Tag: country music

Country rocks Dorton Arena with Parmalee and OSMR

Parmalee is a country rock band, composed of brothers Matt and Scott Thomas, their cousin Barry Knox and friend Josh McSwain, that originated in Parmele in Martin County. The group was formed in 2001 when the members began practicing every Tuesday and Thursday night in a barn they dubbed “Studio B.” Since then, Parmalee has gone on to produce five albums and has been featured on Billboard, AOL.com and Clear Channel. It wasn’t long before the band members realized they needed to broaden their horizons outside of the barn in Parmele if they wanted to jump-start their music career. After…

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Artist Spotlight: Jason Michael Carroll

Scotty McCreery won’t be the only North Carolina native performing in Dorton Arena’s concert lineup at the N.C. State Fair. Youngsville’s own country star, Jason Michael Carroll, will be making an appearance as well. In 2007, Carroll released his first album and shot up the charts with singles “Alyssa Lies” and “Livin’ Our Love Song.” His second album, released in 2008, featured “Hurry Home” and “Where I’m From.” Carroll’s most recent hit, “Numbers,” is the title track of his newest album, which was released just last year. While “Numbers” includes almost every element of a stereotypical country song—football, America, a…

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Artist Spotlight: Craig Campbell

Craig Campbell was a big fan of gospel growing up in Georgia, but car rides with his older brother exposed him to country acts such as Randy Travis, Shenandoah, Mike Reid and Tracy Lawrence. That initial contact led to a love of country, a move to Nashville and eventually the popular single target=”_blank”>”Family Man.” Craig Campbell is one of several rising country stars performing at this year’s N.C. State Fair. Musically, he sounds less like his pop-country contemporaries and more like the traditional country artists he was first exposed to in his brother’s car. You can tell Campbell is a…

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Artist Spotlight: Justin Moore

Justin Moore will be the last artist to take to the stage in Dorton Arena this year. As matter of fact, he should be finishing up his show around the time the fireworks blast off to signal the end of the 2010 N.C. State Fair. During the show, concertgoers can expect to hear the four Top 40 hits from his self-titled debut that have propelled him into the country music limelight. Listen for “Back that Thing up,” “Small Town USA,” “Backwoods” and “How I Got to Be This Way.” Moore grew up on a farm in Arkansas surrounded by extended…

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