Morgan Wade, Ne-Yo, Smokey Robinson and the best, worst from Summerfest 2023's last night

Saturday was the final day for Summerfest 2023, and at times it seemed like most of Milwaukee was at Maier Festival Park to get in under the wire. Observers said the grounds were more packed than on any other night of the 55th anniversary festival.

Here's a look at some of the best, and some not-so-best, music we heard on the Summerfest grounds on Day 9 of the Big Gig.

More: A decade after making Summerfest history, Imagine Dragons close Milwaukee fest with a bang

Morgan Wade

Friday night, Zach Bryan brought independent alternative country music to a sold-out American Family Insurance Amphitheater. It was good to see that kind of music receive that kind of high-profile attention.

But Saturday night, Morgan Wade stepped onto the UScellular Connection Stage and represented what has been an ongoing reality in the thread of honest, self-revealing — real — country music: that its female artists have been the most consistent, and high-quality, source of this kind of music for the past decade, no matter where and no matter what size of venue.

Fronting a four-piece band, the 28-year-old Virginia native took the tracks from her stunning, introspective 2021 debut album, “Reckless,” and revealed even more of the already stark reality in their lyrics as her powerfully gritty voice fought against personal demons in the opening “The Night” — her pleas of desperation rising with the hope of a rolling melody.

Sporting a sleeveless Green Day shirt, Wade paced the stage and leaned back in her ripped jeans as she recalled the pangs of lost love and heartbreak in “Last Cigarette.” And she strummed her teal acoustic guitar over a wailing organ line as she longed for affection, and attention, in the brilliant lyrics of “Matches and Metaphors,” and later revealed a vulnerability seldom seen on a Summerfest stage in “Take Me Away.”

It was a stunning performance that was warmly received by the crowd that grew to fill the bleachers in front of the stage. You’d hope to see artists like Wade find their place on the festival's biggest stage in coming years. But if she doesn’t, you can bet she’ll still be on a stage somewhere telling her truth in song to everyone who will listen.

— Erik Ernst, Special to the Journal Sentinel

Ne-Yo

The best word to describe Ne-Yo’s show at the BMO Pavillion is bananas. The BMO has been packed before, but this time it was utter madness. Ne-Yo definitely was a good play for the final day of Summerfest.

Ne-Yo appeared in a clearly custom bedazzled black suit that he let the ladies know may have to come off later. Surrounded by scantily clad dancers, he hit every note from all his jams. “Sexy Love” had the pavillion rumbling as everyone joined in. Ne-Yo sometimes joined in with the dancers for some choreographed goodness.

He wasted no time seductively speaking to the ladies; they are his main benefactor. At times, he could be seen handing out personal items to a few in the pit area. There also was some hilarious banter back and forth with fans involving shots.

This show was an unexpected good time. Reminiscent of Charlie Wilson, Ne-Yo definitely had the pizzazz and sex appeal to keep the fans lit all night. Oh yeah, he sings good, too.

— Damon Joy, Special to the Journal Sentinel

Smokey Robinson

Luckily, someone forgot to tell Smokey Robinson that people are supposed to slow down with age.

Saturday night at the Uline Warehouse stage, the 83-year-old singer moved, grooved and swooned with more energy than many of Summerfest’s performers a quarter of his age.

After a rousing, Vegas-style overture of his hit melodies from a 12-piece ensemble of horns, strings, vocalists and keys in front of a video montage of career highlights, Robinson strutted onto the stage, his familiar falsetto, still as beautiful as ever, filling the air on the sultry R&B slide of “Being With You.” He winked and waved at fans as he slid across the stage before conducting a singalong on the chorus of “I Second That Emotion.”

“We’ve got some singers up in here,” he said. “You sounded so good. … Let’s sing another one.”

The crowd obliged, joining Robinson in “You Really Got a Hold on Me,” another track dating back to his time with the Miracles in the 1960s. The classic doo-wop soon gave way to the synthesizer and flute grooves of 1970s smooth R&B in “Quiet Storm,” fog filling the stage as lightning flashed on the screen and Robinson leaned back, his voice soaring to its highest keys.

A showman across the night, Robinson never stopped moving. Unbuttoning the top few buttons of the dress shirt under his deep pink suit, Robinson delivered “Ooo Baby Baby” with a slow, sultry croon, ending with an extended vocal note that brought the large crowd to its feet, applauding vigorously.

“Well, I guess that’s it,” Robinson said, laughing. Of course it wasn’t. Smokey was still just getting started.

— Erik Ernst

Scotty McCreery

Scotty McCreery has come a long way since auditioning for "American Idol" — in Milwaukee, no less.

In 2011, the country singer won the 10th season of "Idol," and has enjoyed success ever since. McCreery, now 29, boasts five albums, including a certified-gold Christmas album.

Although he had to compete with other well-attended shows on the last night of Summerfest 2023, McCreery drew a sizable, mixed-ages crowd Saturday night at the UScellular Connection Stage.

The clean-cut singer, dressed in jeans and a purple button-down shirt and backed by a band, gave a heartfelt performance. He embraced his sensitive side and showcased his smooth baritone vocals with songs like "In Between," "Small Town Story" and "Falling for a Stranger."

During the positive-vibes tune "Feel Good Summer Song," McCreery called out the "Wisconsin ladies" in the audience, and continued to show his love for Brew City.

He mentioned meeting his wife at a bar "while drinking a Spotted Cow," and talked about visiting the Milwaukee Art Museum while auditioning for "American Idol."

"Nobody parties like Milwaukee parties. Y'all have a good time!" said McCreery, who was met with exuberant cheers.

— Catherine Jozwik, Special to the Journal Sentinel

Fleet Foxes

When Fleet Foxes burst onto the scene in the mid-aughts, they gave off an overly precious vibe, not entirely unlike their 1960s forebears Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Saturday night, they opened their Miller Lite Oasis headlining set with “Sun Giant,” a song that had been many longtime fans’ introduction to the band. The same lush trademark harmonies were there, but they’re coming from a much more seasoned, vigorous band nowadays.

This captivating start did not yield disappointment later. The professionalism and attention to detail on display for this folk-rock extravaganza was reminiscent of a good Sufjan Stevens production, or Grizzly Bear at the peak of their powers.

“So this festival’s been going on for like … two months or something?” quipped frontman Robin Pecknold, and some of us felt that. If anything, the set could have handled a bit more such irreverence. Then there were moments like the roaring tension build in “Third of May / Ōdaigahara.” Maybe there is merit in taking your craft this seriously.

As profusely as Pecknold apologized for a very slight false start of “Mykonos,” I do hope he learns to lighten up a little. You’ve written these beautiful songs, you have this incredible band; why not have some fun? The fans sure did.

— Cal Roach, Special to the Journal Sentinel

The Mountain Goats

The last Saturday of Summerfest tends to draw larger crowds, and this Saturday was no exception. As a massive crowd waited to get inside Imagine Dragons’ sold-out amphitheater show, a less massive (but still very large) crowd enjoyed the Mountain Goats’ mellow set at the Miller Lite Oasis.

The four-piece band definitely didn’t play the highest-energy show in Summerfest history, but multi-hyphenate John Darnielle elicited plenty of head-bopping during early songs like “Incandescent Ruins” and “Hostages.” The crowd thinned out during slower tracks like “Blueberry Frost,” but by the end of the show, most of the empty bleachers were filled with new onlookers.

As the sun began to set over the Hoan Bridge, Darnielle gave a sentimental shout-out to Milwaukee. “This is probably my favorite festival set I’ve ever played,” he gushed before closing the show with the band’s biggest hit, “This Year.” “I thought this town was cool ever since I drove up in the dead of winter to play the Fuel Cafe.”

— Lauren Keene, Special to the Journal Sentinel

Hailey Whitters

Hailey Whitters was comfortable enough to kiss and tell at the UScellular Connection Stage Saturday afternoon.

“My first kiss was with a boy who had a fat bottom lip from chewing wintergreen Skol,” Whitters said Saturday. “Charming, right, ladies?”

Banter like that Saturday made Whitters seem more like an old friend than the winner in April of best new female artist at the Academy of Country Music Awards. She said Saturday she was shocked by the win, but she shouldn't have been; she’s the closest artist to resemble Miranda Lambert’s voice, wit and style since, well, Miranda Lambert.

Whitters found a kinship with this large Milwaukee crowd, saying she drove in from her home state of Iowa for the gig, and drawing on her Midwestern roots for smart, homespun tunes like “Boys Back Home” and “Heartland.” And as she’d do with her friends back home, Whitters bonded with the crowd over some country standards, including a fiddle-led rendition of Alan Jackson’s “Gone Country” and John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” (that’s twice in two days at Summerfest, following Zach Bryan and Charles Wesley Godwin’s joint cover at the amphitheater Friday).

And once a bond was well established, Whitters did manage to sneak in a little sales pitch, performing a smitten, unreleased new song, “I’m in Love,” she said is coming out Tuesday. But shhh, that release date is a secret.

— Piet Levy, plevy@journalsentinel.com

Momma

Just a few songs into the band's set at the Miller Lite Oasis, Momma co-frontwoman Allegra Weingarten shared an observation that was probably obvious to most of the small crowd.

“The fact that we’re wedged between The Mountain Goats and Fleet Foxes is crazy,” she quipped.

Indeed, the buzzy indie rockers felt a little out of place in the 8:15 p.m. time slot Saturday. Less than two hours before Weingarten and Etta Friedman took the stage, the bleachers were packed with Mountain Goats fans — fans who, apparently, weren’t interested in sticking around to check out Momma.

The band’s Pavement-inspired slacker rock should appeal to those who remember where they were when Kurt Cobain died. But at this point in their five-year career, Weingarten and Friedman’s angsty tunes are better suited for intimate venues where Pitchfork readers hang out — Cactus Club, X-Ray Arcade and the like.

— Lauren Keene

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Morgan Wade, Ne-Yo, and best and worst from Summerfest 2023's last day