Appearing in the long-awaited grand re-opening show at Maquoketa's Codfish Hollow Barn, folk- and alternative-rock icon Ani DiFranco, on August 19, headlines the first Barn concert in more than a year, the artist's most recent album Revolutionary Love described by The New Yorker as boasting “robust melodies, padded with streaks of soul and jazz, that represent some of DiFranco's fullest productions yet.”

From August 13 through 22, the Playcrafters Barn Theatre's 2021 Barn Owl Series that began with the venue's June debut of Princeton's Rage continues with another world premiere: The Whistleblower's Dilemma, a dramatic comedy of chicanery, guile, and yoga written by Bettendorf playwright Jim Sederquist.

Led by lead singer Mike Love, who penned the lyrics to the band's very first hit in 1961's “Surfin',” the iconic surf-rock outfit The Beach Boys makes their long-awaited appearance at Davenport's Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center on August 15, with Love performing alongside longtime member Bruce Johnston, musical director Scott Totten, and the gifted ensemble of Brian Eichenberger, Christian Love, Tim Bonhomme, John Cowsill, Keith Hubacher, and Randy Leago.

In 1992, downtown Rock Island hosted its very first outdoor festival with the debut of its Caribbean-themed celebration Ya Maka My Weekend. Twenty-nine years later, after an unanticipated summer off, the District's longest-running annual tradition will continue with the 2021 Ya Maka My Weekend on August 14, an eagerly awaited event boasting a marketplace, arts and crafts vendors, ethnic food of all flavors, and concert sets by five sizzling musical acts hosted by Assane Dia.