TV talent show winners set to take the MemAud stage Saturday.
It’s time to trade flip-flops for cowboy boots and a tank top for a flannel to dance Saturday night away to Scotty McCreery and Danielle Bradbery.
McCreery and Bradbery, two young country singers made famous by their reign on reality TV, take the stage at Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium at 8 p.m. Saturday for the fall leg of their See You Tonight tour.
McCreery has continued climbing the country charts with singles about beautiful girls and small country towns after he was crowned champion on the 10th season of American Idol.
His latest single “Feelin’ It” talks about the feel-good moments of summer. Besides his music, the show will include some country classics, McCreery said.
“We do Garth Brooks, George Strait, and we do an Elvis tune as well,” McCreery said. “We try to put in some good ol’ stuff in there, especially some good ol’ country music. That’s kind of the main thing I’m all about.”
After growing up listening to music that may be less familiar to today’s typical country music fan, McCreery wants to incorporate the “lost art” of old, traditional country music into his shows.
“The performing part is always my favorite,” McCreery said. “The crowds always – they’re fun to play for. It’s fun to see them singing back songs you wrote a couple years back.”
McCreery is studying communication at North Carolina State University and is thrilled to sing and interact with an energized college crowd.
“I have been excited since the day I heard he was coming,” said Kimberly Kaser, a junior studying health administration and longtime fan of McCreery.
Bradbery has been doing equally well in the country music scene after winning season four of The Voice. In the spring, she toured alongside Hunter Hayes and Dan + Shay and soon after released a video for her current single “Young in America.”
“She’s got a really big voice for a small frame,” McCreery said.
After finding success with the initial See You Tonight tour dates, McCreery is looking forward to being back on the road and having Bradbery as the opening act.
The show is expected to be the big country concert of the fall and have a nearly full venue if not completely sold out, said Andrew Holzaepfel, associate director of the Campus Involvement Center.
“The good thing about country is that it really appeals to our students, but it also appeals to the larger Athens and surrounding community,” Holzaepfel said.
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