Music

Occasional light drizzle did nothing to keep the crowd away from the opening night of the 14th Oktoberfest at SteelStacks on Friday night. The festival runs through the weekend and again Oct. 11-13.

John Legend, best known for his 14-times platinum No. 1 hit “All of Me” from 2013, will perform “A John Legend Christmas" at 8 p.m. Dec. 19 at PPL Center, it was announced.

Melissa Etheridge, who had chart-topping songs such as “Bring Me Some Water,” “I’m the Only One” and “Come to My Window,” will perform at 7:30 p.m. April 26. She'll be joined by Joss Stone and Taylor Dayne.

Oktoberfest at SteelStacks begins on Friday, Oct. 4. The two-weekend celebration will feature four biergartens, a bratwurst eating contest, weiner dog race, polka music and a drag show.

Howie Day, whose 2004 song "Collide" sold four times platinum and helped his album "Stop All the World Now" reach platinum sales, will perform at the free annual Harvest Fest street fair. The event will be noon to 5 p.m. Oct. 20 at Main and Broad streets.

The four-day festival will feature performances by Kinetic Light, a disability arts ensemble and a Latin fest. It starts Thursday, Oct. 3, and runs through Sunday, Oct. 6.

Live Nation, the country's top music promoter, will book shows for the state-of-the-art entertainment venue at 935-939 Hamilton St., the promoter announced.

The rink, which again will be erected in front of the Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks stage at the foot of the blast furnaces, is scheduled to open Nov. 22 and run through Jan. 5.

Rascal Flatts, which has sold more than 23 million copies of its 10 studio albums, will perform at 7 p.m. March 15, PPL Center said.

Philadelphia soul group The Stylistics, best known for the hits "Betcha By Golly Wow" and "You Make Me Feel Brand New," will headline the 70s Soul Jam at 8 p.m. Feb. 16 at Wind Creek Event Center.

Band of Horses, best known for its double-platinum 2006 hit "The Funeral," and City and Colour, known for its 2015 Adult Alternative chart hits "Wasted Love" and "Lover Come Back," will perform Sunday, Sept. 8.

Better Than Ezra, which had the No. 1 Modern Rock single “Good,” and the Top 5 Modern Rock hit “In the Blood” from its 1993 debut album “Deluxe,” will join the show Friday, Aug. 2, on Musikfest’s main stage

J&J Demolition Derby, a Labor Day mainstay at Allentown Fairgrounds, will return to the fair for its closing-night grandstand entertainment offering on Sept. 2.

Blippi, whose energetic and educational antics have made him a global sensation, will bring his live show Blippi: The Wonderful World Tour to the fair on Aug. 29.

Rockers Orgy, with opening act Cold, will play at 5:30 p.m. Friday, May 17, at Maingate Nightclub in Allentown. Tickets, at $25 in advance and $30 day of show, are available at maingatenightclub.com

Kutztown University's jazz ensemble was recognized by DownBeat magazine for Outstanding Performance in its Student Music Awards. It's the 10th win for Kutztown's commercial music program but the first for the jazz ensemble.

Tickets for both shows will go on sale to the public at 10 a.m. Friday, May 10, at ArtsQuest Center, 101 Founders Way, Bethlehem, or at www.SteelStacks.org.

The nine-man Straight No Chaser will perform at 3 and 7 p.m. Dec. 7, the theater said in a release. Tickets, at $39.50-$74.50, go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, May 10, on the State Theatre website.

Malina Moye, who combines influences of hip hop, rock, funk and soul and whose 2018 album “Bad As I Wanna Be” topped the Blue Albums chart, will perform at the free festival.

The 116th Bethlehem Bach Festival takes place Fridays, May 10 and 17 and Saturdays, May 11 and 18 at the Zoellner Center for the Arts, Packer Memorial Church, Moravian University and Incarnation of our Lord Church.

Bethlehem Area School District students involved in the innovative Marketing MusikFest class announced the bands they booked for the big Lehigh Valley festival on Friday, May 3.

Nashville artist-songwriter George Birge, whose song "Beer Beer, Truck Truck" went viral on social media in 2021, then who hit No. 1 with the song "Mind On You" in 2022, will be Brad Paisley's "special guest" at the Aug. 30 concert at Allentown Fair grandstand.