TENTH ANNUAL “DARIUS AND FRIENDS” BENEFIT CONCERT SET FOR MONDAY, JUNE 3 AT NASHVILLE’S RYMAN AUDITORIUM

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Multi-Platinum superstar Darius Rucker will return to the historic Ryman Auditorium on Monday, June 3 for his 10th Annual Darius and Friends concert benefitting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The event, which unofficially kicks off CMA Music Fest in downtown Nashville and has raised $1.6 million to date, will celebrate hitting the decade mark with an all-star roster of friends to be announced in the coming weeks. Rucker, who has always prioritized philanthropic work, was honored with the ACM Gary Haber Lifting Lives Award last year for his efforts and will receive the Harry Chapin Memorial Humanitarian Award at the upcoming 2019 Music Biz Awards. He made a commitment to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital specifically in 2008 after touring the facility known around the globe for treating childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. “This event is always special because I love seeing my friends come together to support St. Jude and the amazing work they’re doing for families,” shares Rucker. “When we were planning the upcoming Hootie & the Blowfish tour, it was important to me that we kept this show on the schedule. Of all the exciting things to come this year, this night will still be a highlight.” Friends performing with Rucker in past years have included Lauren Alaina, Brooks & Dunn, Luke Bryan, Luke Combs, Randy Houser, Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum, Ashley McBryde, A.J. McLean of the Backstreet Boys, Brad Paisley and Kenny Rogers, among others. The lineup for this year’s event will be announced soon. Tickets to the 10th Annual Darius and Friends benefit concert start at $50 with VIP options up to $150, available at www.ticketmaster.com. Pre-sale access begins tomorrow, April 9 at 10 a.m. CT and runs through Thursday, April 11 at 10 p.m. CT, with tickets on sale to the general public this Friday, April 12 at 10 a.m. CT. The event is made possible with support from generous sponsors PGA TOUR, CDW, Hendrix Enterprises, UMG, CAA, A. O. Smith, AMD, Arrow and Intel. For more information, please visit www.DariusRucker.comand follow on social media @DariusRucker. About Darius Rucker Rucker first attained multi-Platinum status in the music industry as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of GRAMMY award-winning Hootie & the Blowfish. Since releasing his first country album in 2008, he has celebrated four No. 1 albums on the Billboard Country chart and nine No. 1 singles at Country radio, earning a whole new legion of fans. In 2014, Rucker won his third career GRAMMY award for Best Solo Country Performance with his 4x Platinum-selling cover of Old Crow Medicine Show’s “Wagon Wheel.” As a lifelong philanthropist, Rucker is a continuous supporter of the MUSC Children's Hospital in his hometown of Charleston, South Carolina, and has raised millions of dollars for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital through his annual Darius & Friends benefit concert and golf tournament, as well as for more than 200 charitable causes supporting public education and junior golf programs in South Carolina through the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation. This year, he will hit the road with his Hootie & the Blowfish bandmates for theGroup Therapy Tour as they celebrate the 25th Anniversary of mega-hit Cracked Rear View as well as a forthcoming album with new label home Universal Music Group Nashville. About St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Its purpose is clear: Finding cures. Saving children.® It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to more than 80 percent since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude won't stop until no child dies from cancer. St. Jude freely shares the discoveries it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. Join the St. Jude mission by visiting stjude.org, liking St. Jude on Facebook, following St. Jude on Twitterand Instagramand subscribing to its YouTubechannel. # # #

For Immediate Release

CHRIS YOUNG SELLS OUT RYMAN
Young fires up Liquid Neon Tour as dates are announced

October 2, 2012 – Nashville, TN - Chris Young is kicking off the first leg of his headlining Liquid Neon Tour next month, starting with a SOLD OUT show from Nashville's famed Ryman Auditorium. The date marks his first-ever hometown headlining play in Music City.

Special guests on the tour include Thomas Rhett, whose Valory Music Co. released self-titled debut EP includes the hits “Beer With Jesus” and the Top 15 track “Something To Do With My Hands.” RCA recording artist and Young’s labelmate, Joanna Smith, will open the shows.

Having toured with such diverse talents as Jason Aldean, Alan Jackson, Miranda Lambert and Rascal Flatts over the last two years, Young has earned high praise for his electrifying stage presence and hit-packed set. The Palm Beach Post declared “his knee-buckling rich baritone vocals…offered something for everyone’s musical interests,” while the Massachusetts Daily Collegian shared that “Young’s charismatic persona had fans screaming and dancing to his set.”

LIQUID NEON TOUR DATES:
11/15 - Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium
11/16 - Bristol, TN – Viking Hall Civic Center
11/17 - Pikeville, KY – Eastern Kentucky Expo Center
11/30 - Corbin, KY – The Arena

Additional Tour Dates Yet To Be Announced
Youngstown, OH *with Eric Paslay and Joanna Smith
Bowling Green, OH
Evansville, IN
Huntsville, AL
Savannah, GA
Chattanooga, TN

The Liquid Neon Tour will round out an incredible year of high profile TV performances, hit singles, and awards nominations for the critically acclaimed, baritone-voiced singer.   His latest single from his highly acclaimed third album NEON, “I Can Take It From There,” written by Young along with Rhett Akins and Ben Hayslip, has just released to country radio.

Continue to check out www.chrisyoungcountry.com for the latest news and ticket information.

About Chris Young: 2012 is undeniably a banner year for ACM Male Vocalist nominee Chris Young as he continues to accumulate more career highs. The year began with a sold-out headlining show, TV performances on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Talk, and the 47th annual ACM Awards on CBS, a sold-out tour with Miranda Lambert, ACM nominations for Male Vocalist and Single of the Year and his fifth consecutive chart-topper.  The list continues to expand with one PLATINUM and four GOLD RIAA certified singles plus a GOLD album for his sophomore release, The Man I Want To Be. The prior year saw nominations for CMA New Artist of the Year along with his first Grammy nod. He won Breakthrough Artist of the Year and Single of the Year at the 2011 American Country Awards and has made nine national TV appearances since the release of his acclaimed third record, NEON, on RCA Records Nashville. With his rich, warm baritone and penchant for writing relatable, slice-of-life songs, Young, as described by Entertainment Weekly, clearly “has a long, lucrative future ahead of him.” For tour dates and all the latest information on Chris Young, visit www.chrisyoungcountry.com and follow him on Twitter @ChrisYoungMusic.

About Thomas Rhett: Hailing from Valdosta, GA, music has been a part of twenty-two-year-old Thomas Rhett’s life for as long as he can remember. He grew up in a musical family watching father Rhett Akins work as an artist and a hit songwriter. In high school, Thomas Rhett dabbled in songwriting and playing guitar before forming a band with some friends. In 2010, while still a student at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Thomas Rhett signed his first publishing deal with EMI. Shortly thereafter he landed his first cut on Jason Aldean’s platinum-selling album MY KINDA PARTY with “I Ain’t Ready To Quit.” Just a year later, he signed a record contract with The Valory Music Co. He is currently in the studio working on his debut album with famed producer Jay Joyce, which will feature the Top 15 debut single, “Something To Do With My Hands,” and current single “Beer With Jesus.” This summer, Thomas Rhett has been an opener on Toby Keith’s Live In Overdrive Tour, Presented by Ford F-series. Previously, he’s toured with Blake Shelton, Brantley Gilbert, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Pat Green, among others. Visit ThomasRhett.com for tour dates and more.

About Joanna Smith: Joanna Smith’s laser focus as a country singer/songwriter was born out of one simple fact – music was engrained in her soul from a young age, and nothing was going to get in the way of a dream that for hers is more of a destiny. A native of Crestview (Unincorporated), Georgia, her reverence for tradition, a healthy respect for the present and a desire to make her mark on the future have all led to now, to a deal with RCA Records and sitting side-by-side with acclaimed producer Buddy Cannon (Kenny Chesney, Reba McEntire) making country music with themes of heartbreak, forgiveness, and even good ol’ fashioned murder. Her Be What It Wants To Be EP, which hit stores earlier this year, contains her new hit “We Can’t Be Friends.” Visit www.JoannaSmithOfficial.com to learn more.

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