The Ark’s iconic festival announced its Saturday lineup for 2026, with a change for Friday: a full concert by a headlining artist to be revealed next week. The deets and videos at Local Spins.
Headlining the 2026 Ann Arbor Folk Festival: Amos Lee, who played St. Cecilia Music Center in 2023. (Photo/Bryan Esler)
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The iconic Ann Arbor Folk Festival’s 49th edition in January will star Amos Lee, Dawes and The Crane Wives on Saturday night, with plans to present a full concert on Friday by a soon-to-be-announced headliner.
The fundraiser for The Ark in Ann Arbor at Hill Auditorium aims to deliver “the full spectrum of ‘Ark music’ ” by showcasing artists “on the leading edge of acoustic music while delving into the very heart of folk and roots traditions,” said marketing director Barb Chaffer Authier.
Emceed by singer-songwriter Ryan Montbleau, Saturday’s lineup of soulful folk singer Amos Lee, folk-rock’s Dawes and West Michigan alt-rock/folk band The Crane Wives will be further enhanced by sets from tunesmith Jon Muq and dark folk’s Rabbitology.
For Grand Rapids’ The Crane Wives, who made their brief, 15-minute debut at the Ann Arbor Folk Festival in 2014, playing a full set at the 2026 event ranks as another major milestone for the popular band that’s been touring the country behind its latest album, “Beyond Beyond Beyond.”
Drummer Dan Rickabus called the 2014 performance “a huge moment of expanding possibility.”
“It was such a whirlwind, dreamy night. I’ll never forget accidentally bumping knees with Sam Beam from Iron & Wine. I believe I was quoted in Local Spins as saying that the very ordinary moment of meeting a hero showed me how ‘We’re all just dudes.’”
A Journey with Peaks and Valleys: The Crane Wives at the 2014 Ann Arbor Folk Festival, above, and at Meijer Gardens this summer. (Photos/Anna Sink/Veronica Ann Dearborn)
Fast forward nearly 12 years and “playing a a full set at the festival … feels like a really special way to zoom out and feel proud of how far we’ve come on this journey,” Rickabus added.
“There have been so many peaks and valleys along the way, and I feel so wildly lucky to still be continuing experience moments of expanding possibility with these tried-and-true collaborators.”
Tickets for the Saturday, Jan. 31, concert on Day 2 of the folk festival – ranging from $81.50 to $281.50 – go on sale to Ark members at 10 a.m. today (Wednesday). Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. Friday (Nov. 14) online here.
The Ark plans to announce the festival Friday night headliner on Monday (Nov. 17).
Chaffer Authier said the change in this year’s festival format was “based on audience feedback,” with Friday’s show starting later at 7:30 p.m. “for a shortened evening featuring a full concert from a headlining artist.”
As for Saturday’s roster, Lee has cultivated an ultra-devoted audience for his engaging, soulful music and audience-involving performances, releasing his most recent album, “Transmissions,” in 2024.
California’s Dawes, meanwhile, also released an album in 2024, “Oh Brother,” and recently released a version of their 2009 fan favorite, “When My Time Comes” (from the band’s “Nothing Is Wrong” sessions).
After a hectic year of performances across the country – which included a sold-out, energetic homecoming show at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park last summer – The Crane Wives will wrap up their current East Coast tour in Vermont on Nov. 23.
SATURDAY’S FESTIVAL PERFORMERS: VIDEOS
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