MARINETTE – Wisconsin’s longest continuous running country music festival is returning on June 18 for another summer with familiar faces and new names gracing the stage.
The Porterfield Country Musical Festival has been a family-oriented music event for 44 years, attracting returning families for generations with country artists suiting every taste.
“Many of the same individuals attend year after year. For the most part, there are a lot of repeat customers, but they always leave smiling,” explained host and founder Hank Green.
Guests and their families have been coming to the Porterfield Country Musical Festival since the first iteration of the festival in 1982. The first event was planned by mill workers and veteran groups with local bands and grew the next year as women’s clubs and volunteers showed their support, Green shared.
One of the volunteers who joined in during these early years was Rose Hipke, current president of Porterfield Country Inc.
While the festival has grown, Rose said that it remains the same at its core, “we’re a very small group with good volunteers.”
Volunteers are key when it comes to running the weekend long event and completing the advanced planning — including the important task of contacting agents and inviting entertainers.
“Everyone has their own favorites — old country, new county or rock. We try to pick one from each [genre] for each day,” Green explained.
The Thursday lineup kicks off the festival with five-piece country rock band Daizy Roots, followed by Lola Blue & The Boys bringing their self-proclaimed “rockin’ y’allternative country music.” Taking the evening slot is Derek Jones, best known for shows at the Grand Ole Opry and CMA Fest in addition to opening performances for Billy Ray Cyrus, Trace Adkins and Ashley McBryde.
The fun continues on Friday with country classics from the John Welch Band and a high-energy performance by Driftwood as part of their “The Last Ride” tour.
Green shared his excitement for Britnee Kellogg, a Nashville recording artist who was featured on Keith Urban and Blake Shelton’s TV show “The Road.”
“I’m hoping her show is as good as we all think it will be. Her show looked really good on TV and her reviews have been good,” Green said.
Rounding out the final day will be Americana and outlaw country band Darn Sad Crawdad as well as the Peshtigo-based Broke Down Datsun with their “edgy, full-blooded sound.”
Ben Haggard will close out the festival, paying tribute to the early years of the Porterfield Country Music Festival with a set that will blend traditional and contemporary sounds.
“The late country-great Merle Haggard performed at Porterfield in 1999, and now we’re honored to have one of his sons perform on the very same stage,” the organizers said.
The organizers are eagerly awaiting the arrival of performers and festival goers who will experience what sets this event apart.
“People don’t have to pay premium prices for one show. There are no big-screen TVs, we don’t need them — it’s all up-front seating, the VIP seating is everywhere,” Green said.
With final preparations in progress, Green and Hipke shared their ultimate wish for the 44th festival, “We’ve had so many wonderful artists and found that so many of them are extremely fun to work with. We hope that everyone who comes has fun and that the performers have fun playing here.”
The Porterfield Country Music Festival will be held at Green Green’s Acres Campground, located at N4247 River Dr., Marinette. Music will be performed daily from 3:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. beginning on Thursday, June 18, through Saturday, June 20.
Order festival tickets and book camping sites at https://ticketstripe.com/PorterfieldCountryMusicFestival or by contacting (715) 789-2207, (715) 923-4531 or PCFconRose@aol.com. Follow Porterfield County Music Festival on Facebook for additional information about the artists, vendors and their Cruisin’ Oldies Festival in July.
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