The eighth annual music festival at Circle Pines Center thrived in spite of some rainy disruptions, celebrating three days of diverse, vibrant music. Browse the photo gallery, watch the video.
Fable the Poet may have perfectly summarized Buttermilk Jamboree 2018 in terms that only a wordsmith could convey.
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“Buttermilk is an incredible Michigan experience like none other and there is a reason it continues to grow each year: It is the people, the artists and the community that actively works to celebrate the beautiful things that unify us instead of focusing on the divisive things that push each other further apart,” he said of last weekend’s eighth annual music festival held at Circle Pines Center in Delton.
Marcel Price, aka Fable the Poet, also raved about Saturday night’s performance by the Last Gasp Collective on the Sugar Bush Stage and said his fond memories of the festival will last long into the future.
“Last Gasp made me dance/sweat my night away,” he said, “and I helped two great people craft poems they were undoubtedly proud of.”
Based on the three-day event’s upbeat atmosphere and festivalgoers’ smiles, it’s clear many folks went home with enduring memories of Buttermilk, despite some early morning rain on Saturday that had organizers scrambling.
PERSEVERING AND THRIVING
Water damaged the roof of the main Orchard Stage, rendering it unusable for much of Saturday’s scheduled performances and forcing some acts to other stages for the day.
But volunteers and performers persevered, allowing Buttermilk 2018 to barely miss a beat, and the Orchard Stage was back on schedule for Luke Winslow King and band’s 7 p.m. performance.
One of many highlights: the high-energy duo Brotha James, whose positive messages and uptempo original tunes kept the crowd of kids and adults alike jumping and dancing around the Sugar Bush Stage.
Rain gave way on Saturday to sunshine and hot, humid temps in the 90s. Still, families, music fans young and old, volunteers, organizers, and performers all seemed to have a great time, dancing and singing along to local festival favorites, with major ovations for headlining acts Luke Winslow King and Donna the Buffalo.
“This is such an amazing place, such a celebration,” noted Price, who not only performed his spoken poetry pieces, but also held a poetry writing workshop Saturday. “In a society and environment where so much divides us, we need to look for the things that bring us together.”
PHOTO GALLERY: Buttermilk Jamboree 2018
Photos by Derek Ketchum and John Sinkevics
VIDEO: Buttermilk Jamboree 2018 Highlights
Video by John Sinkevics and Anna Sink
For more photos and coverage of the festival: Bounty of good vibes on Day 1 of Buttermilk Jamboree
Copyright 2018, Spins on Music LLC