Hussy Hicks, (Lismore locals and beloved folk/blues troubadours) were set to play Hiawatha Music Festival in northern Michigan USA last weekend but had their main stage performance cancelled just seconds before their scheduled set time due to poor air quality caused by the Canadian wildfires. The festival was shut down at 6pm as dangerous AQI levels hit around 300, with organisers continually assessing conditions for the health and safety of festival goers. They had to make the hard call to not continue with the event for Saturday evening and later, the whole of the Sunday program.
“We were all plugged in and so psyched to play our headline set to the beautiful audience who had gathered at the main stage, but just before we got to even play a single song the organisers told us they were pausing all festival performances. We later heard that the whole event would not continue, which was pretty devastating” said Leesa Gentz, singer and percussionist.
“We’d spent two days travelling up to Michigan from Mobile, Alabama and this festival was going to be an awesome end to the US tour.”
The duo – Julz Parker and Leesa Gentz played a month of shows across Alaska, Tennessee and Alabama and Hiawatha festival was set to be their first foray into a new region. After throwing their hands firmly up to perform at an alternate venue if the possibility arose, some members of the committee hustled together and the girls were able to perform what they called a “commiseration gig” to a packed room of music lovers, alongside Colorado string band Big Richard.
“We’ve really gotten used to shows and festivals being cancelled due to weather, but this year we’re celebrating 20 years on the road and we’ve never experienced anything quite like this, it really was a first for us. Touring both at home and internationally can certainly have its challenges, but all in all we’ve had a totally magical month here in the USA” says Leesa
“We’re just so grateful that we got a chance to play – even if it was a very different environment from the main stage festival crowd we were all geared up for. We at least got a chance to connect with a bunch of people through music. and that felt really good after such a big disappointment.”
Hussy Hicks are now in Europe for a run of shows through France before they meet up with their buddy Minnie Marks for a run of shows through Germany.
All tour details are at hussyhicks.com/shows
Below: Check out Hussy Hicks featuring Stefan Hauk at the Sydney guitar Show earlier this year