Ypsilanti’s fifth annual Fun Fest will take place on August 9, from 12:30-10:30pm, with an after party at Ziggy’s from 11pm-2am.
Producer, sound engineer, and musician, Taylor Greenshields has made a name for himself throughout the Washtenaw County community by becoming one of the most dependable names in audio.
Whether it’s making sure the sound is crisp for annual events like Ypsi Pride or making Ziggy’s nightly experience a smooth-sounding concert experience, Greenshields has become the man to call on when an event needs quality live music.
However, in 2020, Greenshields said he had an epiphany; one where the city of Ypsilanti held an event highlighting the county’s wealth of talent for a day-long festival.
In possession of a new PA system that he had purchased, he says that he was inspired by an event held by an unspecific group of people that took place at Frog Island Park, which featured a host of performances, including live music and poetry readings. That gave him the motivation to begin measures to create the ambitious project, which we now call Fun Fest.
“During the pandemic, everyone got together at Frog Island. They were on the stage, random music was on the track area, but seeing everyone come together for the first time since COVID-19 was awesome,” Greenshields said. “I loved seeing people come together in that space. I had just gotten a bigger PA system, so I figured I needed to use this and let other people experience this as well. Have the community benefit from it.”
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Since the initial creation of Fun Fest, Greenshields has consistently found ways to make the event more expansive and innovative, having secret music sets for lengthy jam sessions or hosting after-parties following the event to continue the fun.
For this year’s event, once again taking place at Frog Island in Ypsilanti, the festival will feature music with nearly 25 vendors set up in the soccer field. Greenshields said performances will feature more than just musical acts, with live demonstrations from aerialists and Resonant Bodies Healing taking the stage.
According to Greenshields, while putting together the event is challenging, he simply wants to utilize “the beautiful stage and give back to the community because that is what this is all about at the end of the day.”
“We have tons of vendors, from artisans to projects and programs trying to spread awareness,” Greenshields said. “We also have face painting for the kids this year. They have characters like Spider-Man and princesses. We have 30-minute changeovers for the bands, so we are going to have Resonant Bodies perform some cool aerial performances between sets.”
Greenshields, as a producer, has lent a hand in creating several albums for local artists like Dani Darling, Honey Monsoon, Ma Baker and Al Bettis. At Fun Fest, a number of these artists will perform at the event, with a lineup starring Marcus Elliot, Peter “Madcat” Ruth, Jacuzzi Beach, Violet Sol, and the aforementioned Dani Darling, Al Bettis and Ma Baker.
“Expect good music all day. We might have music starting earlier at 12:30 p.m. with groovy vibes,” Greenshields said. “It is different when you have festivals by musicians, for musicians. We pay our artists well because Marcus Elliot deserves the money, and Peter ‘Madcat’ Ruth has multiple Grammy Award winners in the band. I’m lucky to be involved with other events in the area, but it’s a privilege to be able to do a music festival. I think it’s crazy that I’m doing this because it’s a lot of work, but at the end of the day, you see people dancing, hanging out, enjoying the park, connecting with others and it’s beautiful to see it all come full circle.”
Following Fun Fest, Greenshields will host an afterparty at Ziggys from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. available for anyone to attend. For more information on Fun Fest, contact fundamentalsoundco@gmail.com for all information including vendor applications.
Antonio Cooper is a freelance journalist from Detroit, Michigan. His coverage of music festivals and interviews with local celebrities appeared in The E-Current Magazine, The Detroit Metro Times, XXL Magazine, RichMagDigital, The Ann Arbor Observer, and Pop Magazine.
