Jeff Spevak

@jeffspevak1

In a serious bid to return to its glory years, the Rochester MusicFest’s lineup for the July 14-15 event includes blues legend Bobby Rush on opening night, followed by a Day Two of R&B singer Bobby Brown and the socially conscious hip-hop of Arrested Development.

And no small matter, the festival is giving up on the label it’s carried the last few years, SummerFest, to return to the original name of MusicFest. And it is returning to Genesee Valley Park, where names such as Al Green, John Legend, Macy Gray and Earth, Wind & Fire would draw 8,000 to 10,000 people.

As City Council President Loretta Scott noted, “it was the best, most successful music event in the city.”

But MusicFest deteriorated rapidly after it shifted to Frontier Field, to be replaced in significance on the city’s entertainment calendar by the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival. As Mayor Lovely Warren noted, a successful MusicFest would enhance the city’s reputation as a destination for music enthusiasts.

“We want to do stuff like that,” said Scott, who was the executive producer of MusicFest during its glory days.

FROM OUR ARCHIVES:

2016: SummerFest 2016 lineup, schedule released

2015: SummerFest back with Clarence Carter, Salt-N-Pepa​

2013: Kelly Rowland, TGT headline SummerFest ’13

Photo gallery of Rochester SummerFest 2015:

The budget remains the same, but this year the city is getting a lot more bang for its $200,000 investment. The first day’s music, which runs from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., will feature Bobby Rush, Nellie “Tiger” Travis, Pokey Bear, Lakeside and local acts that include bluesman Joe Beard, who will be inducted into the Rochester Music Hall of Fame later this month.

The second day’s music goes from 1 to 10 p.m. and includes Brown, After 7, Arrested Development and Big Daddy Kane. A handful of local acts will be added to fill out the lineup.

“Going back to the park will result in a lot more activity,” festival producer Liliana Ruiz said. That will include food trucks and beer and wine. Organizers pointed out that the announcement alone that the event was returning to Genesee Valley Park, made earlier this year, resulted in about 1,000 tickets being sold before the acts had even been announced.

General admission for July 14 is $28 advance and $33 at the gate, with prime seating VIP tickets $45. General admission for July 15 $40 advance, $50 at the door and $70 for VIP. Children ages 2 to 12 are free with a paid adult admission; a “Kids Zone” that will be featuring a bounce house and other activities will be set up on the second day.

Tickets are at Sobrinos, People’s Choice, the Blue Cross Arena box office and ticketmaster.com.

JSPEVAK@Gannett.com

ROCHESTER SUMMERFEST 2014: