It’s finally here, the big weekend that so many of us have been waiting for. The Green River Festival will take place at the Franklin County Fairgrounds from Friday, June 20, through Sunday, June 22, and the good news is that tickets are still available.

And if you are going to the festival, do yourself a favor and check out some of the fine local talent that will be performing this year.

As in previous years, festival organizers have curated a diverse lineup of area musicians from various genres. The lineup features well-established artists such as Winterpills and the Gaslight Tinkers, who have performed at the festival before, alongside relative newcomers like All Feels and Silvie’s Okay, who will be making their festival debuts this year.

The Round House Stage, located indoors, will feature musicians from Massachusetts, with the majority hailing from the Valley. Given that Green River is a major festival with a stellar reputation, playing the festival means a great deal to artists.

Singer-songwriter Kimaya Diggs from Easthampton is a seasoned festival performer, having played at the event twice before. Her debut performance was in 2021 on the Dean’s Beans Stage, followed by another in 2023 on the Main Stage. This year, she will help close out the festival with a performance on the Round House Stage on Sunday at 7 p.m. Audiences can expect to be delighted by her smooth vocals and her genre-blending sound, which includes elements of R&B and jazz.

For this show, her band will feature friends and family members, including her sister.

She is happy to be working with this group and, more than anything, excited to play Green River again.

“Being asked to play Green River Fest as an artist living in western Mass is meaningful because it’s a place where so much of our Valley community comes together to connect around music,” said Diggs in a recent email. “Any festival or venue’s lineup reflects the values and taste of the people who run it, and Green River Fest continuing to book local acts shows that they value what the musicians in the area have to offer.”

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John Sanders, the festival director and co-partner at DSP Shows, greatly values the talent in our area. Prior to joining DSP Shows, he spent 10 years living in the area, booking acts for the Iron Horse Entertainment Group.

“I would say there is a decent amount of local talent in the lineup this year,” he said. “I’m aware that there are a lot of excellent western Mass bands.”

Diggs added that playing festivals provides a unique opportunity for artists.

“It always means a lot to have a chance to share and listen, and festivals are a chance to reach new people because festival audiences tend to be more curious and open to discovering new things. ”

If you are open to discovering new things, do check out some of these other local acts.

One western Mass-based musician making their debut this year is bobbie, who creates ambient lo-fi dream pop about about harmony, beauty, grief, friendship, ancestors, and trusting the process. Bobbie will be at the Round House Stage on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

Mark Mulcahy is known as the leader of the band Miracle Legion, as well as Polaris, which was a fixture on the Nickelodeon show “Pete & Pete.” He has released a series of excellent solo albums and is currently working on a rock opera. He’ll play the Round House Stage on Friday at 4:40 p.m., accompanied by his longtime collaborator Ken Maiuri.

Thus Love is a queer post-punk band from Brattleboro. They have been touring Europe this year in support of their album “All Pleasure,” which achieved critical acclaim and earned them a feature in Rolling Stone magazine. Their performance on the Dean’s Beans Stage this Saturday at 1:30 p.m. is not to be missed.

Matt Hebert and the Lonesome Brothers is another show you don’t want to miss. Hebert, formerly of the Ware River Club and Haunt, was recording a solo album when he felt that one of his songs called for a touch of country, so he rang up old friends in the Lonesome Brothers, Ray Mason and Jim Armenti. They agreed to help and ended up making an entire album with Hebert called “It’s a Lot Baby…”

Lonesome Brothers drummer Keith Leverault is part of this band, as is multi-instrumentalist Bob Hennessy and keyboardist Scott Hall, formerly of the Drunk Stuntmen. They’ve only done a couple of shows in support of this album, so catch them when they play the Round House Stage at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Tickets are available at greenriverfestival.com. A pop-up box office with reduced fees is happening at the Iron Horse in Northampton today (Thursday, June 19) from 4 to 8 p.m. Also, if you have tickets already, you can pick up your wristbands there.

The Boxcar Lilies, Stephanie Marshall and Jenny Goodspeed, don’t play many shows these days. Being joined by their friend and former bandmate, Katie Clarke, is an even rarer occurrence. But on Saturday, June 28, at 7 p.m., the three Lilies will reunite and be joined by their good friend, multi-instrumental Jim Henry, for a show at the Mill in Shelburne Falls. This show is the first in the summer series presented by the Permaculture Resource Center.

“The fundraisers support our nonprofit permaculture resource center, where we host programs, workshops, and community events where we share regenerative agriculture skills and resources for resilient communities,” wrote Kay Cafasso, director of the Permaculture Place.

The Lilies formed in 2009 when Marshall, Goodspeed and Clarke met through the Franklin County Musicians Cooperative. At that time, they were all involved in other projects, but after discovering that their voices blended beautifully together, they ended up forming the Boxcar Lilies.

It didn’t take long for their glorious harmonies, sharp songwriting, and warm stage presence, which reflected the genuine friendship between the three, to win them a strong audience. Listeners responded not only to their harmonies, but to their engaging Americana mix of folk, country, blues and bluegrass. They went on to record three albums and perform at venues across the Northeast and beyond, including The Iron Horse Music Hall, Caffé Lena, Club Passim, and Philadelphia’s Tin Angel.

In 2015, Katie Clarke retired from the band. In 2018, Goodspeed and Marshall began working with Boston-based singer-songwriter Susan Canttanero for several years. When she left the band, they forged on as a duo. On rare occasions, Clarke, who has gone on to work with Larry Leblanc, has rejoined the group, and this show is one of those occasions, so don’t miss out.

Other shows in the series include Well Suited on Sunday, Aug. 2, and Peter Mulvey on Saturday, Sept. 6.

The concert will be on the lawn in front of the mill. Grab your chair and/or blanket, and pack a picnic if you want. There is a backup location in the event of rain. Tickets are available at permacultureplace.org.

Sheryl Hunter is a freelance writer who resides in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national publications. She can be reached at soundslocal@yahoo.com.