Winnetka, News

Wallflowers, Michael Franti to headline two-day Winnetka Music Festival

A return to two days means the opportunity for two headliners for the Winnetka Music Festival.

Event organizers announced on Monday their 2023 lineup, which is topped by The Wallflowers on Friday, June 16, and Michael Franti and Spearhead on Saturday, June 17.

The main stage will feature two other acts each day — The Dip and Hailey Winters on June 16 and Neal Francis and Madison Cunningham on Saturday.

The announcement, made via Instagram, said “many more” artists will be announced in the coming weeks to cover the four stages at the festival.

Tickets to Winnetka Music Festival will go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, March 17. Single-day tickets will be made available April 7.

Guests of the 2022 Winnetka Music Festival settle in near the main stage. | Photo by Rhonda Holcomb

Led by Jakob Dylan, son of music icon Bob Dylan, The Wallflowers have been rocking for 30 years and produced several mainstream hits, including “One Headlight,” “The Difference” and “6th Avenue Heartache.”

The Wallflowers latest album, “Exit Wounds,” was released in 2021.

Michael Franti and Spearhead have 12 studio albums since their debut in 1994 with music described as a mix of reggae, funk, electronic dance and hip-hop. Franti has topped Billboard charts three times: “Sound of Sunshine,” “Say Hey (I Love You)” and “I Got You.”

For more info on the six main-stage artists, visit the Winnetka Music Festival site.

In the past, the secondary stages have featured local acts and student bands, as well as talent from across the country.

This is the seventh year for the Winnetka Music Festival, which was launched as a two-day street-style show by Winnetka’s Val Haller in 2017.

But things changed in the first three pandemic-impacted years. The event was canceled in 2020 and in 2021, it was given a new name, Emerge Winnetka, and location, the Skokie Playfields.

In 2022, the concert returned to its Winnetka Music Festival moniker and welcomed its biggest names yet, Guster and The Record Company, for a one-day extravaganza.

The fest is going back to its two-day roots this year and partnering with Space, a music venue in Evanston.

“This year we feel comfortable that we can both return to two days and add back the second major stage allowing the fest to offer more than 20 musical acts,” said Scott Myers, a partner with the Winnetka Music Festival.


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joe coughlin
Joe Coughlin

Joe Coughlin is a co-founder and the editor in chief of The Record. He leads investigative reporting and reports on anything else needed. Joe has been recognized for his investigative reporting and sports reporting, feature writing and photojournalism. Follow Joe on Twitter @joec2319

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