The Shake Up

…Hank Williams Jr. and John Mayer had a lovechild?

I’m from a small town, so it’s easy for me to relate to songs about “Red dirt roads and big tire toys, country girls and redneck boys” (Sumter County Friday Night) But even I was a little stumped when I came across this question researching country singer and songwriter Lee Brice. But with his music reflecting traditional honky tonk sounds while teetering on the edge of contemporary rock and roll, it’s easy to see Brice filling those shoes.

Raised in Sumter, S.C. on his momma’s gospel, Lee Brice was what you would consider “musically sheltered” before being exposed to various genres in high school. So it’s ironic that today he draws inspiration from a list of artists that would challenge even Pandora to unite:  Garth Brooks, Hank Junior, Coldplay, John Mayer, Brian McKnight, Tom Petty, 3 Doors Down, Whitney Houston, Edwin McCain and Ray Charles. Aside from hitting shuffle on Lee Brice’s iPod, this list could only be complied by a shoplifter making a grab and run at the local music store. But inspiration united these unlikely companions in Brice’s mind as the definition of greatness.

“They’re all great, which appeals to me because I want to make every song I do as great as I can too. I’m not comparing myself to them in any way, but I want the same thing that I love in what they do: They all make music that you can believe in.”

But it’s been a long road from Sumter, S.C. to Freedom Hall. After his football career at Clemson University ended prematurely following an injury, Brice walked away from a civil engineering degree to pursue his true passion; music. Shortly after moving to Music City, he met Doug Johnson, sharpened his writing skills and was soon writing two and three times a day with heavyweights in the industry. His career received a major boost when his song “More Than a Memory” was picked up by Garth Brooks in 2007. As a singer, his breakthrough came in 2009 with the release of his single “Love Like Crazy” which made a slow consistent build to the top of the Billboard charts. Since then, Brice released his debut album Love Like Crazy in 2010.

Beginning with his very first single “She Ain’t Right” in 2007 he has proven that with simple lyrics, he has the ability to make memories come alive. And at the 2011 Kentucky State Fair you’ll have the opportunity to travel through the dirt roads of Sumter County as Brice kicks off the Main Stage Concert Series, opening for Lady Antebellum’s “Need You Now” tour on August 18 at 8 p.m.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. on June 13 at the Kentucky Exposition Center, KFC Yum! Center and Kentucky International Convention Center Ticket Offices and all Ticketmaster outlets. Charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000, or purchase online at www.ticketmaster.com. 

Now we don’t like to brag, nevermind yes we do, and we are going to. Because SIX of the upcoming performers at the Kentucky State Fair in August are nominated for a CMT Music Award. Most are nominated for MORE than one award and THREE are performing at the awards show itself!

The handsome and ever-charming Jason Aldean is nominated for Video of the Year, Male Video of the Year and Web Video of the Year for “My Kinda Party”. A song he wrote about being at the Kentucky State Fair. Okay, that may not be true, but we like to act like he did.

Aldean’s opening act for the fair, Thompson Square made-out with two nominations: Duo Video of the Year and USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year for “Are you Gonna Kiss Me or Not”. Get it, made-out?

Lady Antebellum, the talented trio who formed in our neighbor state to the south is nominated for Video of the Year and Group Video of the Year for “Hello World” and Web Video of the Year for “Stars Tonight”. Both are great, so if you haven’t seen them, you should probably go do that, as soon as you’re done exploring our blog, of course:

www.cmt.com/videos/lady-antebellum/591891/hello-world.jhtml

 Lee Brice, who is performing with Lady A at the Fair, is standing on his own at the CMT Music Awards with a nomination in the USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year for “Love Like Crazy”.  It’s a beautiful song, and it’s pretty good advice too!

Speaking of loving like crazy, Luke Bryan is nominated for Nationwide Insurance’s On Your Side Award, given to the best new live act. The award is voted on by fans, so if you do love Luke Bryan like crazy, get on CMT. com and vote for him. We don’t think it will violate the restraining order?  Bryan is also nominated for Web Video of the Year for his fun summer jam “Shore Thing”.

Another of our Main Stage performers, Train, an unlikely group to associate with the Country Music Awards, has also snatched a nomination. Maybe they are trying to bond with some other performers before the Fair? Train is nominated for CMT Performance of the Year for their performance with Martina McBride on CMT Crossroads.

Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and Luke Bryan will also have live performances during the award’s show. But nothing is quite the same as seeing them live so make sure to catch them and other amazing artists when they come to the Fair in August. Once again, not bragging, but where else can you see all these great concerts in the same week at the same place! Nowhere. We’ve looked.

Elvis. Reba. Shaq. Brangelina. (Okay so maybe that last one is a bit of a stretch).

What do all these people have in common? They don’t need a last name for you to know who they are. And yet I think it’s safe to say that there is no misconception about which stars I am referring to. Call it a silly indication of fame, but if I was suddenly known worldwide by just my first name and every time someone said “Kayla” everyone automatically assumed they were talking about me, I’d be pretty darn happy.

Lady A may not be one word, but everyone knows that it’s referring to the Grammy Award-winning trio who took the country music world by storm with the release of their self-titled debut album, Lady Antebellum. Hits like “I Run to You,” “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore” and “Lookin’ For A Good Time” filled our airwaves and left us wondering who this new power trio was. In little time, Lady A was born.

Since 2008, Lady Antebellum has been pretty cozy at the top of the charts with three consecutive chart-topping singles and a total of eight weeks at No. 1 in just eight months. So what’s next for the trio?

On August 18, Lady Antebellum will open the Main Stage Concert Series at our very own Kentucky State Fair with their 2011 Need You Now Tour featuring country newcomer, Lee Brice.

Ticket prices are $40 and $50 and include admission to the fair.

Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. beginning Monday, June 13, 2011 at the Freedom Hall, KFC Yum! Center and Kentucky International Convention Center Ticket Offices and all Ticketmaster outlets. You can get yours by calling 1-800-745-3000 or going online to www.ticketmaster.com.

Love may not live here anymore, but it looks like Lady Antebellum isn’t going anywhere, (okay, enough clever puns, I promise I’ll stop). “Just a Kiss,” their lead single off their third studio album, debuted at No. 7 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart this week, making history as the highest debut for a country group in the chart’s 52-year history! Now that’s impressive!

Be sure to catch Lady Antebellum, with special guest Lee Brice, at the 107th Kentucky State Fair. Visit our website www.kystatefair.org for more information.