Bring on Jo Dee Messina, this fall's final Treeline Music Fest headliner

The final piece of the puzzle is in place, and she's bringing six Number One country singles with her.

Veteran artist Jo Dee Messina will headline Saturday night of this fall's Treeline Music Fest alongside hip-hop greats Salt-N-Pepa, organizers announced Friday morning. The festival takes place Sept. 29-Oct. 1 at Stephens Lake Park.

"Jo Dee Messina is a country music storyteller that continues to evolve her songs around the experience of working, loving and facing both the highs and hardships of living in America," festival co-owner Shay Jasper said in a news release.

Treeline's headlining slate features pop dynamos Muna and blues mainstay Robert Cray (Friday) as well as roots-music force of nature Sierra Ferrell and indie-pop trailblazer Japanese Breakfast (Sunday). The festival schedule is staggered in such a way as to take tough choices out of concertgoers' hands.

"Unlike other festivals, at Treeline, no one has to choose which headliner to see. We have made it possible to witness every legendary and contemporary headliner every night," co-owner Tracy Lane said.

A Massachusetts native, Messina announced her presence in 1996 with a self-titled debut. The record would be certified gold and yield the hit "Heads Carolina, Tails California." Messina's best-selling album, "I'm Alright," came next, moving more than 2 million copies.

"I'm Alright" housed three Number One hits: the title track, "Stand Beside Me" and "Bye, Bye." That particular record "is more relevant to me now than it was when I was a little girl, singing every word in the backseat of my mother’s Chrysler New Yorker," Jasper said.

Messina would reach the top of the charts again with songs like "That's the Way" and her smash duet with Tim McGraw, "Bring on the Rain."

Messina elevates whatever material she calls her own thanks to a "feisty attitude and powerful voice," AllMusic's Steve Leggett wrote in a review of 2014's "Me." That's the two-time Grammy nominee's last proper record, but she has released new singles and greatest-hits offerings in the meantime. Messina dealt with a cancer diagnosis in the late 2010s, and has worked her way back to the road.

This year's Treeline features its fair share of country, with performers such as Cam, Chapel Heart and Halle Kearns. The presence of rock, pop, hip-hop and more genre-defiant strains of Americana will be felt throughout the festival. Formerly known as Roots N Blues, the fest began expanding its sonic palette well ahead of its name change this year.

To learn more about the festival and find a full artist lineup, visit https://www.treelinemusicfest.com/.

Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com or by calling 573-815-1731.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Bring on Jo Dee Messina, this fall's final Treeline Music Fest headliner