Singer-songwriter Shane Nelson knows his way around a guitar fretboard, and his voice rings clear as a bell. While his solo work leans folky, his work in the Shane Nelson Band leans soulful. In the band, he is joined by veteran musicians Jerry Siptroth, Steve Netzel, Maxi Childs and guitar mystic Ron Koivisto. They perform with a tasty sparseness that allows Nelson to explore his considerable vocal dexterity and songwriting craft. Nelson put out a self-titled album in 2020 and many online videos pay tribute to his talents.

My Dad’s Calling is a group of middle- and high-school students who met at the Music Resource Center. They have been working together on covers and originals since last summer, with Leo on guitar and lead vocals, Jupiter on violin, and Evah on drums. Their lyrics and talent exceed their age; expect a sound inspired by The Cranberries and by their favorite local legends. They’ll be joined on stage for a few songs by MRC teachers Traxx Kavajecz, Axel Swanson and Shanna Willie.

Mr. Kickass is a punk rock band run by three kickass dudes: Mike Fradenburgh, Jed Olsen and Jake Daire. Fradenburgh’s intense bass and vocals, Daire’s thunderous drums and Olsen’s screaming guitar have rocked Homegrown for two decades. Olsen and Fradenburgh met at Homegrown in 2002, started the band shortly after, and played the festival for the first time in 2006. The trio’s music is fast, loud, fun and, as Fradenburgh notes, there’s “a lot of beer spilled along the way.”

Merrill Miller brings a blend of classic country, punk and blues music to life with his voice and acoustic guitar. Inspired by Johnny Cash, his songs are about love, loss, addiction and living life on the open road as a Midwesterner. Writing music for the past four years and playing for 19, his motivation is “to inspire hope in other people,” he said. This Christian Mohican truly lives by the name of his tribe, which translates to: “the people of the waters that are never still.” Miller doesn’t stand still during his performances and neither does the crowd.