Two venues in downtown Rock Island will co-host one exciting literary event when the Midwest Writing Center presents readings and a release party for the annual literary magazine The ATLAS, the latest volume of which will, on August 17, be showcased in a late-afternoon event at the Rock Island Public Library and an evening celebration at the neighboring Rozz-Tox.

An impressively wide and beautiful variety of paintings by a trio of Midwestern talents will be on display at the Quad City Arts Center through October 6, with the Rock Island venue showcasing oil paintings by Barbara Curtis of Urbana, Illinois; sculptural paintings by Amanda Mulcahy of Chicago; and oil paintings by Tim Olson of Dubuque, Iowa.

Held in tandem with the weekend's Bill Bell Jazz & Heritage Festival and Rock Island's annual Family Fun Day, the August 19 Pulling Focus Black Film Festival's Winner's Showcase finds the Azubuike African American Council for the Arts partnering with Polyrhythms and the MLK Center for the first time in this celebration of African American and Black Diasporic voices.

Armed with iconic hits such as “Hold On Loosely,” “Rockin' into the Night,” “Caught Up in You,” "Fantasy Girl," and "Back Where You Belong," the touring musicians of 38 Special bring their singular brand of exhilarating Southern rock back to Davenport's Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center on August 18, continuing the legacy of the band's long history in the company of vocalist/guitarist Don Barnes, who began with the group in 1975.

Currently touring in support of his recording Set in Stone, the artist's first original album release in 13 years, country, blues, gospel, and Southern-rock icon Travis Tritt headlines an August 24 concert event at Davenport's Adler Theatre, the two-time Grammy winner's chart-topping smashes including “Help Me Hold On,” “Anymore,” Can I Trust You with My Heart,” “Foolish Pride,” and “Best of Intentions.”

An Academy of Country Music Award winner with more than a dozen top-10 Billboard hits to his credit, singer/songwriter Tracy Bryd headlines an August 19 concert at Davenport's Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center, the multi-platinum-selling artist's smash singles including the chart-topping “Holdin' Heaven,” “I'm from the Country,” and “Ten Rounds with Jose Cuervo.”

With this year's weekend event held in conjunction with Rock Island's annual Family Fun Day and the area-wide Alternating Currents Festival, Polyrhythms will collaborate with the MLK Center, Rock Island Parks & Recreation, and the Rock Island County NAACP for the ninth-annual Bill Bell Jazz & Heritage Festival, an August 18 through 20 celebration of cultural heritage in the Quad Cities named after the late musician, educator, and East Moline native lovingly known as “The Jazz Professor.”

Touring in support of his 2022 album Built Different, and with its predecessor Lost My Brothers Goat described by Daily Texas Country as a “very strong” release with “a mix of everything you might want,” Billboard-charting country star Casey Donahew returns to East Moline venue The Rust Belt on August 19, his career to date boasting five top-10 smashes and hit singles including “Country Song” and “Kiss Me.”

Boasting a potent mix of old-school blues traditions and modern-day flair, singer/songwriter and guitarist Kara Grainger performs in the Summer Concert Series at Rock Island's Schwiebert Riverfront Park on August 24, with the Mississippi Valley Blues Society co-presenting a night with this native Australian whose vocals, according to Rock & Blues Muse, "packed a punch," and who "played monster guitar solos that had the crowd whooping and clapping."

A two-time Country Music Association Award winner who also scored a Grammy for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals with 1999's "Same Old Train," singer/songwriter Pam Tillis headlines an August 18 concert at Maquoketa's Codfish Hollow Barn, the artist's expansive discography currently boasting 14 studio albums, six compilation albums, one video album, and 45 singles, more than a dozen of which became Billboard Top-10 smashes.

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