ensembles, such as the Brooklyn Raga Massive, and the Detroit-based National Arab Orchestra. Additionally, he has enjoyed fruitful collaborations with Simon Shaheen, Paquito D’Rivera, Anat Cohen, and Darol Anger. The George Crotty Trio’s “Chronotope” (2022) showcases the Canadian cellist’s expressive fluidity and modal orientation. The group’s cross-cultural interplay draws on diverse influences within jazz and global music traditions including post-bop, modal jazz, Indian raga, and Arabic maqam.

Gemily
2024-04-28 13:00 - 15:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Gemily (Gemini + Emily) is the folk music trio comprised of Laz and San Slomovits and San’s daughter, Emily. Laz and San, as the highly popular family music duo, Gemini, have been performing throughout Michigan and the United States since 1973. Emily first began joining them on stage when she was just eight years old, and increasingly since graduating from college in 2016. All three are versatile instrumentalists and excellent singers. Between them they play over a dozen instruments including guitars, violins, ukulele, mandolin, pennywhistle, and a variety of folk flutes and hand percussion instruments.
San and Laz’s recordings have won numerous awards from, among others, the American Library Association, Parents’ Choice Magazine, National Parenting Publications, the Wolf Trap Institute, Early Childhood News and ASCAP. Emily, who studied classical violin for over a decade, is an excellent violinist in a variety of styles including classical, jazz and folk. In addition to Gemini, she has performed and recorded with Billy King, Annie and Rod Capps, Judy Banker, Billy Brandt, and Jill Jack.
Gemily’s concerts feature a wide range of traditional and contemporary folk, jazz and classical music. Their beautifully blended harmony vocals and exciting instrumental work breathe new life into a wide variety of American and international music, from folk to classical, klezmer to Broadway show tunes, traditional to contemporary. Audiences thrill to their musicianship, warmth, humor and ease on stage.

Sarah Jarosz: Polaroid Lovers Tour
2024-04-27 20:00 - 23:00 | The Ark, 316 S. Main, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, United States
Four-time GRAMMY winner Sarah Jarosz has announced her new album, “Polaroid Lovers,” and she’s bringing it to The Ark! The record is releasing on January 26, 2024 via Rounder Records. It features a decidedly more electric sound than Sarah’s earlier bluegrass-flavored efforts, and it shows this brilliant artist maturing as a songwriter. A Texas native, she’s spent most of her adult life living in New York City, but shortly before writing the album Sarah left her adopted home to join her soon-to-be husband in Nashville. The geographic shake-up led to a sonic one as well for “Polaroid Lovers.” For the first time in her career she opened herself up to collaborators, leading to writing sessions with Daniel Tashian, Ruston Kelly and Natalie Hemby. “‘Polaroid Lovers” is an album-long meditation on those strangely ephemeral moments that indelibly shape our lives. “What I love about a Polaroid is that it’s capturing something so fleeting, but at the same time it makes that moment last forever,” says Sarah. “It made sense as a title for a record where all the songs are snapshots of different love stories, and there’s a feeling of time being expansive despite that impermanence.”
Tonight’s show is sponsored by Dartbank Wealth

The Polaroid Lovers Tour VIP Experience Includes:

One (1) general admission — OR — premium reserved ticket (varies by show)
Pre-show soundcheck performance
Q&A with Sarah
Group photo with Sarah (Sarah stays on stage)
Exclusive signed poster
Early entry into the venue
