Band Spotlight

As the son of “America’s Prince of Polkas,” 7-year-old Eddie Jr. began playing drums for his dad’s world-renowned polka band and on his Emmy-nominated television show. By the time young Eddie had picked up the accordion, his life’s work was before him as he followed in the footsteps of his famous father to build a […]

Born in Chicago to first generation Lithuanian immigrants, young Ivas first learned music through his family’s folk sensibilities, then as a teenager, felt the powerful pull of Chicago blues. After furthering his blues education in weekend performances while attending Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, he morphed into full-time music performance, playing the region with an […]

Just when you thought it was safe to go out to bars and quietly listen to contemplative acoustic sounds, along comes Barrence Whitfield and the Savages to knock your socks off and stick them in your ears. Barrence Whitfield and the Savages, who, back in the mid-80s, launched out of Boston as the darlings of […]

Offwhyte, born as Ryan Fernandez on Aug. 22, 1977, in Pell City, Alabama, now resides in Springfield as his music is heard around the world. He defines himself an “American rapper, vocalist, dancer, producer and videographer, known for a sound that is at once complex, intellectual, wholesome and true to the soul.” There’s plenty to […]

Around since 2012, this band has gone through a few personnel changes, but now “the artist formerly known as New City Road” is officially called N.C.R., and with the name change comes a slightly new direction. Once a mostly-classic country group, the latest lineup of Jessica Dooley (vocals, guitar), Robbie Mitchell (vocals, guitar), Harry Lounsberry […]

Kim Richey is, by all standards, a gifted singer and songwriter who carries herself with the presence of the artist supreme. Her life has been one of singular commitment to song but without pretension or demand, only a desire to make music that matters, whether it matters to anyone else or not. She’s toured consistently […]

As our young troubadour completes his “summer tour” of acoustic venues in central Illinois and heads back to college, we salute Jimmy Riemer in a job well-done of entertaining and performing for literally hundreds of listeners during the last couple of months. Way back in his younger days (a few years ago), Jimmy learned the […]

First off, the band is not from Rockford, Illinois, or any Rockford anywhere. The indie-rock quartet consists of high school students from Springfield (class of 2019) who named the band in honor of a friend whose family moved to Rockford, Illinois. The band got together to play and have fun, with a couple members learning […]

This northern Louisiana native and current East Nashville resident gets around and has done so for a couple decades now. Kevin Gordon duets with Lucinda Williams, has been reviewed on NPR and in No Depression magazine, plays NPR’s Mountain Stage, and “the” Keith Richards records his songs. He graduated with an MFA from the prestigious […]

Cody Canada has been playing guitar and dreaming music since he was 8 years old, and he shows no signs of stopping anytime soon as he heads into a quarter century of professional playing. The former frontman for the popular Red Dirt rockin’ country band Cross Canadian Ragweed keeps on putting out music from the […]

This Austin-based guitarist, songwriter and singer gets welcomed and warranted comparisons to the late, great Stevie Ray Vaughan and combines other flavors of electric Texas-blues players as well, including shades of the also late and great Johnny Winter to create his very own sound. Originally from San Antonio, Chris started playing gigs at age 15, […]

Champaign-Urbana native Kayla Brown can count many achievements in her career in music performance and composition. Kayla started on her musical adventure professionally in 1997 and since then has performed locally, regionally and nationally, from coffee shops to festivals, including a proud moment singing “God Bless America” and the national anthem at Wrigley Field in […]