The Kent State Folk Festival is in full swing and we think you should stop by and listen up.

The Kent State Folk Festival has been going on for 44 years now, and there’s nothing we love more than seeing folk artists share their music in the bars we love.

From Kent-native Jessica Lea Mayfield returning to her hometown, to Grammy-winner Shawn Colvin gracing the stage, more than 50 artists have been performing in bars and restaurants since Wednesday.

Music has always been such a prominent part of Kent, so it’s nice to see an annual tradition dedicated to it.

We all know the song “Ohio” by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, but there have been plenty of reputable artists who have stopped in Kent throughout the years: Pink Floyd in the ‘70s, The Clash and The Ramones in the ‘80s and Iggy Pop in the ‘90s, just to name a few.

More recent bands, The Black Keys and The Avett Brothers, have also performed in Kent, while local bands pop up left and right every day.

These days, music is so commercialized and auto-tuned people tend to get caught up in the reputation of an artist rather than the music itself.

It’s humbling to see so many artists in Kent who make music with the intent to affect people rather than make money off them.

That’s what music in Kent means to us. So if you’re downtown tonight or Saturday, check out a few folk artists. And if not, take the trip anyway and get a taste of the music they use to inspire. We hope to see you there.

The above editorial is the consensus opinion of the Daily Kent Stater editorial board.