Northern California
American Idol season 11 where are they now
American Idol contestants (LR) HeeJun Han, Elise Testone, Colton Dixon, Hollie Cavanagh
American Idol’s season 12 is well underway, but what about the top 10 contestants from season 11?
As we all know, season 11 was to be the last season for American Idol judges Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez.
The first round of performances saw Jim Carrey’s daughter, Jane Carrey cut from the competition, as numerous contestants fell ill and collapsed in the auditorium. Contestant Symone Black actually collapsed while on stage and went on to make the cut.
Initially there were to be 12 males and 12 females, but the judges announced plans to add a 13th male semi-finalist between Jermaine Jones, Richie Law, Johnny Keyser and David Leathers Jr. The following week, after the male performances, Jermaine Jones was revealed to be the thirteenth performer, which set the stage for controversy and fueled speculation of a ratings grab.
On March 14, with only 11 contestants remaining, Jermaine Jones was disqualified for concealing arrests and outstanding warrants. Jones denied that he had concealed his previous arrests and says he disclosed them when signing up for Idol. Footage of executive producers Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick confronting Jones was shown in what would have been his performance slot.
A police official in the New Jersey town where he had two arrest warrants said, “The case wasn’t big enough to merit going after him in California,” and a New Jersey legislator commented, for the show “to expose, embarrass and interrogate a young man without an attorney in front of 40 million viewers was an outrage.”
Critics accused the show of staging the disqualification in order to boost the already slumping ratings.
 Erika Van Pelt Erika Van Pelt Erika Van Pelt made it into the No. 10 spot and made the requisite rounds on the various talk shows.Van Pelt currently runs her own DJ business (VP Entertainment) and performs part-time with “The Sultans of Swing”, and is a performing partner of “Fairhaven Entertainment” and “Boston Swing.” In early 2014 Van Pelt will be hosting and performing on a Royal Caribbean cruise to Grand Cayman, Jamaica and Haiti. She’s also in the process of recording her debut album, according to her Facebook page. In January Van Pelt wrote on Facebook, “Day 1 in the studio today tracking for the new album! I feel really blessed to be making an indie record, done my way. No label, and all the freedom in the world. I can’t wait for you all to hear it!” |
 HeeJun Han HeeJun Han Ninth place winner and jokester was Heejun Han who wooed the judges, and the audience, with his offbeat humor. He generally won the day with a joke, not a song. Han made a number of appearances after the show, including The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Live! with Kelly and The Wendy Williams Show. He also performed “God Bless America” to open for the New York Mets. He appeared as a judge in a K-Pop competition at the New York University’s Skirball Center for the Performing Arts in September, and currently has no plans for an album. Click for more images |
 DeAndre Brackensick DeAndre Brackensick Eighth place winner DeAndre Brackensick hasn’t done much of anything. The biggest news post-idol was him hooking up with runner-up Jessica Sanchez during the American Idol Live Tour. They could be seen walking hand in hand backstage, just prior to their performances. He’s active on Facebook and has just recently started a Tumblr to show off some photos. Based on the photos it appears he’s listening to music more than he is singing. |
 Colton Dixon Colton Dixon Colton Dixon is the contestant who didn’t even try out and ended up in seventh place. If you recall Dixon had tried out for season 10 but failed to make the cut. Season 11 tryouts found his sister trying out with him standing in the wings. The judges insisted that he come out and tryout with his sister standing by. She didn’t make the cut, but he did, and he’s been a busy little Christian ever since. Following his elimination Dixon appeared on a number of shows including a visit to Access Hollywood where he performed a rendition of “Everything,” by Lifehouse. He was also invited to the White House Correspondents Dinner as a special guest of the Christian Broadcasting Network. Dixon signed on to Sparrow Records, an imprint of the EMI Christian Music Group, releasing “Never Gone” and “You Are,” both hitting No. 1 on the Christian charts. On January 29 he released his debut album “A Messenger,” sending it to No. 1 on Top Christian Albums and Gospel Albums. Dixon is currently gearing up to go on tour with Grammy winning Christian rockers Third Day. |
 Elise Testone Elise Testone Elise Testone landed in sixth place with her gravelly and soulful voice. During her time on Idol she couldn’t get a break, landing in the bottom three most weeks. She may have had a difficult time winning over audiences, but she didn’t seem to have a problem winning over Idol guitarist Errol Cooney. Rumor has it the two may have hooked up during the American Idol Live Tour, resulting in Cooney’s wife filing for a divorce. Testone has denied doing the deed, but did admit to a close friendship with the guitarist. Right after Idol, Testone made the rounds on all the talk shows including Good Day L.A.,The Today Show, Anderson, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. She also performed with fellow contestant Colton Dixon on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno The voice coach still lives in Charleston, South Carolina and continues to actively perform in the area. She has no formal plans to release an album, but she’s been writing plenty of music. |
 Skylar Laine
Skylar Laine Fifth place Skylar Laine is another contestant that’s been idle since Idol, announced in November that she has signed with 19 Entertainment and has moved to Nashville, Tennessee to start work on her debut album. She recently debut an original song called “Settle Down,” written by herself, Chris DeStefano and Anne Preven. |
 Hollie Cavanagh
Hollie Cavanagh Fourth place Hollie Cavanagh has been pretty quiet since Idol, but has plans to begin recording her debut album early this year. Just recently she posted to her Facebook account, “Busy writing some music in the studio She’s also started a YouTube channel for all her Holliepops, as she calls her fans, promising to “to keep everyone in the loop of whats going on and soon you’ll see some covers and original music!” Fans can also keep updated on one of her fan pages. |
 Joshua Ledet Joshua Ledet In August third place Joshua Ledet appeared on iHeartRadio as he debut an original song “Sound of a Heart Breaking.” Since then the son of a preacher has been pretty idle. There is a potential business arrangement that may be in the works for Ledet, who earned the nickname Mantasia, because he reminded Idol fans of past contestant Fantasia. It seems there is a strip club in New York City called Mantasia that is hoping to bring Ledet into the fold to help market their wares. Don’t hold your breath. Ledet has also been seen at sporting events singing the national anthem. |
 Jessica Sanchez Jessica Sanchez Jessica Sanchez was the runner up to Phillip Phillips and with the new Idol contract she was not guaranteed an album and a $175,000 advance. Instead she was only entitled to a “developmental” deal with 19 Recordings and no advance. Sanchez has since signed with Interscope Records and has been performing at various events. She recently was featured on the cover of Mega Magazine, and plans on releasing her debut single this month, with an album later this year. While visiting the Philippines for the American Idol Live Tour, Sanchez shot a music video for the song “Jump In” with The Black Eyed Peas members. She has also signed up to endorse Jollibee Foods Corporation and Bench, two popular brands in the Philippines. Sanchez will be returning to television as she takes on a recurring role in the fourth season of Glee.
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 Phil Phillips Phillip Phillips American Idol winner Phillip Phillips’ boyish charm, good looks and singing ability catapulted his American Idol coronation song, “Home,” to No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, the first time in four years a coronation single from an American Idol winner had reached the top 10. “Home” went on to be used in the 2012 Summer Olympics, a Clint Eastwood trailer, and a number of commercials. The song has been bouncing in and out of the top 10 and most recently (January 2013) hit No. 6. His album “The World From the Side of the Moon” debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 charts in November 2012 and has already been certified gold. Phillips’ will be joining Matchbox Twenty on their North American tour in 2012 and plans to do a solo tour later this summer.
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excited !!!”
Rick Ross – Death Threats Cancel Tour?
Rick Ross – Click for more images
Several reasons have been cited over the last few days, including lack of organization on the part of the promoter, as well as rumors of death threats from Gangster Disciples, a street gang that originated from the Chicago area.
The MMG tour included Meek Mills, Wale, and more recently Machine Gun Kelly. The tour was originally scheduled for 23 days, but was extended to Dec. 16.
Representatives for the promoter, Live Nation, have not commented.
The cancelations started with two shows in North Carolina, where the death threats were rumored. Soon after that, the remainder of the shows were canceled.
The Gangster Disciples posted their threats on YouTube about a month ago, warning Ross and everyone who was signed with Mayback Music Group that they were coming after them. Since then a number of videos have surfaced on YouTube threatening the singer.
Their beef started back when Ross was better known as Teflon Don, when he released the single “B.M.F. (Blowin’ Money Fast), where he mentioned the gang’s imprisoned leader Larry Hoover.
Machine Gun Kelly – Click for more images
It doesn’t stop there! Gangster Disciples are also upset, or should I say pissed off, that Ross is using a design similar to their gang symbol on his Black Bar Mitzvah mix-tape.
Oh . . . one more thing. There’s also something about the pressure being on until the gang receives “the check”. Apparently the check is for providing protection for Ross in the way of security/body guards.
Do any of these people have anything better to do?
What’s the worst part about the cancelations?
Machine Gun Kelly is not going to be able to build up his fan base! As the opening act for the MMG Tour, he has stolen the show. Look for him headlining his own show next year, minus all the death threats and other crap that seems to follow Ross around wherever he goes.
Before the tour was canceled, Ross brought the MMG tour to the Sacramento area. You can read the review here.
Rick Ross brings his posse to Sleep Train Arena
Rick Ross (Rozay) – Click for more images
Rick Ross brought his MMG Tour to Sleep Train Arena on Saturday.
This is Rozay’s (Ross’s nickname) first headlining tour as he brought a supporting cast of characters including, Meek Mill (Robert Williams), Wale (Oluboware Victor Akintimehen), Omarion (Omari Ishmael Grandberry), and Machine Gun Kelly (Richard Colson Baker).
Opening the show was MGK storming the stage and daring the fans to have fun as he dove into the crowd on several occasions. Pro-skateboarder Ryan Sheckler was in attendance for MGK’s show and was invited backstage after his performance.
Machine Gun Kelly – Click for more images
While Rozay and crew put on a great show, MGK is the real story. Bringing his high energy and lightning fast rap, which earned him the nick name Machine Gun Kelly, this kid stole the show. If anyone in attendance didn’t know him before the show, they certainly knew who he was after the show.
Following MGK was Omarion. He was met with a lukewarm reception, which may have been because he was following a blistering performance by MGK. I don’t believe Omarion brought his A-game and luckily only played a brief set.
Omarion – Click for more images
I thought it was strange as each performer was represented by a cardboard cutout with their name displayed on it, which was being held by a couple of stage-hands. As if the audience needed to be reminded who was onstage. Not sure what that was about.
Wale followed Omarion and was met with cheers and screams. Wale won the crowd over and had fans on their feet. Wale also performed a pretty brief set, saving some time for the big man Rozay.
Meek Mill – Click for more images
Meek Mill followed Wale with “Racked Up Shawty” and “Young & Gettin’ It” as the crowd started getting more intense and loud. Was it Wale’s performance, or the wildly good California weed?
When Rozay took the stage it could have been independence day as fireworks were going off all around. The ruler and king of MMG ripped through his hit’s including “Hustlin’ ” and “I’m Not A Star.”
Wale – Click for more images
Following Rozay’s lengthy solo set, Wale and Mill joined Rozay onstage to perform a number of songs including “Bag Of Money” and “Tats On My Arm.”
Rozay has put together quite a line-up for his first headlining tour and made a brilliant decision to include Machine Gun Kelly. I’m looking forward to seeing bigger and better things from MGK, including his own headlining act. The kids got talent!
Thunder Valley gets Naughty
Kool Moe Dee – Click for more images
Thunder Valley Casino Resort along with World One Presents, Maita Honda, and local radio station V101.1, brought Naughty by Nature, the Sugar Hill Gang, and Kool Moe Dee to Thunder Valley’s Pano Hall for a hip hopping Halloween Friday night. Emcee for the night was V101′s Big Al.
A number of fans dressed up for what turned out to be an awesome show as Bay Area artists Rory and Reed opened the show with a brief 10 minute set.
The crowd went crazy when Kool Moe Dee took the stage. Moe Dee brought along Special K and L.A. Sunshine as they sang hits like “They Want Money,” “Rise & Shine,” and of course “Wild, Wild, West.”
Sugar Hill Gang – Click for more images
By the time Sugar Hill Gang took the stage the crowd was in full party mode with most fans gathering around the catwalk and dance floors.
Sugar Hill Gang consisted of original band members Wonder Mike, Master Gee, and Big Bank Hank. Keeping the audience completely engaged with their past hits “Apache,” “Eighth Wonder,” and “Rapper Reprise,” they seemed to just be hitting their stride when they finished their set.
Naughty by Nature – Click for more images
As Naughty by Nature stormed the stage the crowd went wild as they all started bouncing up and down to the beat of the music. Original band members Treach, Vin Rock, and DJ Kay Gee, put on a great performance as they played “Everything’s Gonna be All Right,“ “O.P.P.,” and “Hip Hop Hooray.”
Checkout Thunder Valley Casino’s upcoming winter concert schedule!
Carrie Underwood Upstages Brad Paisley
Brad Paisley making it real – click for more images
As I jumped into my old rusty and dilapidated truck and headed over to Wheatland’s Sleep Train Amphitheater to watch country music superstar Brad Paisley, I was reminded of the time my wife thought I was cheating. She got country ugly and decided to cowboy up, taking it out on my pretty little souped-up 4 wheel drive, carved her name into my leather seat, took a Louisville slugger to both head lights, and slashed a hole in all 4 tires.
After I crawled out from under the bed and realized what she had done to poor old Ethel (my truck), I thought to myself, there must be a country song in there somewhere. It kinda reminded me of an old Carrie Underwood song. Not exactly sure what made me think of the good times with my wife, but country music has a way of doing that to you.
As I was saying, the award winning Brad Paisley brought his Virtual Reality Tour to Sleep Train Amphitheater Thursday night. Opening for him was Easton Corbin and The Band Perry.
As droves of country fans filed into the amphitheater Easton Corbin kicked off the evening. Corbin is no stranger to touring with his pal Paisley. In 2010 Corbin tagged along in Paisley’s H2O tour.
Easton Corbin – Click for more images
Opening with “This Feels a Lot Like Love” and “A Little Bit More Country Than That,” Corbin seemed a little stiff and didn’t move around much. It took the crowd a song or two, but they finally started getting into his set. He ended with his #1 hit “Roll With It,” leaving the crowd energized.
The Band Perry came, they sang, they conquered ““ period.
The 2012 Grammy nominated trio consisting of Kimberley Perry, and her two Brothers Neil and Reid, started their set off with “Sugar Sugar” and “Hip to My Heart,” with fans standing throughout their set.
The interaction between the siblings was highly energetic, with the crowd feeding off of their energy. Even on their slower songs, such as their cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallen,” the crowd stayed on their feet and swayed to the music.
I thought The Band Perry was going to steal the show, but Paisley came out to see just how much energy the crowd still had left. As the behemoth monitors started to warm up, lasers started firing, and lights flashing, pandemonium broke out in anticipation of Paisley’s appearance.
Kimberly Perry – Click for more images
As Paisley made his way onto the stage singing “Camouflage,” the crowd showed him that they had plenty of energy left, and beer too, as fans raised their glasses to the country star.
Neil Perry
There were several touching moments during the show. One fan, Theresa Manzinali, said her favorite part of the show was when Paisley gave a guitar to a young boy, but more importantly was being able to see what a real human being Paisley is. When he brought a number of military personnel up onstage, it brought tears to her eyes.
Manzinali summed up the show best, “He puts on a fantastic show!”
The highlight of the evening was when Carrie Underwood arrived on stage to sing “Remind Me,” bringing cheers from the audience, but wait! It wasn’t really Underwood. As the scene played out the audience soon realized that it was a hologram, much like what Snoop Dogg did with Tupac at Coachella.
Reid Perry
I heard a number of people at the end of the show arguing that it was really her, others saying it was someone who looked like her, when in fact, it was a projected image on a fine black mesh screen, or scrim. Very realistic affect and very cool!
The crowd definitely got their money’s worth with the combination of The Band Perry and Paisley. It was a great evening. It was for my wife too . . . I didn’t cheat, so please don’t hurt my Ethel.
Dim the lights please!
Erika, Hollie, Skyler, and Elise – Click for more images
The lights were anything but dim Saturday night as the American Idol Live Tour 2012 made it’s way through Sacramento’s Power Balance Pavilion.
With an arena full of fans, both young and old, the top 10 Idols of last season came out to show everyone that they have what it takes to be in the biz.
If you don’t recall the finalist for last season they were:
Phil Phillips – Click for more images
Phillip Phillips (Winner)
Jessica Sanchez (Runner-up)
Joshua Ledet (3rd place)
Hollie Cavanagh (4th place)
Skylar Laine (5th place)
Elise Testone (6th place)
Colton Dixon (7th place)
DeAndre Brackensick (8th place)
Heejun Han (9th place)
Erika Van Pelt (10th place)
Heejun, Elise, and Colton – Click for more images
It was quite obvious that 16 year old Jessica and 17 year old DeAndre are an item, with the two of them showing up backstage arm in arm with DeAndre’s younger sister in tow. You could tell sis was having a good time, much different from the last time I saw her on American Idol crying because her brother was voted out.
The top 10 (less Phillips) kicked off the show with Chemical Romance’s “Sing.” The entire first set went for a little over 50 minutes.
Deandre soloed with Stevie Wonder’s “Master Blaster,” followed by Hollie and Skylar singing Carrie Underwood’s “Undo It.”
You can see the entire set list below for both the first and second acts. The second act was closer to 60 minutes.
The standout in the first act was Colton singing his original song “Never Gone.” It appeared many of the fans in attendance had heard the song before since they were singing parts of the song.
Phillips and Jessica – Click for more images
After a brief intermission, act 2 started with Jessica singing three songs with supporting vocals from Deandre and Joshua.
A surprise for me in the second act was Hollie’s rendition of Adel’s “Rolling in the Deep.” She did a superb job and proved to me she’s got much more talent than I saw on the show. From the audiences reaction, most would agree.
Phillips was absent most of the show, when he took the stage he started off with Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition.” As excited as the audience was when Phillips finally took the stage, it would have been a much better experience from a fans perspective, if he would have performed at least the opener with everyone else.
Some things never change as Phillips continued his gum chewing ways. In between versus you could see Phillips chewing on a big wad of gum. As much as people like Phillips sticking to being himself, I would suggest losing the gum onstage, it just doesn’t work.
Jessica Sanchez
Phillips performed his original song “Home,” with Colton and Deandre providing backing vocals.
For the finale all 10 idols came out singing “Glad You Came.”
There were a few glitches with choreography, some individuals could have done better with vocals, but all in all it was a great show. Considering this was their 10th show I would have expected some of the “glitches” to have been worked out, but I’m sure they are being run into the ground with interviews and public appearances.
ACT 1 Setlist:
Top 10 (minus Phillips) – “Sing” (My Chemical Romance)
DeAndre Brackensick – “Master Blaster (Jammin’)” (Stevie Wonder)
Hollie Cavanagh and Skylar Laine – “Undo It” (Carrie Underwood)
Erika Van Pelt – “Glitter in the Air” (Pink)
Erika Van Pelt, Hollie Cavanagh, Joshua Ledet, and Colton Dixon – “Moves Like Jagger” (Maroon 5)
Heejun Han – “Green Light” (John Legend)
Heejun Han, DeAndre Brackensick, and Jessica Sanchez – “Party Rock Anthem” (LMFAO)
Joshua Ledet, Colton Dixon, DeAndre Brackensick, and Heejun Han – “Everybody Talks” (Neon Trees)
Elise Testone – “Whole Lotta Love” (Led Zeppelin)
Elise Testone (Deandre Brackensick and Erika Van Pelt on backing vocals) – “Rumour Has It” (Adele)
Colton Dixon – “Meant To Live” (Switchfoot)
Colton Dixon – “Never Gone” (Colton Dixon)
Colton Dixon – “Piano Man” (Billy Joel)
Top 10 (minus Phillip) – “Just the Way You Are”/”What Makes You Beautiful” (Bruno Mars/One Direction)
ACT 2 Setlist:
HeeJun Han – Click for more images
Jessica Sanchez – “Best Thing I Never Had” (Beyoncé)
Jessica Sanchez (Joshua Ledet and DeAndre Brackensick on backing vocals) – “How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore?” (Prince)
Jessica Sanchez (Joshua Ledet and DeAndre Brackensick on backing vocals) – “Proud Mary” (Ike and Tina Turner)
Skylar Laine – “Gunpowder and Lead” (Miranda Lambert)
Skylar Laine – “Stay With Me” (Faces)
Hollie Cavanagh (Elise Testone and Erika Van Pelt on backing vocals) – “Rolling in the Deep” (Adele)
Hollie Cavanagh – “Give Your Heart a Break” (Demi Lovato)
Joshua Ledet (Elise Testone, DeAndre Brakensick, and Erika Van Pelt on backing vocals) – “Runaway Baby” (Bruno Mars)
Joshua Ledet – “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” (James Brown)
Joshua Ledet and Jessica Sanchez – “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)” (George Michael and Aretha Franklin)
Phillip Phillips – “Superstition” (Stevie Wonder)
Phillip Phillips – “Nice and Slow” (Usher)
Phillip Phillips and Elise Testone – “Somebody That I Used to Know” (Goyte feat. Kimbra)
Phillip Phillips (Jessica Sanchez on backing vocal) – “Volcano” (Damien Rice)
Phillip Phillips (Colton Dixon and Deandre Brackensick on backing vocals) – “Home” (Phillip Phillips)
Jessica Sanchez, Hollie Cavanagh, Skylar Laine, Elise Testone, and Erika Van Pelt – “Raise Your Glass” (P!nk)
All Top 10 – “Glad You Came” (The Wanted)
R.E.M. Calls it Quits!
Holy rapid eye movement batman! Is this a dream gone bad?
Yes. The band that brought the alternative rock genre to the forefront of music with hits such as “Shiny Happy People” and “Losing My Religion,” has said they are calling it a day. I gotta say that’s a helluva long day since R.E.M. has been together for 31 years.
R.E.M. recently released their latest album Collapse Into Now, which some critics are saying is their best album in years. It was just a little over 30 years ago they released their debut album Murmur.
Posted on their website is this brief note:
“To our Fans and Friends: As R.E.M., and as lifelong friends and co-conspirators, we have decided to call it a day as a band. We walk away with a great sense of gratitude, of finality, and of astonishment at all we have accomplished. To anyone who ever felt touched by our music, our deepest thanks for listening.” R.E.M.
Each band member chimed in with their thoughts about “calling it a day”
MIKE
“During our last tour, and while making Collapse Into Now and putting together this greatest hits retrospective, we started asking ourselves, ‘what next’? Working through our music and memories from over three decades was a hell of a journey. We realized that these songs seemed to draw a natural line under the last 31 years of our working together.
“We have always been a band in the truest sense of the word. Brothers who truly love, and respect, each other. We feel kind of like pioneers in this–there’s no disharmony here, no falling-outs, no lawyers squaring-off. We’ve made this decision together, amicably and with each other’s best interests at heart. The time just feels right.”
MICHAEL
“A wise man once said–’the skill in attending a party is knowing when it’s time to leave.’ We built something extraordinary together. We did this thing. And now we’re going to walk away from it.
“I hope our fans realize this wasn’t an easy decision; but all things must end, and we wanted to do it right, to do it our way.
“We have to thank all the people who helped us be R.E.M. for these 31 years; our deepest gratitude to those who allowed us to do this. It’s been amazing.”
PETER
“One of the things that was always so great about being in R.E.M. was the fact that the records and the songs we wrote meant as much to our fans as they did to us. It was, and still is, important to us to do right by you. Being a part of your lives has been an unbelievable gift. Thank you.
“Mike, Michael, Bill, Bertis, and I walk away as great friends. I know I will be seeing them in the future, just as I know I will be seeing everyone who has followed us and supported us through the years. Even if it’s only in the vinyl aisle of your local record store, or standing at the back of the club: watching a group of 19 year olds trying to change the world.”
Hitting it Big & Rich at Thunder Valley Casino
Big & Rich brought their country music tour, Xtreme Music: The Tour, to Thunder Valley Casino and Resort Friday night. Playing to a full house, the crew was engaging and extremely entertaining. Playing with Big & Rich were, of course, Big Kenny and John Rich, with special guests Gretchen Wilson and Cowboy Troy.
This kicked off a weekend full of concerts out at Thunder Valley Casino with Ramon Ayala playing Saturday, and KC & The Sunshine Band on Sunday.
Click for more images
Opening the concert was local heroes, Road 88 ““ you just gotta love the name. The band was named Best Local Band in Sacramento by KCRA’s A-list. Having been together for only a couple of years they already have hit the charts in Europe with their original song “Not Gonna Happen.” Expect to see some big things from these guys and gals in the near future.
Lead singer Rachel Steele sounded awesome as did the rest of the crew consisting of Scott Prentice (Lead vocals and rhythm guitar), David Phelps (lead vocals and guitar), Sherry Eidhammer (Vocals), Joe Anderson (Drums), and Joe Irwin (Bass).
Talk about working a crowd. People were standing their entire set and people who were just milling around waiting for Big & Rich started filing in to watch and listen as they performed. When they left the stage it was obvious the audience wanted more, as did I.
Just make sure you get out and see them before they skyrocket to fame (if they haven’t already)!
Click for more images
As the stage lit up in a dazzling array of bright lights, color beams, and strobes, Big Kenny and John Rich came out with their latest hit single “Fake I.D.”
The Muzik Mafia, as they like to refer to themselves, share an eight-piece band on a custom stage that includes a fully functional bar as the centerpiece. The music never stopped as Big & Rich, Gretchen, and Cowboy Troy performed hit after hit ““ the convenience of having one band do it all.
I know they were going for that local bar feel, but this reminded me more of a circus with all the different colored lights going off and the rotation of artists throughout the night. John Rich started out in a red shirt and when Cowboy Troy showed up he also had a red shirt, adding to the circus feel. That’s not to say it was a bad thing, it was simply great.
It was a nice touch when, after thanking all the military personnel in the crowd, including past, present and future, they brought a couple of individuals who are currently serving in the military up onstage. Major Sargent Surita A. Rorie and Technical Sargent Eric Grant had Gretchen playing bartender and telling her guests to belly-up to the bar for a shot of their favorite drink as a toast to their dedication and commitment. Not sure, but I think they both went for the Jack Daniels.
Probably the funniest part of the show was when John Rich was telling the audience about his adventures in town. Turns out he took a ride in one of Thunder Valley’s limousines and ended up at our local Wal-Mart. He became fascinated with a jar of Cheese Balls. Funny thing is, I knew exactly what he was talking about since I was there earlier that day too. They are really large cheese balls in a very large clear plastic jar. Wal-Mart has them in stock for Halloween. I didn’t buy them, because god forbid, if I were to bring anything in our house with artificial anything in it. I guess Rich doesn’t have that problem at his house since he bought at least one and brought it with him onstage. He had all the band members sign the jar and then tossed it to one lucky fan.
It was a really fun night out at Thunder Valley Casino and Resort ““ as usual.
Next up for Thunder Valley this weekend is Ramon Ayala!
| Big & Rich Set-list:Fake ID Here For the Party Comin to Your City Wild West I Got Your Country Right Here Home Wrecker Angel From Montgomery Lost in This Moment Banner 8th of November Love Train Work Hard, Play Harder Hot Blooded Chicken With a Train All Jacked Up Save a Horse, Ride a CowboyEncore Redneck Woman Ballad of Big and Rich |
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| Road 88 Set List:Little White Church Swingin’ Drive (Road 88) Not Gonna Happen (Road 88) Irreplaceable The Fever |
