Music

Joe Russo's Almost Dead is led by Russo, who was drummer in the Grateful Dead splinter group Furthur with Dead guitarist Bob Weir and bassist Phil Lesh.

There will be two “Twist & Shout” Musikfest Sunday Brunches in Hotel Bethlehem's Grand Ballroom — Aug. 4 and Aug. 11.

Wheatus, best known for its 2000 single “Teenage Dirtbag,” will perform at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 22 in Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks, it was announced.

The celebration of the Isla del Encanto in Allentown was organized by the Puertorrican Culture Preservation and held on Sunday, July 28.

Musikfest 2024 begins with a preview night on Thursday. The 11-day festival will feature more than 422 artists and more than 500 concerts. Headliners include Greta Van Fleet, ZZ Top, Ludacris and Jowell & Randy.

College Hill PorchFest, a celebration of music and community across the Easton neighborhood, will return in September, with applications for performers and porches being accepted until July 31.

Tickets for the 50 shows in the new season go on sale to theater members at 10 a.m. Aug. 1 and to the public at 10 a.m. Aug. 8 at www.statetheatre.org, or at the box office at 453 Northampton St., Easton.

Erica Silver, a music teacher with the Allentown School District, is the youth chorale's newest conductor and Alaina Swartz is the new director of education and community engagement.

Diana Ross, who with The Supremes had a dozen No. 1 hits in the 1960s, then a half dozen more as a solo artist in the 1970s and ’80s, will perform at the center at 8 p.m. Oct. 18.

ArtsQuest, in partnership with Trans-Bridge Lines and Penn State University, on Monday announced a new satellite parking lot will be established at Penn State Lehigh Valley.

Organized by the SouthSide Arts District, First Friday is a monthly community celebration across South Bethlehem, featuring art, live music, cultural experiences and historical attractions.

A popular retro stylist band that was among the bigger-named acts to play an early show at Allentown's new Archer Music Hall will return to the area to play Wind Creek Event Center. So will a top comedian who has been a favorite of the Lehigh Valley.

Pure Prairie League will perform at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks in Bethlehem. It helped bring mainstream success to the country-rock and Southern Rock genres with its 1972 album "Bustin' Out," and its Top 30 hit "Aimie."

Scotty McCreery, who won “American Idol” in 2011 and since has released three No. 1 Country chart albums and two other Top 10 discs, will perform at 7 p.m. April 26, it was announced.

Bush, whose 1994 debut album “Sixteen Stone” sold six-times platinum — the band sold 10 million copies with its first three albums — will perform Friday, Feb. 20, in Bethlehem.

The announcements of country star Parker McCollum and soft rockers Train are the fourth and fifth headliners announced for the festival in 2026.

Two Feet, which topped the Alternative chart, will perform Sunday, April 13. And Dayseeker, which this year had the Top 10 rock hits "Crawl Back to My Coffin" and "Bloodlust," will perform Tuesday, May 6.

Let Freedom Sing, to be held at 7 p.m. May 27 at Allentown’s Coca-Cola Park, seeks to unite more than 5,000 voices from across the region for “a choral experience to the community, uniting in celebration.”

John Mulaney, who for six years was a writer on “Saturday Night Live” and starred in the short-lived FOX-TV series “Mulaney,” will perform at 7 p.m., it was announced by ArtsQuest, the nonprofit that produces Musikfest.

“Weird Al” Yankovic, best known for turning Michael Jackson’s 1984 hit “Beat It” into the parody “Eat It” for a Top 15 hit that was certified gold, will perform at Musikfest 2026, it was announced.

Bailey Zimmerman, best known for his multi-platinum hits "Fall in Love," "Rock and a Hard Place" and "Religiously," will perform at 7 p.m. Aug. 6, ArtsQuest revealed Monday.

Next month, Wind Creek Event Center owner Jeff Trainer plans to open The Broken Record, a restaurant in Lower Macungie Township that will combine a broad range of food offerings with a music theme — and perhaps more.