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The seventh annual Las Cruces Country Music Festival brings a varied lineup Oct. 11-13 to the Hadley Sports Complex, 1800 E. Hadley Ave.
The festival kicks off Friday (gates open at 5 p.m.) with Main Stage acts Big & Rich with Cowboy Troy, Casey Donahew, and Frank Ray. The trio has accounted for dozens of hits including Big & Rich’s “Save A Horse (Ride a Cowboy),” “Lost in This Moment,” “Wild West Show,” “That’s Why I Pray” and “Holy Water.” Donahew’s hits include “White Trash Story,” “Double Wide Dream” and “One Star Flag.” Former Las Cruces police officer and recent USA Network Real Country contestant Frank Ray totes “Every Time You Run” and “The Drive.”
On Saturday (gates, 4 p.m.), Gretchen Wilson, Ronnie Milsap and Jessie G. come calling. Wilson, a Grammy Award winner, has charted “Redneck Woman,” “Here for the Party” and “All Jacked Up.” The piano-pounding Milsap, a six-time Grammy winner and Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, is an influential crossover artist incorporating sounds of R&B, pop, and rock. Milsap had numerous No. 1 hits on country radio from 1973 to 1989, including “Lost in the Fifties Tonight,” “Stranger in my House” and an ode to his home, “Smokey Mountain Range.”
Sunday (gates, 11 a.m.) features regional artists, plus Stephanie Urbina Jones and the Honky Tonk Mariachis, whose hits include “I Wanna Dance with You,” “Walking After Midnight,” “He Reminds Me of Texas” and Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”
On the festival’s Second Stage, local and regional favorites will keep the music humming during set changes on the Main Stage.
The three-day festival, produced by Visit Las Cruces and the City of Las Cruces, has established itself as one of New Mexico's premier events. Notable acts have included Dwight Yoakam, Travis Tritt, Kacey Musgraves, Kenny Rogers, Lee Ann Womack, Randy Houser, Frankie Ballard, Sawyer Brown, Eli Young Band, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Rick Trevino, Marshall Tucker Band, Dustin Lynch, Charlie Daniels Band, Casey James, Little Texas and Las Cruces native Bri Bagwell.
Tickets are available online at www.LasCrucesCountryMusic.com and in person at Visit Las Cruces, 336 S. Main St. Single-day passes for Friday or Saturday are $40, Sunday single-day passes cost $10, and weekend passes are $80. VIP passes are $150, good for a Thursday night VIP party and VIP seating on Friday and Saturday. Members of the military, senior citizens, city employees and students receive a $5 discount on day passes and $10 off weekend passes when they purchase tickets at the Visit Las Cruces office.
For more information, sponsorship opportunities and vendor applications, visit www.LasCrucesCountryMusic.com or call 575-541-2444.
