Happy New Year! Our annual tradition continues with the publication of our 2026 Michigan Music Festival Guide, featuring dates and website listings of more than 50 music festivals across the state.
Festival Ecstasy: Electric Forest is just one of several dozen Michigan festivals inspiring passionate fans. (Photo/Eric Stoike)
EDITOR’S NOTE: Best wishes to all of you as we kick off 2026. The ‘Amplified’ newsletter will return for email subscribers on Thursday, Jan. 8. Sign up to receive this weekly feature filled with exclusive content and ticket giveaways online here.
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It might not seem like it, considering the frigid outdoor temps and ever-recurring snow flurries, but Michigan’s music festival season is just around the corner.
We know that’s the case, because lineup announcements for summer festivals have started to flow regularly into our inboxes — from massive affairs such as Rothbury’s Electric Forest (Kaskade, Chris Lake, GRiZ, Illenium) and Detroit’s Movement (Danny Brown, Barry Can’t Swim, Carl Cox, Ki/Ki, Mochakk) to more intimate regional celebrations such as Nor-East’r Music & Arts Festival in Mio (The Go Rounds, Kate Hinote, Drew Nelson, Josh Rose, Full Cord, Jill Jack, Chris DuPont & Kylee Phillips) or the Charlotte Bluegrass Festival (Del McCoury Band, Travelin’ McCourys, David Mayfield Parade).
So, as is Local Spins’ annual New Year’s Day tradition, we present the latest edition of the Local Spins Michigan Music Festivals Guide — a comprehensive listing of more than 60 music festivals taking place across the state in 2026, including dates and links to festival websites or Facebook pages. View the full guide and listings here.
Granted, several once-popular Michigan music festivals have gone by the wayside — citing financial issues, lagging attendance and/or lack of volunteers — but others have also popped up, along with once-in-a-generation events such as the international Latvian Song & Dance Festival taking place in several different Grand Rapids locations in early July.
Make your plans now for what’s shaping up to be another jam-packed year of music festivals, and relive some of the action from several 2025 festivals by checking out Local Spins coverage of these events at the links below.
Local Spins is the ONLY publication regularly covering all of these events. If you support what we do, help us continue covering Michigan’s music scene by contributing online here: http://www.presspatron.com/local-spins. Thank you.
Photo by Derek Ketchum
MAY
BUS BENEFIT: Bus Benefit 2025 revs up Trufant with music, VW bus magic, heartfelt community
MOVEMENT: Movement stirs Detroit on Day 1 with techno, house music, fiery electronic thunder
JUNE
GRIDLIFE: GridLife Fest 2025 roars on Day 1 in South Haven
BUTTERMILK JAMBOREE: Buttermilk Jamboree ’25 marches out of the gates with soul, rock, folk, fun and rain
ELECTRIC FOREST: Electric Forest sparkles with fervent fans, thundering bass, escapism, late-night jams, heat
CHARLOTTE BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL: Billy Strings comes home to create back-porch, bluegrass buzz at cozy Charlotte Bluegrass Festival
SMILING ACRES: Smiling Acres Music Festival: Acres of smiles, moments of musical magic
JULY
BLISSFEST: The musical bliss of Blissfest: The 2025 Michigan festival recapped in words, photos
BEAVER ISLAND MUSIC FESTIVAL: Beaver Island Music Festival 2025 Revisited: Immersive, remote, joyful, irreplaceable
UPHEAVAL: Metal Uprising: Upheaval Festival amps up GR with Rob Zombie, rock ruckus
TAMARACK MUSIC FESTIVAL: Tamarack Music Festival 2025 Revisited: Michigan marvels, booty-shaking frivolity
AUGUST
UNITY CHRISTIAN MUSIC FESTIVAL/TRUCKIN’ INTO HOXEY: 40,000-plus flood Unity Christian Music Festival in Muskegon; Truckin’ into Hoxey revs up
WALK THE BEAT: Grand Haven’s Walk the Beat festival crowns Izzy Joy winner of heated 2025 competition
BREAKAWAY: Breakaway Music Festival blasts Belknap Park with Zedd, Gryffin, electronic romps
RETURN TO THE RIVER/SMALL FOREIGN FESTIVAL: Grand Rapids frolics at late August festivals: Return to the River, Small Foreign Festival
SEPTEMBER
WHEATLAND: Wheatland unfurls another ‘beautiful,’ uplifting weekend of eclectic roots music
MICHIGAN IRISH MUSIC FESTIVAL/VIBES FEST: Michigan Irish Music Festival, Vibes Fest: Photo Recaps
SOUNDS OF THE ZOO: Sounds of the Zoo charms Kalamazoo with hot hip hop, eclectic jazz, bracing rock, soul & more
View the MICHIGAN MUSIC FESTIVALS 2026 GUIDE here.
Photo by Eric Stoike
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