Country Music Newcomers Play Free Pre-CMA Show

Kevin Costner & Modern West Headline Nov. 11 Concert in Nashville

Nov 3, 2008 Lisa L. Rollins

The outdoor event, which will feature XM satellite radio's Jon Anthony as its host, is officially dubbed the 2008 Chevy CMA Awards Kickoff Concert and promises country-music fans a star-laced, fun-filled event highlighted with live-music performances by Rodney Atkins, the Eli Young Band, Kevin Costner and Modern West, and Heidi Newfield as part of theTuesday-afternoon CMA celebration.

Free Country Music Concert Showcases New Country Artists

"Here at Chevy, we're passionate about showcasing the energy and authenticity of country artists as only live music can," remarked Kim Kosak, Chevrolet general director of advertising and sales promotions. Moreover, "As the 'Official Ride of Country Music,'" she continued, "we're proud to build our brand around such an exciting event as the CMA Awards while presenting some of the hottest new acts around in this year's Chevy CMA Awards Kickoff Concert."

Located at Fifth Avenue and Broadway in Music City, the Sommet Center-held concert in honor of the 42nd annual CMA Awards will feature the aforementioned acts at the below-listed times.

• 4 p.m. performance by Heidi Newfield, former lead singer for the platinum-selling, CMA-nominated country act Trick Pony, who recently made her solo debut with Johnny and June, a top-10 single from her Curb Records release, What Am I Waiting For. The album debuted at No. 2 on Billboard's Top Country Albums Chart and was named a critic's choice by People magazine and the New York Times.

• 4:45 p.m. performance by Rodney Atkins, whose platinum Curb Records debut, If You're Going Through Hell, spawned four No. 1 singles. Two of the CD's songs, the title track and Watching You, were named most-played songs of the year, according to Billboard and Country Aircheck. Atkins' freshman album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart and No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart and the country singer is currently nominated in this year's CMA Awards contest in the "New Artist of the Year" category.

• 5:45 p.m. performance by the Eli Young Band, a Texas-based fuel-injected country act whose first major-label CD, Jet Black & Jealous, has yielded chart success and critical acclaim. Recording artists for Universal Republic/Universal Records South, the album's first hit single, When It Rains, was the longest-running indie single in the history of the country charts. The CD debuted at No. 5 on the Top Country Albums of Billboard. Currently, the players are readying to release their sophomore single, Always the Love Songs, from the disc.

• 6:30 p.m. headlining performance by Kevin Costner and Modern West, a group whose members will celebrate the release of their debut album, Untold Truths, for Universal Republic/Universal Records South on the same day as the free Nov. 11 kickoff concert. Although best known as an acclaimed actor and film producer, Costner is a longtime musician and songwriter who can trace his current's band's beginnings back two decades to a time when he and bandmate John Coinman formed their first band, Roving Boy, in L.A.

Note: The 42nd annual CMA Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville, Tenn., on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2008, via the ABC television network.

Source

Personal communication, Liz Jungers, media representative, Nov. 2, 2008.