{"id":107558,"date":"2021-08-06T18:36:41","date_gmt":"2021-08-06T22:36:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=107558"},"modified":"2021-08-06T18:39:51","modified_gmt":"2021-08-06T22:39:51","slug":"musikfest-has-returned-with-darius-rucker-kicking-of-the-festivities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=107558","title":{"rendered":"MUSIKFEST HAS RETURNED WITH DARIUS RUCKER KICKING OFF THE FESTIVITIES"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><em>Photographs by Diane Fleischman<\/em> \\ Concert Review by Victoria Durgin<\/strong><br \/>\n<div class=\"su-image-carousel  su-image-carousel-columns-4 su-image-carousel-has-spacing su-image-carousel-crop su-image-carousel-crop-1-1 su-image-carousel-has-lightbox su-image-carousel-has-outline su-image-carousel-adaptive su-image-carousel-slides-style-default su-image-carousel-controls-style-dark su-image-carousel-align-none\" style=\"max-width:500px\" data-flickity-options='{\"groupCells\":true,\"cellSelector\":\".su-image-carousel-item\",\"adaptiveHeight\":false,\"cellAlign\":\"left\",\"prevNextButtons\":true,\"pageDots\":true,\"autoPlay\":5000,\"imagesLoaded\":true,\"contain\":true,\"selectedAttraction\":0.007000000000000000145716771982051795930601656436920166015625,\"friction\":0.25}' id=\"su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8\"><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item\"><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item-content\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG.jpg\" data-caption=\"\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-0\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"470\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG.jpg\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG.jpg 774w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG-300x298.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG-768x762.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_01JPG-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item\"><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item-content\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_02.jpg\" data-caption=\"\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-1\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"316\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_02.jpg\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_02.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_02-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_02-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item\"><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item-content\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_03.jpg\" data-caption=\"\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-2\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"357\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_03.jpg\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_03.jpg 1020w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_03-300x226.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_03-768x578.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item\"><div class=\"su-image-carousel-item-content\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_04JPG.jpg\" data-caption=\"\" data-rel=\"lightbox-image-3\" data-rl_title=\"\" data-rl_caption=\"\" title=\"\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"474\" height=\"351\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_04JPG.jpg\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_04JPG.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_04JPG-300x222.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DSC_04JPG-768x569.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><script id=\"su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8_script\">if(window.SUImageCarousel){setTimeout(function() {window.SUImageCarousel.initGallery(document.getElementById(\"su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8\"))}, 0);}var su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8_script=document.getElementById(\"su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8_script\");if(su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8_script){su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8_script.parentNode.removeChild(su_image_carousel_69f40847595d8_script);}<\/script>\n<p>The food is on the grill, the beer is on tap and the Steel Stacks campus is buzzing. That can only mean one thing: it\u2019s Musikfest time.<\/p>\n<p>After a year off the fest returned for a preview night on August 5 before fully opening the next day. Headliner Darius Rucker opened the 2021 festivities to a nearly sold-out Wind Creek Steel Stage audience.<\/p>\n<p>Rucker\u2019s set kicked off at 8:30 p.m. and rolled through hit after hit for the next two hours. He opened with \u201cAll I Want,\u201d a song off his first country album released in 2008. Quickly, though, Rucker turned to his newer hits, including current singles \u201cBeers and Sunshine\u201d and \u201cMy Masterpiece.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The back and forth between new and old seemed to become a theme of Rucker\u2019s setlist as he continued through the show, stopping only periodically to banter with the crowd. After he had played through three songs, he did pause for a moment to express how excited he was to be back in front of a crowd.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m just so happy to be back, and be here in Pennsylvania tonight,\u201d Rucker said to an equally enthusiastic crowd.<\/p>\n<p>As the show continued, Rucker blended his solo country work with the smash hits he became known for during his time as the lead singer for critically acclaimed rock group Hootie and the Blowfish. \u201cHold My Hand\u201d marked the halfway point of the show, and Rucker and his band closed with \u201cOnly Wanna Be With You\u201d before returning for the encore.<\/p>\n<p>And if the soft rock of Hootie and the country of Darius weren\u2019t enough for the crowd, they were treated to several cover performances laced into the list. Rucker covered John Mellencamp\u2019s \u201cLittle Pink Houses,\u201d Blackstreet and Dr. Dre\u2019s \u201cNo Diggity\u201d and the Garth Brooks classic \u201cI\u2019ve Got Friends in Low Places.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the song choices might look odd on paper, Rucker\u2019s powerful voice and casual attitude seemed to make the songs all perfect moments for the evening. The genres blended perfectly, and Rucker barely paused during the performance, giving the audience plenty of time to sit back (or stand up) and enjoy nearly two and a half hours of uninterrupted live music.<\/p>\n<p>The setlist seemed balanced between old and new, country and otherwise, from the covers to a song Rucker wrote with Ed Sheeran (who he described as a \u201cgreat guy\u201d) about his fifth grade love. Beer, old love, new love and an appreciation for what you have while you have it were popular topics for the night.<\/p>\n<p>The three-song encore after \u201cOnly Wanna Be With You\u201d offered one more cover, this time of \u201cValerie\u201d in the style of the late Amy Winehouse. Then, Rucker performed \u201cHistory in the Making,\u201d a solo song of his, specifically because Rucker saw on his social media that someone in the audience asked for it as it was their wedding song.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe never play this anymore,\u201d Rucker said in the introduction, \u201cbut just for you tonight, we are going to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The last song of the show was the mega-hit \u201cWagon Wheel,\u201d a cheerful, easy to sing along to number that capped a night of entertainment and, for many, sheer gratitude to once again be at a live show.<\/p>\n<p>After a year of no Musikfest and virtually no live music anywhere, Rucker ushered in an excitement for Musikfest 2021 in style and surprise.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Darius Rucker Official Website:<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dariusrucker.com\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/www.dariusrucker.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p>For tickets or more information about Musikfest 2021 visit:<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.musikfest.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.musikfest.org\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Photographs by Diane Fleischman \\ Concert Review by Victoria Durgin The food is on the grill, the beer is on tap and the Steel Stacks campus is buzzing. That can &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=107558\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">MUSIKFEST HAS RETURNED WITH DARIUS RUCKER KICKING OFF THE FESTIVITIES<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":107564,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2290,1024,69,5,5729],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-107558","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diane-fleischman","category-entertainment","category-in-the-valley","category-photography","category-victoria-durgin"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/DARIUS-RUCKER.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107558"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=107558"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107558\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/107564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=107558"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=107558"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=107558"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}