What is a festival without great music? Thankfully we won’t have to fi nd out at this year’s Dogwood Festival. The festival runs April 29 - May 1 and is sure to be spectacular. Carrie King, the executive director of the festival, would not accept anything less.

Country music lovers are in for a treat on Friday night when Jo Dee Messina takes the stage. She has charted nine Number One singles on the Billboard country music charts. She has been honored by the Country Music Association, the Academy of Country Music, and has been nominated for two Grammy Awards. She was the first female country artist to score three multiple-week Number One songs from the same album. Her top hits include “I’m Alright,” “Bye, Bye,” “My Give a Damn’s Busted,” “Bring on the Rain” and “Heads Carolina, Tails California.”

“She is huge. She’s had nine number one hits,” said King.“The second her name was brought to the table there was no one else to consider. She is an established artist. She has the hits ... the recognition. She is a tough woman too, and I love to see a female who can deliver — and she really seems like she can deliver. I think she is going to put on a fabulous show.”

On Saturday, Everclear will rock festival park. The bands impressive career spans more than a decade with hits like “Learning How To Smile,” “I Will Buy You A New Life,” “Summerland,” “Everything To Everyone,” “Wonderful, Father Of Mine,” “Rock Star” and “The Maple Song.”

“Each year we are trying to feed a need in our community, and that is a genre, an age group. So obviously it is about bringing out the biggest groups that we can,” said King. “Last year when we gave everyone the opportunity to vote for their favorite band, that really tapped on a genre that we felt maybe we had been missing and that was that ‘90s-era group. So this year Everclear definitely taps into the folks that follow us on Twitter and are a part of the social media scene — a younger audience if you will.”

Sunday, look for something new in Festival Park as the Dogwood Festival presents “Homegrown Live.” This concert will showcase Fayetteville’s five best local bands. Rock 103 has taken on the daunting task of accepting applications from local bands and having a panel of judges choose the top 15, but it is the fans who have narrowed the category down to five. They’ll be on stage from 1-6 p.m., ready to impress the crowds and let everyone know just why they were voted Fayetteville’s best bands. Visit rock103rocks.com to find out more.

The Bud Light Stage in Festival Park is not the only musical venue for the weekend though. On Hay Street, Cape Fear Musical Center is sponsoring a stage that will offer everything from a showcase of their talented students Brian Willoughby, the Combutibles, Flynt, Coleman and Stone, a UNCP Faculty Jazz Trio and The Phaxtion. The Hay Street stage will have performers on deck from 1-5 p.m. on Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

The concerts are all free and open to the public as part of the Dogwood Celebration.

Photo: Jo Dee Messina