Organizers are advising local residents and visitors to save the dates for the annual Island Hopper Songwriter Fest Sept. 18 – 27.
Island Hopper Songwriter Fest is a 10-day music festival in Southwest Florida that draws some of country music’s greatest singer-songwriters from Nashville and nationwide.
Enjoy 80 plus artists, 100 plus shows, (most of which are free) in small, intimate venues.
The festival will include best practices in compliance with CDC guidelines.
This year’s festival starts on Captiva Island Sept. 18 – 20, then moves to Downtown Fort Myers Sept. 21 – 24. The festival concludes on Fort Myers Beach Sept. 25 – 27.
To get folks ready, organizers have been holding virtual concerts with artists scheduled to be at this year’s fest. Called Songs from the Sofa, the Instagram live event is hosted by DJ Mike Tyler from Cat County 107.1. The event features music by the artist, interviews and stories behind the songs.
The first Songs from the Sofa was with Sam James on May 21. Sam James is a BMI singer-songwriter and a star from the hit show, “The Voice.” James recently performed his original song, “Shinedown” on NBC’s songwriting show, “Songland” and has written hit songs for such artists as Bebe Rehxa and Dolly Parton.
The second Songs from the Sofa featured Jay Allen on June 11. Jay Allen, BMI singer-songwriter and rising star, gained recent success from his hit, “Blank Stares,” a song he wrote for his mother who passed away from early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. The country music breakout artist caught the attention from fans right away with his first hit single, “Sounds Good to Me,” listed as a “Highway Find” on Sirius XM’s “The Highway” channel.
Island Hopper is produced by the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau, iHeartMedia,Cat Country 107.1 and BMI, the largest music rights organization in the U.S.
For more about the upcoming festival, visit www.islandhopperfest.com
