Biggest party Fayetteville’s By Mike Ryan I
t’s a three-fer for the Fayetteville Dogwood Festival. The event promises to pack in not just one headlining band this year but three free acts: .38 Special, Collective Soul and Ray J.
Did we mention free? Every April, the award-winning
festival engulfs the city with art displays, performances, plus everything
Clockwise, from top | This year’s
Dogwood Festival brings three national acts to town: .38 Special, Collective Soul and Ray J.
from a charity motorcycle rally to a contest “Dancing with the Stars” style. This month, pick up consigned art at the Fayetteville Museum of Art or litter with volunteers from Fayetteville Beautiful. Tie one on at the 4th Annual Fly Tie-a-Thon and try your hand at spring planting with the annual sale at the Cape Fear Botanical Gardens. And on the fourth weekend, it
all culminates in three days of food, music, crafts and games in downtown Fayetteville. Festival goers have come to expect a headline performer to take the
38|April/May • 2009
stage on Saturday night, but this year, for the first time, visitors will have three national performers to look forward to on the main stage in Festival Park. “This is a first for the festival,” said
Russell Hein, entertainment chair. Southern rockers .38 Special, best-
known for 1980s arena anthems like “Hold on Loosely” and “Caught up in You,” kick things off Friday night. The show is sponsored by radio station 96.5 and Bud Light. On Saturday, Collective Soul will crank it up a notch. Radio station Q98 is presenting the popular
