Country stars LOCASH and Midland headline Island Hopper in Fort Myers, FM Beach, Captiva

The Island Hopper Songwriter Fest celebrates its fifth anniversary with two big headliners this week: LOCASH and rising country stars Midland. Plus a lot of other songwriters performing all over Lee County.

LOCASH played Island Hopper in 2015, but a lot’s changed since then.

“They’ve had numerous hit songs, and they’ve made it really big,” says Amanda Auer, tourism and hospitality coordinator for event co-organizers the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau. “So our friends at Nervous Nellie’s like to think that they helped them become superstars after they played on Fort Myers Beach. And it’s nice to see them come full circle.”

Then there’s Texas trio Midland, who opened for country superstars Little Big Town at Germain Arena in May.  

“We couldn’t be more excited,” Auer says. “They’re nominated for three CMA Awards coming up in November: Vocal Group of the Year, New Artist of the Year and Single of the Year for one of my personal favorite songs, ‘Drinkin’ Problem.’ It’s just a fantastic song.”

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LOCASH performs at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Pinchers at The Marina at Edison Ford in Fort Myers. Then Midland closes out the fest with a pool-side show at 6 p.m. Sunday at Pink Shell Beach Resort & Marina on Fort Myers Beach.

Those aren’t the only musical acts playing, of course. Eighty songwriters and bands are scheduled to perform at Island Hopper, which kicked off this past weekend on Captiva Island and continues Monday through Wednesday in downtown Fort Myers and Friday through Sunday on Fort Myers Beach.

The 2018 lineup of mostly country artists includes songwriters Earl Bud Lee (Garth Brooks’ “Friends in Low Places”), Dylan Altman (Jake Owen’s “Barefoot Blue Jean Night”), Lee Thomas Miller (Chris Stapleton’s “Whiskey and You”) and Wendell Mobley (Kenny Chesney’s “There Goes My Life”).

Island Hopper started five years ago to generate business in Southwest Florida for the typically slow season of September. And it seems to be working, too. The fest attracted an estimated 14,700 people last year, Auer says.

Most of the shows are free, but tickets for Midland and LOCASH are each $35 in advance, $45 at the door.

The annual event is organized by the the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau, BMI, radio station Cat Country 107.1 FM and iHeart Media.

The shows take place at venues throughout Southwest Florida. For more information, visit islandhopperfest.com or download the fest’s new mobile app. The app also lets you create a personalized schedule to plan which of the many concerts you’ll see.

Connect with this reporter: Charles Runnells (Facebook), @charlesrunnells (Twitter), @crunnells1 (Instagram)