It's a big week of music ahead at the National Cherry Festival, so we've leaned on The Ticker's sister publication Northern Express to share more details about who’s playing and picks for each performer’s singular song not to miss:

Mark Farner – July 1
Flint-born Farner is a northern Michigan favorite, with his guitar neck stretching over several musical projects, the biggest being Grand Funk Railroad, a heavy rock outfit founded and fronted by Farner that experienced major success in the 1970s. Farner also spent a year spent touring with Ringo Starr’s All-Stars Band and has released several solo albums, the latest being his 2006 set, For the People. Farner lived in Onaway for several years, and has called Petoskey home for nearly 30, so he has loads of local ties, which means you can expect a raucous crowd for this one.
Cherry Pick: Farner’s a local guy, so let’s pick two: Grand Funk’s “I’m Your Captain,” and its cover of the 1967 Soul Brothers Six song “Some Kind of Wonderful.”

Here Come the Mummies – July 2
This Nashville-based funk outfit is as mysterious as its musicians’ names. Each bandmate keeps his (or her?) identity under wraps — literally, wrapped up in full head-to-toe mummy garb. The reason? They’re all rumored to be big-time Grammy-award winning players under contract to a range of different record labels so, with no way to prove who they are on stage, they can perform where and when they choose while avoiding any contract disputes. That said, the lucky listener — a.k.a. you — gets treated to a top-notch funk performance, and they don’t get sued. Traverse City funk band and special guest G Snacks will also perform.
Cherry Pick: From Here Come the Mummies' album Terrifying Funk from Beyond the Grave, “Ra Ra Ra” might be more appropriate for Halloween than the middle of summer, but it’ll get you dancing just the same.

Shinedown – July 3
Rocking its way up from Jacksonville, Florida, Shinedown mixes post-Seattle grunge and alternative rock in a way that’s kept the band active and evolving for over 15 years now. Shinedown’s live shows are forceful and full of hits — namely, 11 No. 1 singles that it’s placed on the Billboard rock charts. Michigan rock band Greta Van Fleet, promoting its brand new Republic Records EP Black Smoke Rising, will open for Shinedown.
Cherry Pick: From the band’s third album, we choose “The Sound of Madness,” a groove-oriented hit that highlights singer Brent Smith’s howling vocals.

’90s Dance Party 2.0 – July 4
Consider this variety show of throwback artists from the early ’90s your chance to pull out those old platform sneakers, high-waisted jeans, and backwards ball cap. You’ll be treated to live performances from American rapper Robert Van Winkle — aka Vanilla Ice — plus soulful R&B group All-4-One (“I Swear”), and C&C Music Factory (“Gonna Make You Sweat: Everybody Dance Now”) in a four-hour show that’ll make you want to go watch a Saved by the Bell marathon.
Cherry Pick: Fire up that borrowed Queen/David Bowie riff and check out the hook while his DJ revolves it: Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby.”

REO Speedwagon – July 5
’70s mainstream rockers REO Speedwagon have returned to the road to prep for their upcoming tour with fellow ’70s rock outfit Styx and former Eagles guitarist-turned-solo-artist Don Felder. REO is perhaps best known for its 1980 album, Hi Infidelity, which spawned four hit singles including “Take It On the Run” and “Don’t Let Him Go.” The band failed to evolve their sound beyond the early 1980s and was overtaken by the arrival of New Wave bands, but many of its classic rock singles endure to this day. Michigan guitarist Donny Hartman will open.
Cherry Pick: “Keep on Loving You,” the soft-rock power ballad that solidified both the band’s career and its inclusion on an endless succession of late-night-infomercial compilation albums.

Cole Swindell – July 6
Another export from Nashville’s endless pool of aspiring songwriters, Swindell got his start writing tracks for the likes of Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, and Thomas Rhett, so when it came time to push his own music, he was more than ready. You probably first heard him via his debut solo single, “Chillin’ It,” which was in heavy rotation on Sirius XM; Swindell released his first solo album, Cole Swindell, in 2014, and his second, You Should Be Here, in 2016. Both highlight the vocalist’s ability to convey deep emotions whether the track is a country ballad or a country rocker.
Cherry Pick: With its easy refrain of “I wanna hear everybody/if you’re with me everybody/everybody sing,” “Hey Y’All” is the perfect Traverse City party song for the holiday weekend.

Old Dominion – July 8
Country band Old Dominion will close out the concert series (along with special guest Aubrie Sellers). Michigan native Trevor Rosen, Whit Sellers, Geoff Sprung, Brad Tursi, and frontman Matthew Ramsey make up the band, a contemporary country outfit with flourishes of pop, rock, and even hip-hop. The bandmates have penned songs for a wide range of other artists: Ramsey and Rosen wrote songs for The Band Perry, Rosen for Blake Shelton, and Tursi has written for Kenny Chesney and the ABC TV drama series "Nashville."
Cherry Pick: “Song for Another Time,” from their first album, is one of Old Dominion’s most popular tracks, and one Rosen looks forward to playing live. “When fans are singing the chorus of it back to us as loud as they can, that’s pretty special,” he says.

All Cherry Festival concerts begin at 6pm. For more info and tickets, click here.