Rich Mattson and the Northstars kick off the Chester Creek Concert Series

Hundreds gathered at Chester Park on Tuesday for the first installment of this year’s Chester Creek Concert Series. 

“It’s just great to see everyone back out in our parks’ spaces, ready to enjoy the music,” said Recreation Specialist Megan Lide. “I think people are always excited to kick off summer, especially when we’ve got such beautiful weather.”

This family-friendly concert series is free for all to enjoy. It has a playground, a food truck, and it is drug and alcohol-free. 

Tuesday’s performance was by Rich Mattson and the Northstars. For lead singers Rich Mattson and Germaine Gemberling, this type of concert is a dream come true. 

“Since I was a little kid, I’d see a band playing and whooooo boy, that’s a great day. I just wanted to be that guy, and here we are,” said Mattson.

“I know that I was always watching other bands play and be like, I’m gonna do that someday, and when it was time, I was saying, I’m gonna be the singer. My girlfriends were saying I’m gonna be the guitar player, drummer, and then it happened,” said Gemberling. 

The band has performed in many locations including Brainerd, Grand Rapids, the Twin Ports, and the Twin cities. They had never played at Chester before and really enjoyed the outdoor experience. 

“It brings the community together, and I think music has a natural way of doing that anyway,” said Gemberling.