I'm With Her: Featuring past favorites on "A Prairie Home Companion" and "Live From Here," this instantly lovable new acoustic trio features Nickel Creek's Sara Watkins, Texas throwback Sarah Jarosz and Boston area folkie Aoife O'Donovan. They were just named artist of the year at the International Folk Music Awards in Montreal following the release of their Rounder debut, "See You Around," featuring tightly woven harmonies and lively string work. (8 p.m. Fri., First Avenue, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls., $35, first-avenue.com.)
Astralblak: The Twin Cities-based singer/rapper/producer collective previously known as ZuluZuluu snuck in a gem of a sophomore album at the end of 2018, "Seeds," loaded with chilled-out grooves and falsetto-sweetened psychedelic R&B. They're starting off 2019 newly touting the LP with a hometown party stacked with soulful innovators Lady Midnight and Sarah White and fiery rap duo Nazeem & Spencer Joles. (9 p.m. Fri., Fine Line Music Cafe, $12-$15.)
MN Bluegrass Winter Weekend: It's not the scenic setting of most other bluegrass fests, but it'll still be a warm weekend of old-timey picking with sets by the Middle Spunk Creek Boys, Mark Kreitzer Band and others on Friday, a Saturday lineup including the Po' Rambling Boys, No Man's String Band, Roe Family Singers, King Wilkie's Dream and Curtiss & Loretta, plus a Sunday morning gospel show. (6 p.m. Fri., 10:30 a.m. Sat., 9:30 a.m. Sun., Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West, Plymouth, $20-$58, minnesotabluegrass.org.)
Jacksons and Commodores: A double shot of R&B royalty from the second wave of Motown. Although lead singer Lionel Richie left in '82, the Commodores still boast cofounder William King and long-timers Walter Orange and J.D. Nicholas to deliver "Brick House," "Nightshift" and "Easy." The Jacksons — brothers Marlon, Jermaine, Tito and Jackie — revisit Jackson 5 classics ("ABC," "I Want You Back"), post-Motown favorites ("Blame It on the Boogie," "Shake Your Body") and acknowledge Michael's solo smashes ("Rock With You"). (8 p.m. Fri., Treasure Island Casino, Red Wing, $59 and up, 1-800-222-7077 or ticketmaster.com)
Lauren Daigle: It's no surprise that this 27-year-old Christian star has crossed over to pop. She sounds like an Adele clone, with the same timbre, phrasing and hint of vibrato. It's uncanny. The first three times I heard her hit "You Say" on KDWB, I thought it was Adele. Daigle, who just won two Grammys in Christian categories, follows pop formulas for big ballads, reggae-tinged medium-tempo tunes and upbeat songs like "Still Rolling Stones," which evokes Adele's "Rolling in the Deep." Daigle's messages on her 2018 "Look Up Child" album are positive and searching, not overtly religious except for the closing song, which is an outlier in both content and sound. (7:30 p.m. Sat., Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls. $27.50-$203. 1-800-982-2787 or ticketmaster.com)
The SteelDrivers: Originally fronted by country superstar Chris Stapleton, this 11-year-old progressive acoustic group has survived enough personnel changes to win a Grammy in bluegrass in 2016 and lots of fans. As co-founding fiddler Tammy Rogers puts it, "I liken us to what the Rolling Stones would sound like if they played banjos, fiddles and mandolins." (8 p.m. Sat. Fitzgerald, $33-$45)
The Band Perry: This sibling trio is at a crossroads. After making a deserved splash in Nashville with "If I Die Young" and "Better Dig Two," Kimberly Perry and her brothers have decided to explore pop. On their self-released 2018 EP "Coordinates," they go for a generic electro-pop sound as if they're trying to follow Taylor Swift's "Reputation" blueprint. In concert, the Perrys, who were captivating as a country act, seem to be balancing both the new and old songs along with covers from the pop world. (8 p.m. Sat., Treasure Island Casino, $39 and up)
Las Cafeteras: After making a big impression at the Cedar last year on the GlobalFest Tour, this playful yet meaningful co-ed ensemble of Mexican American street buskers return with a unique sound that's all their own — a mostly acoustic blend of borderland, Caribbean and African sounds along with a folk-troubadour mentality evident in their viral hit "If I Was President." (8 p.m. Sat., Cedar Cultural Center, all ages, $18.)