Summerfest not only attracts world-class acts to Milwaukee every year, but also has made great strides in broadening and diversifying its shows, trying to appeal to everyone, through almost every genre, during the 11 days of the world’s largest music festival. And for its 50th anniversary, Summerfest hopes to outdo itself and draw the festival’s biggest crowds yet with its best acts so far.

As for my musical predilections, in college, a friend said I had "radio taste." Last year, after making my Summerfest concert-coverage selections, OnMilwaukee Creative Director Jason McDowell remarked, "You like the music that people who say they like every kind of music don’t even like." Terrific!

With that said, here are my picks for the acts I’ll be at – heavy on country and rap – for work, pleasure and because maybe no one else will be there.

Wednesday, June 28

I once unintentionally saw Saddlebrook, a local country band, at Three Lions Pub in Shorewood, and it turned out to be great fun. They’re talented, high-energy and, after you’ve had a few beers, nothing gets the red, white and blue blood flowing like a cover of "Wagon Wheel." Saddlebrook performs at 4 p.m. at the U.S. Cellular Connection Stage. Later, Flume, the 25-year-old Australian DJ and future bass pioneer, has elated young, EDM-crazed audiences with his live shows at festivals around the world, including Coachella and Lollapalooza in the U.S., so I think it’s time we show him that Milwaukeeans know how to party too. Flume’s at 10 p.m. at the Miller Lite Oasis Stage.

Thursday, June 29

^{(PHOTO: David Bernacchi)}

For the second fest in a row, I’m covering Luke Bryan at the Marcus Amphi – sorry, the American Family Insurance Amphitheater. Last year, Bryan put on a rollicking, fun-loving and vigorous show, playing all his big hits and captivating the crowd with his country-boy cool stage presence – cracking open, chugging and throwing to the audience cans of Miller Lite, telling the origin stories of personal songs and tossing his hat right onto the head of his opening act to finish a collaboration. People liked it; here was my review. Bryan’s at 7:30 p.m., with Brothers Osborne opening. If I wasn’t covering that show, I’d surely be seeing Milwaukee’s own GGOOLLDD (8 p.m. at Johnson Controls World Stage) and then Guster (10 p.m. at Uline Warehouse Stage), which was one of my first Summerfest concerts in high school. #nostalgia

Friday, June 30

My name is Jimmy, and my boss, Andy Tarnoff, has an amusing affiliation with Jimmys, so how could I not go see The Jimmys? The Madison-based blues band plays at 4 p.m. at the Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard. At 10:15 p.m., you can count me among the legion of bandwagon fans packing the Miller Lite Oasis Stage for Jon Bellion, the fast-rising American rapper who hopefully is still touring his hit debut album, "The Human Condition."

Saturday, July 1

I’m back at the Marcus – I mean, the American Family Insurance Amphitheater; I’ll get it eventually, I promise – for another country powerhouse, as the Zac Brown Band performs at 7:30 p.m. Blending southern rock and country with pop-sounding melodies and lighthearted lyrics, Zac Brown Band cheers me up and takes me somewhere else. (Ed. note: Where else would you rather be, though, than in Milwaukee at Summerfest?) If I wasn’t getting "Chicken Fried" and "Knee Deep," with ZBB, I’d catch Wisconsin folk-bluegrass group Horseshoes & Hand Grenades at 10 p.m. at Johnson Control's World Stage.

Sunday, July 2

I originally was going to be covering Ludacris (10:15 p.m. at Miller Lite Oasis Stage), as an ode to Homecoming dances of yore, but bequeathed that show to Luda-loving OnMilwaukee intern Lily Wellen. I might hit up Andy Grammer, 10 p.m. at Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard.

Tuesday, July 4

After a day off for the grounds to recover, it’s Milwaukee hip hop night! I’ll be at Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard at 6 p.m. for socially conscious, smart and still-cool WebsterX; then, at 10 p.m. at the same stage, I’m seeing IshDARR, a gifted rapper with a catchy sound and smart lyrics who’s been getting national attention. Third Eye Blind has been touring since 1993 and will probably keep going for another quarter-century, so you can just catch them next year.

Wednesday, July 5

Tonight, my hip hop run continues, as I’ll be auto-tune crooning with T-Pain at 10 p.m. at the Uline Warehouse Stage. Nowhere are his rap-R&B hits like "Buy U a Drank", "Bartender" and "5 O'Clock" more appropriate than in Milwaukee with thousands of Miller Lite-clutching fans.

Thursday, July 6

I saw Tom Petty once in high school, and it was awesome. I have no more eloquent or Rolling Stone magazine-style way of describing it than that. He’s been doing this for five centuries, and nearly as long at Summerfest it seems, and he dutifully plays the hits everyone wants. Chris Stapleton, a fast-rising country rock star, is a fantastically intriguing partner; he killed it with Alabama Shakes last year in another unexpectedly excellent collaboration (read Matt Mueller’s review of that show here). But I’m already spending a lot of time at the amphitheater and want to see as much local talent as I can, so I’ll be having a thirsty Thursday with vibrant Milwaukee native Lex Allen (8 p.m. at Johnson Control's World Stage), who skillfully and soulfully blends old-school and new sounds and crosses genres from electronic to pop to hip hop.

Friday, July 7

Oh, hey, American Family Insurance Amphitheater. I’m as eager as a country boy with a new tractor (pickup truck?) to see Dierks Bentley with Cole Swindell and Jon Pardi at 7:30 p.m. I like a lot of Bentley’s stuff, but I’m a particularly big fan of Swindell, a relatively late comer on the national scene who’s pumped out six top-chart singles since 2013 like "Chillin’ It" and "You Should Be Here." If I wasn’t at the amp, though, I’d be listening to Ben Rector’s melodic, moving pop music at 10 p.m. at U.S. Cellular Connection Stage.

Saturday, July 8

^{(PHOTO: WikiCommons)}

My country-rap extravaganza continues tonight, as I’ll be back at the American Family Insurance Amphitheater for the epic Future, Big Sean and Migos mashup. This is one of Summerfest’s most impressive gets in terms of booking big acts that are hot right now, different than the festival’s usual variety and hugely popular with young audiences. The last few years, Summerfest has brought Outkast, Kendrick Lamar and Pitbull to the amphitheater, to the delight of local fans, and this trio of hip hop heavy hitters is a home run (sorry for the metaphor). If I wasn’t there, I’d be singing along to Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, 10 p.m. at Uline Warehouse Stage, like the emo 15-year-old I once was.

Sunday, July 9

Lee Brice may be "Hard to Love," but he’s easy to listen to, so I’ll be wrapping up my Summerfest 50 experience with one final country act, at 10 p.m. at the Miller Lite Oasis Stage. I anticipate many beer-drinking fans swaying on top of picnic tables, as Brice serenades them with "I Don’t Dance." So that’s where I’ll be, but truthfully, if you’re able to, you should go see the Outlaw Music Festival – featuring Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow and more – at American Family Insurance Amphitheater, which will be unforgettable.