ARTIST LINEUP
Highland Showdown Main Stage
FRIDAY AUGUST 29th
SAM HUNT
9:30pm
Sam Hunt is a five-time GRAMMY-nominated, Diamond-selling, award-winning hitmaker. He scored his 10th No. 1 with two-week chart-topping, Platinum-selling hit, “Outskirts,” featured on his 2024 four-track EP, LOCKED UP. LOCKED UP is the follow-up to Hunt’s sophomore album SOUTHSIDE, which debuted to critical acclaim landing at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Albums chart. Named one of the Best Albums of the Year by The New York Times and US Weekly, the Platinum-selling project features 12 songs all written by Hunt including his No. 1 hits “Kinfolks,” “Breaking Up Was Easy in the 90’s,” one of NPR’s Best Songs of 2020 “Hard To Forget,” and his three-week No. 1, Diamond-selling, GRAMMY-nominated smash, “Body Like A Back Road.”
SOUTHSIDE follows Hunt’s GRAMMY-nominated, Triple-Platinum-selling debut album, MONTEVALLO, which also topped the Billboard Country Albums chart and produced four No. 1 singles. All ten tracks on MONTEVALLO are RIAA certified with seven achieving Platinum or Multi-Platinum status including “Leave the Night On,” “House Party,” “Take Your Time,” “Break Up In A Small Town,” “Speakers,” and “Make You Miss Me.”
Called “stylistically provocative” by The New York Times and “deceptively phenomenal” by The Washington Post, Hunt has received accolades from Associated Press, Billboard, Esquire, Entertainment Weekly, Los Angeles Times, NPR, Rolling Stone, SPIN Magazine, Village Voice, The New York Times, The Washington Post and more. Since MONTEVALLO’s 2014 release, Hunt has accumulated over 15.5 billion global streams and has earned 52 million RIAA certified units.
TYLER HUBBARD
7:15pm
With 22 No.1 singles on country radio, countless awards, and sold-out tours, Tyler Hubbard has already had a remarkable career as a songwriter and as one half of multi-platinum duo Florida Georgia Line. Now as a solo artist, he has amassed more than 1.7 billion streams to date. Hubbard’s Gold-certified debut solo album, aptly titled Tyler Hubbard, was released in January 2023. It features Hubbard’s hit debut single “5 Foot 9,” which hit No. 1 at Country Radio and was certified 2x Platinum by the RIAA. It also features Hubbard’s second No. 1 single, “Dancin’ In The Country,” which has been certified 2x Platinum by the RIAA. Hubbard has made several television appearances as a solo artist.
TUCKER WETMORE
5:30pm
Singer-songwriter Tucker Wetmore knows his way around a Country song. His own life has unfolded like one, from his small-town childhood in the rural American Northwest to his time playing college football in Montana. When an injury ended his hopes of a professional career, Tucker headed back home to Kalama, Wash. — population: 2,700 — and dusted off his guitar, channeling his feelings into original songs that are rooted in Country storytelling with modern melodies. Less than a year later, he moved to Nashville to begin chasing down his own version of the American Dream, sharpening his writing skills and crafting a unique Country sound.
LAUREN ALAINA
4:15pm
Grand Ole Opry member and Big Loud Records powerhouse Lauren Alaina is unlocking a new era, releasing her debut EP with the label on June 9, 2023. The six-song set fittingly titled Unlocked reintroduces the multi-faceted star, stripping back every layer and allowing fans to know her more than ever before. Alaina has earned three chart-topping hits: RIAA platinum-certified “Road Less Traveled,” 7x platinum “What Ifs” with her childhood friend Kane Brown, and 2x platinum “ONE BEER” with labelmate HARDY + Devin Dawson. The Georgia-born force, who American Songwriter notes is “on a seemingly limitless upward trajectory,” has shared the stage with Alan Jackson, Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Martina McBride, and Jason Aldean. She's headlined two raved-about tours, the sold-out That Girl Was Me Tour and bar-raising On Top Of The World Tour Presented by Maurices. The gold-medal vocalist has performed on some of the highest-profile stages in the world including PBS’ A Capitol Fourth, Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, CBS' Beyond The Edge, TODAY, Good Morning America, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, ABC’s CMA Fest specials, CMA and ACM Awards, Nickelodeon’s All That, Dallas Cowboys Thanksgiving Day halftime performance, MLB’s World Series national anthem performance, a performance at the White House for President Obama, and more.
AUSTIN WILLIAMS
3:00pm
Born and raised near Nashville, TN in the small town of Pleasant View, Austin was faced with a life changing surgery at the age of fifteen. During this down time, he discovered his passion for writing and singing. He taught himself to play the guitar and went after his new found love. He has been honored to play and write with Chase Matthew, Mo Pitney, Kevin Denney, Craig Campbell, and others. Fans have quickly gravitated to Austin’s sound, songs, and personality on TikTok gathering over 200,000 followers in a three week time period after first teasing songs. Williams' release “90s Rap Mashup” debuted at #1 on the iTunes country charts and #3 on the iTunes all genre charts, later landing on Pandora's Top Hits Station. Recently, he has toured with Warren Zeiders, Larry Fleet, Austin Snell, and Tyler Hubbard just to name a few. Now with a following totaling over 800,000 across platforms and over 185 million cumulative streams, Williams is actively releasing new music.
SATURDAY AUGUST 30th
BRANTLEY GILBERT
9:30pm
As one of the godfathers of country’s modern rock-and-rap edge, multi-Platinum The Valory Music Co. trailblazer Brantley Gilbert knows life has a way of leaving a mark. With his seventh studio album, Tattoos, available now, the Georgia native chooses to embrace it – inspired by the idea that his tattoos tell a story, just like his songs. And just like his songs, he’ll never hide the truth they reveal. An era-defining artist forever bonded to his fans, Gilbert’s been mining the timeless values of hard-working dedication, high-octane thrills and humble faith since his 2009 debut, and humble faith since his 2009 debut, A Modern Day Prodigal Son, creating a chart-topping grit-and-grace fusion which helped set the stage for today’s genre-blending format. With his dedicated BG Nation behind him, the fiery performer-songwriter has racked up more than 8.3 BILLION career streams, boasting back-to-back Platinum albums and seven No. 1 hits including the RIAA 7x Platinum “Bottoms Up;” 2x Platinum “Country Must Be Country Wide;” 2x Platinum “You Don’t Know Her Like I Do;” 2x Platinum “One Hell of An Amen;” and the Platinum-certified “What Happens In A Small Town” with Lindsay Ell. His world-class pen helped create a watershed hit with Jason Aldean’s 4x Platinum country-rap game changer, “Dirt Road Anthem.” And possessing a can’t-fake-it quality of fierce independence, the ACM, CMA and AMA award winner has toured alongside everyone from Willie Nelson and Toby Keith to Kenny Chesney, Nickelback and more.
MITCHEL TENPENNY
7:15pm
Six years into his record deal with Columbia Records, Mitchell Tenpenny is leaning in even more. On his new album “The 3rd,” the Nashville native is leaning into his story, his fans, his roots and his influences – all with an eye on the future.
Country radio knows Tenpenny as a reliable hitmaker and husky-voiced storyteller with an ear for undeniable hooks and unforgettable melodies. Fans who care to listen deeper recognize that he not only produces country radio smashes but is also a genre disruptor unafraid of punctuating his country storytelling with edgy lyrics, hard-driving drum beats and heavy guitars. “The 3rd” is Tenpenny’s most authentic – and adventurous – album yet. Named after a song that was named after him, “The 3rd” is a testament to his personal growth and artistic evolution. No longer playing games, Tenpenny has crafted an album that resonates with his own experiences
and emotions. This honest and empathetic collection showcases his maturity as a man, singer, songwriter, and storyteller and invites listeners to join him on his creative journey through life and music.
THE MARSHALL TUCKER BAND
5:30pm
When you wake up and want to put a smile on your face, you think of the songs that always manage to reach down and touch your soul the moment you hear the first note. The Marshall Tucker Band is one such group that continues to have a profound level of impact on successive generations of listeners who’ve been "Searchin’ for a Rainbow" and found it perfectly represented by this tried-and-true Southern institution over the decades.
ASHLEY COOLE
4:15pm
With Big Loud / Back Blocks Music country artist Ashley Cooke, it's best to know what you're getting into – because this emerging star is the definition of more than meets the eye. Hailing from Parkland, Fla., Cooke embraces the energy of pop and depth of country. Vivid and emotionally pure, her sun-kissed blend of two-lane pop is often inspired by true tales of love, loss, and living, matching raw relatability and deeply addictive hooks. As she continuously proves to be one of the most exciting females in country music, Cooke's commitment to authenticity and a passion for capturing the magic between heartbeats has served her well.
Since her debut album shot in the dark earned her critical acclaim, Cooke has been recognized as MusicRow's Discovery Artist of the Year and Next Big Thing, Billboard's Rookie of the Month and iHeartCountry's On The Verge Artist. Cooke went on to win her first CMT Award for Breakthrough Female Video of the Year at the 2024 CMT Awards before being nominated for ACM New Female Artist of the Year, and is currently up for Best New Country Artist at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards.
KELSEY HART
3:00pm
Curb Records recording artist, songwriter, and Kentucky native Kelsey Hart has found his way into the artist spotlight, a place he’s dreamed of being since his childhood days of belting gospel music from the passenger seat in his Dad’s truck. With 190 million career streams, he is making an impact as the launch of his RIAA Gold, Top 30 debut radio single “Life With You” has garnered 130 million global streams, 617 million TikTok views, 1M TikTok Creates, debuted in the Top 10 on Billboard’s Country Digital Songs Chart, and reached #1 on the Hot 30 Weekend Countdown on SiriusXM The Highway.
As a songwriter, Hart has secured his place among the best and brightest in the community, penning songs for hitmakers such as Jake Owen, Dylan Scott, and Trace Adkins. Kelsey’s debut album, Life With You, is available now.
During 2025, Kelsey will be releasing more new music with first song, “Gone With The Wind,” available now, followed by “I Went To The Bar” on May 2, “Fire Works” on June 27, and “Something That You’d Miss” on August 22. Hart is currently on tour with Restless Road as direct support on their Goin’ Out Like That Tour.
Backyard Bourbon Stage
FRIDAY AUGUST 29th
KEVIN JAGGERS
Kevin Jaggers is a Modern Country Music Artist and Radio Personality from of Sonora, KY. He started playing guitar when he was 5 years old. By 15, Kevin was playing his first bar gigs in the Louisville area-- appearing in several country cover bands up until his late teen's when he decided it was time to focus on his own career and songwriting. His influences include Eric Church, Morgan Wallen, HARDY, Thomas Rhett and Keith Urban.
Kevin independently wrote his debut EP, Lookin' For A Party- released in 2020. In addition to the title track, the project (produced by Billboard charting producer, Bill McDermott) included his debut single, "Hell of a Good Time" and "Hook, Line, & Sinker". In addition to writing for his own project, Kevin also has had songwriting credits on several projects including the song, "Gone" on up-and-coming country-artist Dustin Collin's new album co-produced by Buddy Cannon (Kenny Chesney, Reba, etc.), and more.
COUNTY WIDE
A homegrown band based in Southeastern Kentucky, County Wide has an energetic show that excites and gets people on their feet. County Wide is a Kentucky Rocking Country band that has a rapid growing fan base of supporting fans. County Wide songs represent the heart of Kentucky and the South, each original song pays homage to growing up and life in Southeastern Kentucky. They started their journey in 2014 and caught on quickly. County Wide quickly started spreading to several different states and surrounding areas. Their take on Country music with a Southern Rock style has really caught on with an ever-growing fan base. Fans can’t get enough of their original songs. Their debut album, 'Justice in the South' was released in 2015 and really made a splash in the Country Music scene. County Wide has since released a few singles since the first album, namely; “Tennessee Woman” and “Small Town Boy.” They have a full length album dropping in 2023 and fans can’t wait to see what they have in store.
SATURDAY AUGUST 30th
PAXTON PEAY
Paxton Peay is currently an independent country artist and songwriter. Paxton has had songs featured on Spotify's top playlists like Fresh Finds Country, and New Boots Country, with Missin' Mississippi at almost 400K streams. He currently has 10.5 K followers on TikTok and 9K on Instagram. Some of Paxton's achievements have been performing as direct support for Parker McCollum, Jon Langston, Eli Young Band, and Chris Lane as well as selling out Rick's Cafe in Starkville MS 5 times. He is currently looking to expand his music career and become a better artist by writing more songs and performing more shows.
GAFENBURG
Formed in the summer of 2019, the band started out as an all acoustic cover band. Within the first year the band quickly realized there was a need to expand their sonic landscape and made the switch to an all electric band. Early 2020 saw it's fair share of challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but the group knew that they had to keep pushing and maintain momentum. Grabbing acoustic gigs where they could the band weathered the storm and built quite the following despite the shut downs of all of the bars and venues in the area. With the downtime from canceled gigs, Grafenburg made the decision to try to build their online presence.
A YouTube channel was created to help show what the band was all about. A cover of 4 Non Blondes 1993 hit "Whats Up?" was uploaded in Feburary 2021. Within the first few months the video had gotten around 10,000 views. By the time video hit it's one year anniversary the video had hit over 7 million views and gained the group over 25,ooo subscribers.
From small restaurants to private parties to the areas top nightclubs, Grafenburg has played numerous shows in the Louisville KY area. If you haven't seen what one of the areas hottest up and coming party bands has to offer, do yourself a favor and catch a Grafenburg show soon. You won't be disappointed.
