SOAR to present two days of live music and so much more on July 12-13

By Roberta Cantrell

BSN Editor

Downtown Louisa will be lit up with entertainment this weekend as the SOAR concert comes to town featuring a full line up of bands and headliners that include Lawrence County natives that have gone on to be highly successful entertainers, Larry Cordle, Noah Thompson, and Ricky Skaggs.

SOAR, short for Shaping Our Appalachian Region is hosting this free event that is called Country Music Highway Tribute Show and is presented by Addiction Recovery Care ARC Kentucky Power, stage sponsor Trace Creek Construction and special sponsor Todd Case Trucking.

The whole weekend promises to be an event like Louisa has never seen.

There will be a silent auction with items such as an autographed Ricky Skaggs handmade Troublesome Creek Stringed Instrument Mandolin, Autographed Billy Ray Cyrus guitar, Autographed Wynona Judd guitar, Pair of Cincinnati Reds tickets, iPad, iWatch, Pair of tickets to Ricky Skaggs Bluegrass Show at The Ryman in Nashville July 25 and many more great items.

All proceeds from the auction will go to organizations supporting the arts along the Country Music Highway.

The entertainment line-up for Friday evening, July 12 will be 4:30 Baldridge Brothers; 5:00 Phill Barnett; 6:00 Rachel and Connor Dale; 7:00 Adalyn Ramey; 8:00 Hannah Wheeler; and 9:00 Ben Fugate.

Saturday, July 13 will kick off at 9:45 a.m. with the LCHS Choir; 10:00 am Hunter Jordan; 11:00 am Laurah Louisa; 12:00 pm Them Lasses; 1:00 pm Eddie Jenkins & The 606 Sound; 2:00 pm Logan Purcell; 3:00 pm Luke Trimble; 4:00 p.m. Solid Ground; 5:00 p.m. Kentucky Just Us; 6:00 p.m. Award-winning Larry Cordle best known for writing mega hit songs like “Highway 40 Blues” and co-writing “Murder on Music Row” will return home with his band of acclaimed musicians from Nashville to perform; 7:15 p.m. American Idol Season 20 Winner Noah Thompson who grew up in Lawrence County starting out as a construction worker and through hard work and determination has now won the hearts of millions of fans with his spirit of country music will take the stage; and at 8:30 p.m., the 15-time Grammy winner Ricky Skaggs will take the stage with his band Kentucky Thunder. Skaggs has 11 number one Country singles, four number one Country albums, and seven number one Bluegrass albums.

Skaggs, Thompson and Cordle all come from an area of Lawrence County that has been named “The Million Dollar Holler.”

There will a total of 19 musical acts this weekend. There will be convenient parking at no cost.

On Saturday, July 13 only there will be free shuttle service to and from the event from 3 p.m. – 11 p.m. Parking and pick-up will be at the Lawrence County High School 100 Bulldog Lane, Louisa. For more information go to cmhtributeshow.com.

Andrew Mortimer