Summertime means celebrating Good Living in Greater Nebraska.
Hear Nebraska’s Good Living Tour concert series, presented by Nebraska Economic Department of Development, has returned for its third year, connecting original Nebraska artists with fans and communities across the state through free, all-ages concerts throughout the summer.
This year, HN is traveling to eight communities, including first-time participants Hebron on Friday, June 9 and Auburn on Saturday, June 10. The tour then heads to Imperial, Red Cloud, McCook, Norfolk, Lyons and ends Saturday, Aug 19 at Hastings’ Sol Fest.
Each concert is carefully curated to feature a lineup of original, diverse Nebraska acts, with at least one band native to each town — representing an array of musical genres and styles — from indie rock to country to hip-hop to blues.
Tthe Good Living Tour is HN’s capstone program. To help prepare you for it all, we’ve assembled this digital guide packed with everything from its engaging workshops and in-depth storytelling project to the smashing concerts and talented artists themselves. Dive in below.
The Mission
photo by Lindsey Yoneda
The Good Living Tour showcases top Nebraska musical talent to new audiences, celebrating Nebraska music and culture and encouraging the growth of the state’s music industry. The 2017 tour visits eight Greater Nebraska communities over six weekends.
Throughout the summer, the Good Living Tour continues to pursue its four-fold mission:
- Celebrate the unique livelihood available in Greater Nebraska.
- Cultivate an increasingly vibrant, original, contemporary music culture and industry in Greater Nebraska.
- Expose a young audience to new, innovative music and performance through homegrown Nebraska musicians — inspiring them to learn an instrument, host a concert or pursue a career in the arts.
- Educate Nebraskans — and the world— about Greater Nebraska music venues, music-related small businesses and passionate arts supporters.
The Workshops
As a new component to the tour this year, Hear Nebraska staff will lead an educational workshop designed to give each hosting community the tools and knowledge to increase the presence and support of original music in their community. These workshops will be responsive to each community’s desires and infrastructures, focusing on what is possible and what will have the greatest impact.
Workshops are set for the first weekend of tour in Hebron and Auburn. The schedule is below, and will be updated as the remaining dates are filled in.
Hebron: Friday, June 9 at Noon, location TBA; announcement comes here.
Auburn: Saturday, June 10 at 2 p.m. at Auburn City Hall, 1101 J St; RSVP here.
The Storytelling Project
Along the way, our editorial and multimedia team will capture the spirit of the tour in three ways.
First, we’ll film a live acoustic performance video in each community — eight, in all — with a local musician in a notable or historic part of each town. Last year’s crop of videos captured musicians on rooftops, in diners and on courthouse steps. Revisit it here.
Then, for each community, we will compile a highlight reel which features everything from landmarks to day-of activities and vendors to the onstage action itself.
Finally, our editorial team will produce eight feature stories about existing and developing music and arts in Nebraska and why they matter to the humans that live here. In past years, all of the stories have been written, and this year we take a different approach, adding video components where appropriate. Our team has already begun working on the project, with the first story set to drop later this week.
Check out the 2016 storytelling project here.
The Concerts
This is what it’s all about: staging Nebraska artists in front of Nebraska music fans of all ages and, hopefully, making new connections.
In all, the 2017 Good Living Tour features 29 musical acts throughout its eight-concert run. There will be something for everybody, with genre representation ranging from indie rock and country to hip-hop and R&B and everything inbetween. Because of that, audiences may see or hear something they never have before, but we think that’s part of what makes live music great.
As we’ve mentioned by now, each concert happens on a Friday or Saturday and is free and open to all-ages. There will be vendors and, in many cases, additional activities involved with each concerts. Specifics are listed in the schedule below.
What to bring:
- Blankets and folding chairs
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses
- Water
- Your I.D. (if you plan to drink)
- Your best dance … dancing is for winners.
- Your phone! Thanks to Pinnacle Bank, Snapchat users can apply our location-specific Good Living Tour filter for your concert-day stories.
Without further ado, here are the performance lineups for all eight concert dates. Get acquainted with them now and plan your summer attack. Use this Spotify Playlist for help:
June 9 — Hebron
Where: Roosevelt Park
When: Doors at 4:30 p.m., Music at 6 p.m.
Who:
Belles & Whistles (country — Lincoln)
Mad Dog & the 20/20s (ska/rock — Lincoln)
Bokr Tov (rock — Omaha)
Seven Days Sober (rock — Hebron)
https://soundcloud.com/hearnebraska/im-wild-by-belles-whistles-hear-nebraska-fm-91916
Community sponsors: City of Hebron, Hebron Chamber of Commerce, Hebron Community Foundation
* * *
June 10 — Auburn
Where: Legion Memorial Park
When: Doors at 5:30 p.m., Music at 7 p.m.
Who:
Lucas Kellison & the Undisco Kids (funk/soul — Lincoln)
FREAKABOUT (hard rock — Lincoln)
Daniel Christian (rock — Lincoln)
Ian Miller (singer/songwriter — Nashville/Auburn)
Community sponsors: Nemaha County Hospital, Nemaha County Development Foundation Fund, Lifetime Vision Center, The NET
* * *
July 1 — Imperial
Where: 8th & Broadway
When: Doors at 6 p.m., Music at 7 p.m.
Who:
The Talbott Brothers (folk rock — Imperial/Portland)
Rothsteen (soul/R&B — Omaha)
Universe Contest (indie rock — Lincoln)
Community sponsors: Imperial Community Foundation Fund, Chase County Tourism
* * *
July 15 — Red Cloud
Where: Starke Round Barn
When: Doors at 3 p.m., Music at 5 p.m.
Who:
Brad Hoshaw & the Seven Deadlies (folk/blues/rock — Omaha)
The Ramparts (hard rock — Omaha)
Lester Junction (rock — Red Cloud)
https://soundcloud.com/hearnebraska/new-tattoo-by-brad-hoshaw-the-seven-deadlies
Community sponsors: Red Cloud Community Foundation Fund, Willa Cather Foundation, Red Cloud Chamber of Commerce, City of Red Cloud, South Central State Bank, Webster County Community Hospital Foundation, Heritage Bank, Casey’s General Stores, The Red Cloud B&B at the Kaley House, Republican Valley Arts Council.
* * *
July 29 — McCook
Where: Barnett Park
When: Doors at 1 p.m., Music at 5 p.m.
Of Note: The Good Living Tour is proud to be part of McCook’s Prairie Roots Festival. More info here.
Who:
JAGAJA (indie pop — Omaha)
High Up (soul/punk — Omaha)
J. Crum (hip-hop — Omaha)
Community sponsors: Prairie Roots Festival, Community Hospital, McCook Community Foundation, Fund, Red Willow County Tourism Board, McCook National Bank, Acme Printing, McCook Chamber of Commerce
* * *
Aug 4 — Norfolk
Where: Downtown Norfolk, Johnny Carson Mural
When: Doors at 3 p.m., Music at 4 p.m.
Of Note: The Good Living Tour is proud to be part of Fork Fest.
Who:
Kris Lager Band (blues/rock — Lincoln)
Thick Paint (indie rock — Omaha)
HAKIM (hip-hop — Lincoln)
The Ambulanters (post-rock — Lincoln)
Community sponsors: ForkFest, Downtown Norfolk Association, City of Norfolk Economic Development, Norfolk Convention & Visitors Bureau.
* * *
Aug 18 — Lyons
Where: Storefront Theater
When: Doors at 5 p.m., Music at 6 p.m.; RSVP here.
Who:
Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal (soul — Lincoln)
Wagon Blasters (tractor punk — Omaha)
Jocelyn (singer/songwriter — Omaha)
* * *
Aug 19 —Hastings
Where: Brickyard Park
When: Doors at 1 p.m.; Music at 2 p.m.; RSVP here.
Of Note: The Good Living Tour is proud to be part of Sol Fest. More info here.
Who:
AZP (hip-hop/rock — Lincoln)
Miwi La Lupa (folk/indie rock — Omaha)
Dominique Morgan (soul/R&B — Omaha)
Andrea von Kampen (folk — Lincoln)
Samuel Scott McCumber (singer/songwriter — Hastings)
https://soundcloud.com/hearnebraska/desdemona-by-andrea-von-kampen-hear-nebraska-fm-112816
Community sponsors: Sol Fest
The Sponsors
The 2017 Good Living Tour is presented by the Nebraska Department of Economic Development and made possible thanks to generous support from Peter Kiewit Foundation, Nebraska Community Foundation, Nebraska Cultural Endowment, Humanities Nebraska, Nebraska Loves Public Schools, Pinnacle Bank,Union Pacific Railroad, Center for Rural Affairs.