Help us celebrate the new year, and the end of our “milestone” year a little early! Mile of Music Presents: New Year’s Encore Weekend – one show daily from Thursday, December 28 thru Sunday, December 31 at Mile of Music’s Gibson Community Music Hall in Downtown Appleton.

It’ll be a calendar-flippin’-good-time weekend as our artists return to Appleton for some rock’n’roll, bluegrass, folk and a bit of soul for the soul. We know it’s a bit early, but that’s just extra time to celebrate the New Year. 😊

Each event will have the trademark Mile of Music New Year’s Encore treatment, which includes a champagne toast, sweet treats, the Prize Wheel with door prizes, and party favors!

About the show: The Bluegrass Buddies Blender is a new take on a festival that focuses on the musicians, not only their bands. It’s an artist community-based experience that blends the pickin’ skills of talent from different bands, much like you’d find in the wee hours of the morning around a campfire at your favorite Wisconsin bluegrass festival.

The New Year’s weekend bash will be headlined by Billy Bronsted’s Bluegrass Buddies, which started as a monthly experiment at Gibson over the summer and has since evolved into this new festival concept. Designed to spotlight the highly collaborative nature of Wisconsin’s bluegrass scene, the unique format will feature 15+ artists from different bands playing together on two stages throughout the night. The headlining Buddies set will blend the talents of Augie Dougherty on banjo (Armchair Boogie), Stef Lee on bass (Sloppy Joe), Kevin Troestler on guitar, Sheilagh Dandy Lyon on fiddle (Hemlock Chaser), Bernardo Cano on harmonica, and of course, the Bluegrass Buddies founder himself, Billy Bronsted on guitar (Billy Bronsted & The Loot). Leading up to the headliner, each of these featured artists will front their own Bluegrass Buddies set with their friends from bands including Chicken Wire Empire, Art Stevenson & High Water, Dig Deep, Red Ben & The Missing Miles, and more!

Though our New Year’s encore events always serve as a celebration of the previous fests, they also support the next Mile as a portion of the proceeds will be put toward the Mile 11 Artist Fund. The Mile 11 Artist Fund is part of Appleton Community Music, Inc., the 501(c)3 non-profit organization that supports the future sustainability of the Mile of Music festival and the original music movement in Appleton.

TICKETS:
-Advance Music-Maker/Volunteer Pricing (through December 30 @ 4pm): $25 for Music-Makers & 2023 Volunteers (with code.)
-Advance General (through December 30 @ 4:00pm) $30 for general public
-At-The-Door: $40, if they remain.
-First-come, first-served on ticket purchases
-First-come, first-served on any available seating at show

Quick Event Info:
Who: Bluegrass Buddies from around Wisconsin
What: Bluegrass Buddies Blender
When: December 30 @ 6:30pm (Doors at 6:00)
Where: Gibson Community Music Hall
Other: 21+ only show

Please note: This is a 21+ event. Please be aware of scammers! We recommend purchasing directly from us, or reaching out to us to verify a third party ticket sale.