Manistee festival pairs live music, beer, cannabis for amphitheater
Smoke on the Water pairs live music, beer and cannabis all to fundraise for the planned development of an amphitheater between First Street Beach and Douglas Park.
Authentic 231 and Salt City Rock and Blues are the event’s co-hosts. Authentic 231 is a Manistee-based cannabis retailer; and Salt City Rock and Blues is a nonprofit “committed to building community through music,” which also hosts Laborfest.
The two entities were granted permission from Manistee City Council to host Smoke on the Water on municipal property.
Bob Ogilvie, Salt City Rock and Blues vice president, said there were over 640 tickets presold for Smoke on the Water, more than last year.
The event was limited to adults 21 and older. Ticket sales were capped at 3,000 and last year there were nearly 1,500 sold overall.
Darren Deverux, Smoke on the Water event coordinator, said the event’s presale tickets outshined last year by three times as many.
“I anticipate a pretty good crowd,” Deverux said about a half hour into the event.
He said Authentic 231 was involved in the event last year but only with the cannabis portion of the event.
“This year, Bob Ogilvie and Salt City Rock and Blues handled the rest of the concert. This year, we took over booking the acts and the entertainment and the amenities and everything,” he said. “We feel really good about bringing a positive event like this to Manistee.”
Deverux said the event is an honor and a privilege to host.
Ogilvie said the event coordinators were “building off of the success from last year.” He also noted that the 2023 headliner, Afroman, having some notoriety also helped increase interest this year.
“We are thrilled to bring back Smoke on the Water to Manistee,” Ogilvie previously said. “This year, we have an incredible lineup headlined by the legendary Afroman, who’s known for his big hit ‘Because I Got High’ and also recently announced his candidacy for president in 2024.”
The event also included DJ Skeezy, Nathan Walton and the Remedy, Pretty Kool, and Rev. Right-Time and the 1st Cuzins of Funk.
Future plans
The plans for the Manistee amphitheater started with a Manistee High School class of 1973 reunion about a decade ago, Ogilvie said.
According to previous News Advocate reporting, that original group included Tom Volkema, Ogilivie, Sue Flarity, Al Kukla, Julie Finan and Cindy Peterson.
The group became Salt City Rock and Blues.
In 2018, Salt City Rock and Blues created Laborfest.
In the words of Salt City Rock and Blues’ website, Laborfest focuses on “the traditions of honoring the region’s rich industrial history and the laborers who supported the salt, lumber and sand industries.”
It also was a way to raise money for an amphitheater on Lake Michigan.
“We thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to have a permanent facility to showcase local talent,’” Ogilvie recalled.
He said the amphitheater plan’s reception from area residents has been mostly positive, with some who still bristle at change.
Most recently, Manistee City Council approved an agreement for a beach amphitheater market and feasibility study with a 4-2 vote on July 5, according to News Advocate reporting.
The agreement is for $32,000 and includes all research, travel and related expenses for up to one trip to Manistee for a site visit and due-diligence trip.
Ogilvie spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting earlier this month to ask city council to approve the study and move the amphitheater project forward.
“Salt City Rock and Blues has been involved putting on concerts for — this will be our 11th year,” Ogilvie had said. “… We’ve donated $12,000 for the feasibility study and we’re prepared to donate even more after LaborFest perhaps, but right now our funds are tied up producing that.”
Salt City Rock and Blues originally announced plans to fund the construction of a waterfront musical stage at First Street Beach in 2017.
Early amphitheater plans call for an open air, multi-use facility that can host a variety of events, including concerts, theatrical presentations, graduations and other public events.
Overall, Ogilvie said people want to see entertainment happening at the beach and not need to travel to places like Grand Rapids to find that experience.
