NASHVILLE, TN (Phil Vassar Official Website) - Arista recording artist
Phil Vassar returns as the post-race concert headliner for the seventh annual Country
Music Marathon & � Marathon. The opening act will feature the three – yet to be selected – finalists from the hit television program Nashville Star in their first concert performance outside the set of the show. Vassar is actually one of the judges on Nashville Star, so he is actively involved with selecting his own opening act.
Vassar enjoyed the energy of the audience so much when he performed at the 2005 Country
Music Marathon concert that he asked race organizers for a repeat performance in 2006.
'If you saw the concert last year, you know why we were intrigued by the prospect of having Phil back on our stage,' said the event's general manager, Adam Zocks. 'He puts so much life into his show and the crowd responds. Elite Racing has never used the same artist at a concert two years in a row, but we feel all of the ingredients are right and our audience will be treated to another great performance.'
On returning to headline the show, Vassar adds 'I play over 120 shows a year and am on the road a lot more than that. There are shows that stand out in your mind. This was one of them. It is hard to explain, but the energy and the reaction from the crowd was so rewarding, I really wanted to come back and see if I can even give them more this year.'
When the doors open for the April 29 concert, three finalists will have been chosen from the current season of Nashville Star. These three artists will open for Vassar, treating fans of the television show to a rare concert appearance before one is crowned the next Nashville Star.
The concert, presented by Great American Country (GAC), will take place at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville at 7:00 p.m., Saturday, April 29, 2006, culminates a weekend of running and music featuring over 23,000 marathoners and half-marathoners with more than 50 live bands staged along each mile of the 26.2 and 13.1-mile courses.
Tickets for the concert will be sold to the public for $20.00 and will go on sale Thursday, March 23, 2006. Tickets can be purchased through TicketMaster charge-by-phone at 615/255-9600 or at www.ticketmaster.com or through the Arena Box Office.
