Muskegon Summer Celebration

Tonight was such a memorable night!  When the lineup was originally announced, I know there were some grumbles about having 2 tribute bands and an American Idol "wannabe" perform on the 4th of July.  However, after what I saw tonight I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.  From start to finish I thought tonight was one of the best nights this year.  The only thing I am upset about is that I forgot my memory card for my camera at home so I don't have any pictures of this wonderful night!  ...

Local to Grand Rapids band, Brena, took the stage first.  They were winners of Battle of the Bands contest and it was understandable as to why.  They were full of energy while singing many original songs and entertained the growing crowd well.  They have a large following in West Michigan and many supporters came out to see them and made some new fans along the way. Other than that what a disappointing night!  Maybe I am bummed because I had very high expectations for tonight's concert.  It...

We arrived at the gate earlier to this concert than any previous ones - just after 5:30 p.m.  The front seating area was already filled and we had to sit back a fair distance to the left of the stage.  I figured the early attendance was a good sign and partly had to do with the opening band being a local Muskegon favorite, Yard Sale Underwear (YSU).  Their band plays pop songs mostly from the 80's and 90's and sets them to a rock feel without losing the integrity of the original song.  Dressed...

My memory of Deadwood Stone, Brent James, and Chevelle all run together tonight.  I am sure there are distinct differences between these three bands, however the music was so loud and heavy that in my mind looking back I cannot differentiate between the three of them.  Maybe I should have prefaced this with the fact that really heavy metal isn't my favorite music genre.  I am aware that Chevelle has a fairly large following and I had heard a lot of people say that they went tonight more for...

Low-key is how I would describe this evening's concert.  Not sure if it's because it is a Wednesday night, or if it is because it's Day 7 of the concerts, or if the audience just didn't know the music that well, but there was definitely a low energy vibe going on at Heritage Landing tonight. My friend, Beth, and I arrived around 6:30 p.m. just in time to catch Caleb Maitland perform.  He was the Battle of the Bands winner from Tennessee.  The part of his set that we were there for included...

Tonight my husband and I and two of our friends had the pleasure of sitting in the Premier Seating area for the concert.  This seating area is arranged to the right of the stage and behind the large scaffolding with speakers.  This truly gave a backstage feel to the concert.  It also comes complete with its own port-a-potties, bar, and entrance/exit to the carnival area.  Very convenient and it beats waiting in the lines everywhere else! We got there in time to hear Whoopee Kat play, but I...

It was a fairly cold and windy day down at the beach even though the sun was shining brightly!  Turtles seemed to be the popular theme, although there were also alligators, elephants, butterflies and an octopus.  Many of the people there looked to be experienced sculptors with their special tools and water spritzing devices.  The majority seemed to be from the Muskegon area, though I didn't have a chance to ask all of them.  It was a great event for families, friends, and couples.  Posted below...

To enjoy Here Come The Mummies one would definitely need a sense of humor and to not offend easily.  For tonight's concert, I had four other friends come along with me, and we had a fun time.  The Mummies cracked us up but at certain moments even we had to look away a little bit.  Dressed completely in mummy gear they sang songs that had sexual themes to them such as "Pants," "Booty," "VIP", and "Single Entrendre."  It wasn't just the lyrics that were more than raunchy but also gestures and the...

Now that is what I call a Summer Celebration!!!  If anybody had any complaints about tonight's concert then I am pretty sure nothing in the world would please him/her.  It was amazing!! If you were one of the thousands of people who had to hike it all the way down to the end of the line before entering the concert, I was right there with you.  We (my country fan friend Wendy and myself) parked down by the "Y" and trekked it all the way down to the lot kiddie corner from the LC Walker Arena...

What a busy day!!  Summer Celebration really knows how to make the most of a Saturday!  We started the day out at the Art Van Grand Parade.  This was my daughter's first local parade she had been to (only other parade she watched was at Disney World).  It is always fun experiencing something through a child's eyes.  The parade was your typical parade with various bands, floats, and politicians, but still fun and exciting none the less.  There were a lot of candy and trinkets given away as well....

I have to say if I was writing this blog ten minutes before the end, I would have had a different feeling about it.  The last ten minutes changed the entire mood for me.  So as I reflect, I will try to have the same attitude as I had during the moments and not let the ending cloud it. For this concert I brought my country fan friend, Wendy along.  She is more familiar with the music than I am, so I thought she would have a good time and also help me out as well.  We arrived just after 6...

First concert of the season!!  Arrived to Heritage Landing this evening just before 6:30pm.  For this concert, I brought along my friend, Jake, who is a pretty big ZZ Top fan.  We walked in and were able to get a place to set up our chairs relatively close to the stage.  While facing the stage we were off to the left of it near one of the big screen TV's.  This had a fairly good view of the stage and what we couldn't see on the stage the TV screens came in handy for.  Just as we sat down...

Well I am ashamed to admit that this was the first time I had ever attended the Plumb's Community Picnic.   I do not have previous years to compare it to, but I have to say that it completely exceeded my expectations.  When told that food was only going to cost 35 cents and that all games and activities were free, I envisioned mass chaos.  One person even commented on Facebook last week, "Won't be there........a chaotic mess! LOL"  I figured this person must know from experience and I was a...

Muskegon Summer Celebration continues to evolve year after year in response to the ever changing demands and suggestions made by its patrons.  A new thing we are trying this season is the addition of the Blog.  This is going to be a work in progress, but my hope is that you will find the Blog entertaining and informative. Just a little background on myself to give perspective of where the Blog is coming from:  My name is Amanda Shunta and I was born and raised in the Muskegon area.  I love...