Homegrown Summer Jam 2026: The Songs That Bring Savannah Together

Eric Britt & Family perform during Homegrown Summer Jam 2026 at Victory North in Savannah, bringing original songs to a crowd celebrating the city’s vibrant music community.

At Victory North, musicians, songwriters, and audiences gathered to celebrate the original music that continues to shape Savannah's creative spirit.

On a warm summer evening, music lovers gathered inside Victory North for Homegrown Summer Jam 2026, an annual celebration of Savannah’s original music community. More than a concert, the evening was a reunion of longtime friends, a showcase of local songwriters, and a reminder that some of Savannah’s most meaningful stories are still being written one song at a time.

This year’s lineup featured performances by Eric Britt & Family, reunited Americana favorites The Accomplices, and the return of The Train Wrecks. Earlier in the evening, singer songwriter Jack Bible welcomed guests with a courtyard performance, offering a glimpse into the next generation of Savannah musicians continuing the city’s creative tradition.

Throughout the evening, artist, songwriter, and photographer Charles Maring documented the performances through photography and video, preserving another chapter in Savannah’s evolving musical story.

The Beginning of Homegrown Summer Jam

The story of Homegrown Summer Jam began in July 2021 with a simple idea: create a stage where Savannah musicians could share their original songs with the community.

Eric Britt leads a performance by Eric Britt & Family during Homegrown Summer Jam 2026, an annual celebration of Savannah’s original musicians and songwriters.

Earlier that year, Eric Britt opened for a national act at Victory North. Seeing local support help fill the room inspired an idea. Could Savannah’s own musicians create that same energy around original local music?

Brian Goldman was willing to take a chance on the idea.

Britt joined Matt Eckstine, Stan Ray, Andrew Sovine, and Jason Bible to create the first Homegrown Summer Jam, and the response showed there was a strong audience for Savannah’s original music scene.

“The mission is to showcase local bands and their music and provide a great summer concert for our growing music loving community,” Britt said. “Some years we'll invite the up and coming bands that need to be heard, other years we'll go with local bands that just put on a great show and will fill the seats.”

Over the years, the event has continued to evolve while maintaining its original purpose: celebrating the musicians and songwriters who make Savannah’s music scene unique.

Since its beginning, Homegrown Summer Jam has also reflected the community-minded spirit of Savannah’s musicians, including the 2023 event, which brought artists and audiences together in support of Emmaus House.

The Accomplices reunited for Homegrown Summer Jam 2026 with Matt Eckstine on acoustic guitar and vocals, Zach Smith on upright bass and vocals, Colleen Heine on fiddle and vocals, and Stan Ray on drums and vocals.

A Reunion Years in the Making

Zach Smith performs on upright bass and vocals with The Accomplices.

The 2026 edition of Homegrown Summer Jam carried a special sense of anticipation with the reunions of both The Accomplices and The Train Wrecks.

For The Accomplices, returning to the stage was about reconnecting with the music and the community that helped shape the band.

“It was emotional frankly,” said Stan Ray, drummer and vocalist for The Accomplices. “When you spend the better part of a decade chipping away at the songs, gigs, promotion, touring, fixing the van, sleeping in the van while waiting to fix the van, seeing Accomplices fans in states all over the country from here to Alaska, it’s kinda weird to just stop.”

For Ray, the timing felt almost impossible to plan.

“I think the planets just aligned, really.”

The Accomplices describe their sound as a Lowcountry string band blending American musical traditions.

Stan Ray brings rhythm and vocals to The Accomplices

Matt Eckstine, whose songwriting and musical journey have become an important part of Savannah’s creative story, described the band’s style as “a gumbo of American styles of music blended together to create a sound that is a lowcountry string band,” combining influences from folk, blues, country, bluegrass, soul, and jazz.

The Train Wrecks experienced a similar return to the stage. Although the band has reunited for select performances over the years, including a special one off appearance during a Savannah block party near Sorry Charlie’s, their Homegrown Summer Jam performance marked another meaningful moment for longtime fans of Savannah’s original music scene.

“We had a blast playing together,” said Jason Bible. “Something special happens when we lock into the tunes.”

Reflecting on the reunion, Bible added, “It was 20 since we started out. Time really flew by. Seems like a whirlwind now.”

After years apart, both bands found themselves sharing a stage that represented not only where they had been, but how much Savannah’s music community had grown.

Colleen Heine performs on fiddle during a powerful moment in The Accomplices reunion set, with Matt Eckstine, Zach Smith, and Stan Ray joining her on stage as the audience looks on.

From Empty Spaces to Victory North

For many of these musicians, creating opportunities for original music has always meant building something from the ground up.

Before venues like Victory North provided dedicated spaces for live music, local artists often created their own stages in ballrooms, courtyards, and community spaces.

“We spent many years creating concert venues from the ground up over the years from empty ballrooms to outdoor courtyards,” Eckstine said. “We never had a venue in Savannah like Victory North back when we were organizing our own events.”

For the musicians who helped build Savannah’s original music culture, performing at Victory North represented a meaningful moment.

“It was really special to get to share a bill together in a great facility that looks and sounds great and all we had to do was focus on the music,” Eckstine said.

Jason Bible performs with The Train Wrecks during their Homegrown Summer Jam reunion, celebrating with original music on the Savannah scene.

The Heart of Savannah’s Music Community

While the performances were the centerpiece of the evening, the true story of Homegrown Summer Jam is the community surrounding the music.

Eric Dunn performs with The Train Wrecks during Homegrown Summer Jam 2026, part of a reunion lineup featuring musicians who helped shape Savannah’s original music scene.

Ray has lived and played music in other cities, including Atlanta and Nashville, but believes Savannah has something different.

“I’ve lived in a lot of places including Atlanta and Nashville and played music in all of them,” Ray said. “Even with the poison of petty politics that goes with the territory of most music scenes, I still had respect and felt a sense of community in all of them. But not like Savannah.”

He believes that authenticity is part of what makes the city special.

“The industry just hasn’t been a part of it here, which will change and that’s natural. The rest of the world deserves to know what we have here.”

Ray continued, “We’re all making music because we have to, it’s just who we are. I never take this place for granted... never. It’s special.”

Bible shared a similar perspective.

“We have so much talent in this town. Everyone really supports each other and we are all about the music.”

For Eckstine, Savannah’s music scene feels like a family built across generations.

“I have always felt like if you live here and care about the music as a listener, or musician, it is a nice community of folks,” he said. “You will begin to recognize people and create friendships and collaborations.”

He added, “Savannah is its own thing. It’s easy to want to compare something to another thing or place because that makes sense in our brains. We have a history. There are many generations and different eras or decades of what the Savannah Music Scene is or was. We have a little bit of something for everyone.”

The Train Wrecks reunite at Victory North for Homegrown Summer Jam 2026 with Jason Bible, Eric Dunn, Stuart Harmening, and Markus Kuhlmann performing together once again.

Why Original Music Matters

Homegrown Summer Jam exists because original music deserves a place to be heard.

“With so many of the very popular tribute shows that occur within the year, Summer Jam was always designed to focus on Original songs performed by Savannah bands,” Eckstine said.

For him, the importance is simple.

“It is important because it’s real. There are a lot of things that are not real in our world now.”

Britt believes Savannah’s music scene has continued to grow because artists continue creating their own sound.

“We’ve had a sense that our music scene has really expanded and grown since the pandemic,” he said. “Bands that have their own sound and songs are the only thing that will continue to help that grow.”

He also credits longtime supporters of Savannah’s songwriting community, including Mary Armstrong, Pat Mooney, Tom Cooler, Stan Ray, and the Savannah Songwriter Series, for helping create opportunities for local artists.

Jason Bible and Markus Kuhlmann perform together during The Train Wrecks reunion set at Homegrown Summer Jam 2026, celebrating decades of friendship and original music.

Savannah’s Soundtrack Continues

Perhaps what makes Homegrown Summer Jam so meaningful is not just the music itself.

It is the people behind it.

Musicians who continue writing songs.

Eric Britt performs with emotion during Homegrown Summer Jam 2026, the annual concert he helped create to showcase Savannah’s original music community.

Artists who continue collaborating.

Audiences who continue showing up to support original music close to home.

When asked what performing at Homegrown Summer Jam means to him personally, Britt answered:

“Oh man, if I’m playing I have something to say.”

That may be the heart of the evening.

Every artist who stepped onto the stage had something to say. Every listener who walked through the doors came willing to hear it.

In a city celebrated for its history, architecture, and timeless beauty, Homegrown Summer Jam reminds us that Savannah’s cultural story is still being written. It lives in the musicians who continue to create, the community that continues to support them, and the songs that become part of the city’s ever evolving soundtrack.

Photography by Charles Maring
Photography featured in this story was captured by Savannah artist and award-winning photographer Charles Maring. View more concert, event, and editorial photography by Maring Visuals.