Every summer, as the daylight lasts longer, the nights start to come alive. One summer tradition that has flourished and grown in Fayetteville is the Fayetteville After 5 concert series. Once a month in Festival Park, the Dogwood Festival organizes and hosts bands to perform for the community for free. This month on July 19, three ‘80s tribute bands will perform. In the Name of Love, a U2 tribute band, High Voltage is dedicated to AC/DC and Mostley Crue, a tribute to Motley Crue, are performing.

For nearly 14 years, Fayetteville After 5 has entertained the Fayetteville community; and in that time it has grown and evolved. Carrie King, the executive director of the Dogwood Festival, says, “We have moved the concerts to Friday and we have had a much larger crowd. We are working on our service so that we can better accommodate everyone. This year we have been overwhelmingly surprised by the attendance and we are planning on blowing out this July concert. Our first tribute band to the Eagles had a great response and we are confident we will get the same kind of attendance for July.”

Fayetteville After 5 is a unique opportunity for the community. It combines several organizations and offers citizens a night of music and fun. The Dogwood Festival hosts and organizes the concert as a fundraiser and as a summer tradition. King says that these concerts are great for fundraising for the Dogwood Festival and they are great for the community. As compared to the Dogwood Festival, the logistics are easier because the event is only one day. The other organization involved in the concert series is the sponsor R.A. Jeffreys. R.A. Jeffreys is a distributor for Anheuser-Busch and believes in being highly active in the community. The company’s motto is “Making Friends is Our Business.”

This concert offers more than just rocking ‘80s music. “There will be food vendors, sometimes activities like the corn-hole boards for kids, and a 50/50 raffl e. The earlier you come to the park, the better for the raffl e because Budweiser gives away the best stuff — like T-shirts — at 6 p.m.,” King says.

This is the perfect event to enjoy classic ‘80s music with the family in a beautiful and inviting environment.

Festival Park is located along Ray Avenue. The gates open at 5 p.m. The opening acts of the night typically start between 5:30 and 6 p.m. and the headline bands will begin playing between 7 and 7:30 p.m. No outside food or drink is allowed within the park, but there will be opportunities to purchase refreshments within the park. The concert will come to a close at 10:30 p.m. Bring a blanket or chairs to the event. For more information, visit the website www.faydogwoodfestival.com/fayetteville-after-5 or email questions to info@faydogwoodfestival.com.