Singer-songwriter Roger Hoover. Credit: Courtesy of 'Round Town Music Festival
The ‘Round Town Music Festival returns to downtown Kent on Friday. Produced by the Crooked River Arts Council, the annual music festival offers free live performances by 27 bands and artists at 23 different venues.

The event started more than 50 years ago as the Kent State Folk Festival, and over time has morphed into the ‘Round Town Music Festival.

“This is the final big music festival of the year that we present,” says Mike Beder of the Crooked River Arts Council in a press release. “With indoor and outdoor spaces, and artists all over town playing a wonderful variety of genres, it’s a goodbye to summer, and we go out with a bang.”

The line-up this year features singer-songwriter Roger Hoover, country rocker Melanie May, blues rockers the Danny Shipley Trio, and singer-songwriter Sean Benjamin. Monica Robins & the Whiskey Kings will once again hold down the festival’s largest outdoor venue, the Hometown Bank Plaza, starting at 7 p.m.

The Dan Smith Community Park will host the QS Jazz Trio.

“The ‘Round Town Music Festival is a wonderful Kent tradition,” says Marilyn Eisele Sessions, Public Relations and Marketing Officer for Hometown Bank. “The revenue it brings to the local economy as well as the way it showcases terrific local talent is something we look forward to year after year.”

The full schedule for Kent’s ‘Round Town Music Festival, along with artist bios and much more, is available at the festival web site.

This article appears in Sep 8-21, 2021.

Jeff has been covering the Cleveland music scene for more than 25 years now. On a regular basis, he tries to talk to whatever big acts are coming through town. And if you're in a local band that he needs to hear, email him at jniesel@clevescene.com.