Festival of the Lakes, Hammond, Indiana

Boyz II Men remains one of the most truly iconic R&B groups in music history. The group redefined popular R&B and continues to create timeless hits that appeal to fans across all generations. Recently celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, the band has penned and performed some of the most celebrated classics of the past two decades. The group’s 4 Grammy Awards are just the tip of the iceberg: throughout their 20-year career, Boyz II Men have also won a whopping 9 American Music Awards, 9 Soul Train Awards, 3 Billboard Awards, and a 2011 MOBO Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.

The trio holds the distinction of being the best-selling R&B group of all time, with an astounding 60 million albums sold. And the reason is abundantly clear: for the past two decades Boyz II Men have given fans a rich catalogue of hits filled with smooth harmonies and enduring themes. And for Boyz II Men the hits just keep on coming—the group continues to craft new albums and bring their legendary act to stages across the world.

With three No. 1 hits under their belt as well as a Grammy nomination and an Academy of Country Music Award for Song of the Year for their hit “Crazy Girl,” the Eli Young Band approached their second Republic Nashville album, 10,000 Towns, with a sense of confidence and purpose. “We were genuinely excited about making this new record,” says bassist Jon Jones. “People talk about the sophomore record being really tough to make and in a lot of ways this felt like our sophomore record even though it’s technically our fifth record as a band.”

With the 2011 release of their Republic Nashville debut, Life at Best, the Eli Young Band scored their first No. 1 hit with “Crazy Girl.” The double platinum single became the # 1 most played country song of the year on Billboard’s 2011 year end chart and earned them the ACM Award for Song of the Year. The band’s next single, “Even If It Breaks Your Heart,” became their second No. 1 and was certified platinum. It earned the band Grammy nods for Best Duo/Group Performance and for Best Country Song as well as Single of the Year and Song of the Year nominations from both the CMA and ACM.

After years of paying dues and gaining experience, the Eli Young Band is at the top of their game. While they started playing in tiny clubs, they’ve graduated to packing out theatres and mid-size venues as a headliner. Their road dog reputation helped them to earn an opening slot playing stadiums on the Kenny Chesney tour. All those miles on the road and visits to 10,000 towns coalesce to make their new album the band’s strongest effort yet. “At this point in our personal lives and in our career, we’re all in really good places,” Thompson says. “We’re all happy in our personal lives, so it shows on this record; it’s fun.”

Eli agrees. “We’ve traveled all over the country and to other countries, but at the end of the day we all party the same way no matter what the culture or the town,” he says. “To us, ‘10,000 Towns’ is a great way to sum up this record in that way as well as who we are. We love traveling around the country and seeing all that and being a band of road dogs.”

In 1973, a barely-out-of-his-teens Wilmington guitarist piled his gear into the drummer’s Chevy van to play their very first gig at a University of Delaware dorm. More than 4 decades, over 8,000 live shows, and some 15 million albums sold worldwide later, that same maverick guitar-slinger is still making electrifying music, still thrilling audiences, and still the most bad-to-the-bone performer in rock.

It’s 2016, and George Thorogood & The Destroyers are Badder Than Ever.

For George and his longtime band – Jeff Simon (drums, percussion), Bill Blough (bass guitar), Jim Suhler (rhythm guitar) and Buddy Leach (saxophone) – their new Badder Than Ever Tour is indestructible proof that staying true to yourself and the music can still mean something. And with a catalog of classics that includes “Who Do You Love”, “I Drink Alone”, “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer”, “Move It On Over”, “Bad To The Bone” and more, being able to share it with audiences is what will always matter.

When the Dirty South movement broke nationwide at the turn of the century, Ludacris rode it to immediate widespread popularity, becoming arguably the most commercially successful Southern rapper of the time. In 2000 the Atlanta-based rapper signed to Def Jam’s newly established Southern rap subsidiary, Def Jam South, and became the label’s flagship Dirty South artist. Def Jam repackaged his underground album Incognegro (2000) as Back for the First Time (2000) and issued “What’s Your Fantasy?” as its lead single. The song soon became a national hit, beginning a long string of hits that would include Billboard Hot 100 number ones and Top Tens.

Runners and walkers of all ages are invited to compete in the Kathleen Pucalik Memorial 5K Walk, Run & Splash at the 13th Annual Festival of the Lakes.

The event starts and ends at Wolf Lake Memorial Park on Saturday, July 23, 2016. Registration begins at 7am and the race begins at 8am. A free children’s race begins at 8:15am.

Early registration is $20, race day is $25.

Awards given to Top 3 Female and Male Overall and first place Male & Female Finisher in these age divisions:
8 and under; 9-11; 12-14; 15-18; 19-24; 25-29; 30-34; 35-39; 40-44; 45-49; 50-54; 55-59; 60-64; 65-69; 70 and over.

T-shirts guaranteed to pre-registered runners by July 8, 2016. After July 8, t-shirts are subject to availability.

For more information, call (219) 853-6378.

The Annual Festival of the Lakes Fishing Derby is scheduled for Saturday, July 23rd, from 8am to noon on the shores of Wolf Lake (Indiana side).

The entry fee is a $1 donation to support Wolf Lake Stocking. Children ages 15 and under will receive free fishing equipment, while supplies last. A free kids fishing seminar will be held at 10am. There will be trophies awarded for the largest catches in two divisions: under 12 and 12 & older. The trophies will be for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places for largest bass, walleye and pan fish catch!

No boats, please. On shore fishing only. Fishing poles and live bait will be available.

Rain Date is set for Sunday, July 24th at 8am. Call (219) 989.0575 or (219) 853.6378 for more information