Mark Lavengood Band

Mark Lavengood is a walking, talking ray of sunshine. His resonant energy and sparkling smile light up every stage, every studio, every room, RV and embrace he enters. A talented multi-instrumentalist, Lavengood specializes in dobro & steel guitar, both of which he’s played for over a decade, while also being well-versed in guitar, bass, mandolin, banjo, ukulele, drums, and a variety of percussion instruments. In 2012, Mark was named winner of the acclaimed Rockygrass Dobro Competition hosted at Planet Bluegrass’ headquarters in Lyons, CO. Predominantly as a dobro player, Lavengood toured world-wide for 7 years with the award-winning Michigan-now-Nashville-based Americana outfit Lindsay Lou (formerly, & the Flatbellys), performing at a bucket list of venues and festivals over his time with the band. Both as a member of LLFB and as frontman of his namesake, Mark has performed at: the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, ROMP, Celtic Connections, Blissfest, Wheatland Music Festival, Founders Brewing Company’s signature events; Black Party, Harvest Party & Founders Fest, Cowpie Music Festival, John Hartford Memorial Festival, Farmfest, Earthwork Harvest Gathering, International Folk Alliance, IBMA, and many, many more. He’s also shared the stage performing with or sitting in with the likes of Seth Bernard, Amy Helm, the Infamous Stringdusters, Greensky Bluegrass, Billy Strings, Johnny Irion, Gregory Stovetop, Trout Steak Revival, winter/sessions, amongst others. At each stop along the way, whether on tour, in the studio, or passing you on the street, Mark’s positivity and genuine warmth is an immediate captivator. His selfless and gregarious nature has allowed him to collaborate, write and record with some hall-of-fame worthy talents. Cutting his teeth in the art and music meccas of Ann Arbor & Nashville, Lavengood has recently returned home to his native Grand Rapids, Michigan, with a new, adorable family and a headful of ambition in tow. Since returning to GR, a burgeoning art and music scene in its own right, Lavengood has ‘narrowed’ his focus to his main, namesake project, as well as teaching and developing education platforms, mentoring, writing, recording, growing a music business (Bear Mark Productions) and of course, performing. A natural showman, Mark has released three full-length, critically-acclaimed records, the most recent with the Michigan-based Earthwork Music Collective.

Sometimes traditional, sometimes contemporary, always imbued with a raw honesty- Independent Music Award winning songwriter Jen Sygit has released four albums, her latest “It’s About Time” was produced by long time friend and collaborator Dominic John Davis (bassist to Jack White, Buddy Miller, Steppin In It) and features guest performances from Luther Dickinson, Colin Linden, The McCrary Sisters and Rachael Davis. The album’s title track won “Best Americana Song” at the 2019 Independent Music Awards in NYC and Jen’s music video for the tune “Love is Wild”, won “Vox Pop Fan Favorite- Best Director of a Short Form Music Video” the same year. In addition to her solo career Jen is a founding member of the all-female string band “Stella!” (whose 2012 freshman release “Sorry Stella!” was recorded at ValveTone studios in NYC by Grammy winning engineer Damon Whittemore and produced by Creem Magazine co-founder Dave Marsh), she hosted the “Eclecticana” radio show on 89.7fm WLNZ for a decade and is also a veteran session vocalist appearing on over 50 albums nationwide.