Local Spins’ New Year’s Day tradition continues today with our rollout of the schedule for 2025 Michigan music festivals, from A to Z (or W) – Ann Arbor Folk Festival to Wheatland, and everything in between.
Forest Frolic: Electric Forest is among more than 50 music festivals returning in 2025. (Photo/Eric Stoike)
CLICK HERE FOR THE COMPLETE LISTING OF 2025 FESTIVALS
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Every year, Local Spins readers and fans of live music hold nothing back when extolling the virtues of their favorite Michigan festivals. Here are just a few examples:
Blissfest is “the best run, most diverse and most organized music festival in Michigan.”
Nor-East’r Music & Art Festival is “an intimate experience, with all of the elements of the big festivals: great music, workshops for everyone, a variety of art and craft items, great festival food, and happy, friendly, people.”
Beaver Island Music Festival: “The remoteness and the whole community involvement is awesome.”
Buttermilk Jamboree: One of the summer’s first festivals is also one of the most treasured. (Photo/Chelsea Whitaker)
Smiling Acres Music Festival “nestled in our tree-stump capital explores what it means to be part of a huge family reunion. Great food, kids running around everywhere and a resilient familiar feeling that we’re all in this together.”
Shagbark Music & Arts Festival is “always a great time,” “family-friendly, supports local acts.”
Buttermilk Jamboree: “I like the old-time, hippie atmosphere” with a “community feeling that the larger ones (festivals) are losing.”
From the state’s smallest (Tamarack Music Festival) to its largest festivals (Electric Forest, Movement, Upheaval, Breakaway, Detroit Jazz Festival, Faster Horses, Michigan Irish Music Festival), these celebrations all have their devoted disciples who appreciate the immense talent and unique camaraderie that accompanies these immersive events.
Sadly, with production costs rising, intense competition in the entertainment industry and struggles with turnouts, Michigan lost several festivals in 2024, including much-beloved events such as Hoxeyville Music Festival and Earthwork Harvest Gathering. (Local Spins Fest also is taking a hiatus in 2025.)
But many continue to survive and some aim to thrive in 2025, with more than 50 festivals so far listed on Local Spins’ Michigan Music Festivals 2025 Guide — our annual New Year’s Day listing of festivals which gets updated as more events confirm their dates and locations for the year.
If you’re the organizer of a Michigan music festival and your event isn’t listed, email details, dates and location to liz@localspins.com and info@localspins.com.
Your festival will add more merriment to what’s already a fabulous lineup of musical celebrations set for 2025. We’ll see you there.
CLICK HERE FOR THE COMPLETE LISTING OF 2025 FESTIVALS
Copyright 2025, Spins on Music LLC
