Daughtry Video Blog 8/19/07

He’s been called the must successful rock singer of 2006, and his following has continued to grow in 2007 with the release of the hit single “Home.”

“American Idol” star Chris Daughtry was voted off the show in May 2006, but his star has only risen since then. His debut album was released under the band name Daughtry in November.

A month later, Bill Graening, longtime organizer of the annual Alive Festival, booked Daughtry for his new Blink Festival, which opens on Friday at the Clay’s Park Resort amphitheater.

Graening doesn’t believe in luck, but he can’t believe his luck in booking Daughtry when he did.

“People keep asking me, ‘Is he really gonna be there?’” he said. “We were very lucky to get him.”

Daughtry will be the headliner for the inaugural Blink Festival, which runs from 2-10 p.m. Friday and 2-11 p.m. Saturday at the Canal Fulton venue. Gates will open at noon and close at midnight both days.

Graening hopes to make Blink an annual event like the Alive Festival that he has been promoting for 20 years, but he is quick to add that Blink is not limited to contemporary Christian artists.

“The idea behind it was to do something that was different than what we do at Alive,” he said. “This is meant to be a hard-edged event with more variety.”

Among the other artists booked for Blink are MxPx, Red, Haste the Day, Thousand-Foot Krutch, 12 Stones, Pillar, Inhale Exhale, and Day of Fire.

Graening said all the acts will be “lyrically safe” despite their harder edge. No drinking or smoking will be permitted during the festival.

“This is meant to be safe, non-threatening, but harder, rock,” he said. “A lot of churches are bringing people because they know the bands are good.”

The name for the Blink Festival comes from the fact that it is only two days, “as in, you blink and it’s over,” Graening said. “It’s that last big festival before you go back to school. It’s that end-of-summer bash.”

In addition to the music, there will be food vendors, artist merchandise and special attractions at the festival, he said.

Tickets are available at the gate for Friday ($35), Saturday ($40) or both days ($60). They may be purchased in advance through Ticketmaster.

For more information or group sales, call 330-899-0023.

Published Thursday, August 09, 2007

Sound the Google alert alarm, as the words “numbers” and “Illinois State Fair” have just been used in the same sentence. 
 

The rabid can quit drooling, though. The only buzzwords starting with “B” that you’ll find here are Bleu and Bell, as in Corbin and Drake.
On the topic of a possible shutdown in the event there’s no six-letter word for a spending plan in place, I’m fairly certain the fair will go on. How else would summer’s continued abuse and misuse of Spandex fabric continue?

Back to business: It’s been almost two months since I checked in with fair officials about Grandstand ticket sales for this year’s 2007 Illinois State Fair.

So, on the verge of the fair and at a reader’s suggestion, here’s an update.

Daughtry is the first of this year’s acts to top 10,000 tickets. “American Idol” brought rocker Chris Daughtry to everyone’s attention and, as of Monday, the band that shares his last name had sold 10,570 tickets. With the cheapest seats at only $20, I’m guessing that walk-up sales will be strong for Sunday’s show and it could be the one packed-house concert of the year.

Here's those dates again..... current as of today.

August 2007
18 - North Lawrence, OH - Clay's Park Amphitheater/Blink Festival
19 - Frisco, TX - Pizza Hut Park *
20 - Memphis, TN - FedExForum *
22 - Sacramento, CA - The Cove @ California Exposition & State Fair
23 - Las Vegas, NV - Red Rock Casino/Resort/Spa - Sandbar
24 - Lancaster, CA - Antelope Valley Fair
25 - Seattle, WA - The Fenix/Layne Staley Tribute & Benefit
26 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom
28 - Wichita, KS - The Cotillion
29 - Pueblo, CO - Colorado State Fair
30 - Rockford, IL - On the Waterfront Festival

September 2007
1 - Salem, OR - Oregon State Fair
2 - Kansas City, MO - Kemper Arena *
3 - Evansville, IN - The Centre
8 - Richmond, VA - Richmond International Raceway/NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series
10 - Puyallup, WA - Puyallup Fair
13 - Albany, NY - Palace Theatre Albany
14 - York, PA - York Fair
15 - West Springfield, MA - The Big E (Eastern States Exposition)

October 2007
1 - Erie, PA - Warner Theatre
4 - Fresno, CA - The Big Fresno Fair
5 - Tuscaloosa, AL - Coleman Coliseum @ University of Alabama
6 - Mobile, AL - Bayfest
8 - Hollywood, FL - Hard Rock Live
11 - Columbia, SC - South Carolina State Fair
13 - Perry, GA - Georgia National Fair/Reaves Arena
14 - Phoenix, AZ - Veterans Memorial Coliseum
20 - Raleigh, NC - North Carolina State Fair/JS Dorton Arena

November 2007
4, 7 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center

* Shows opening for Nickelback

By Robert Morast
rmorast@argusleader.com
Published: August 1, 2007
Nobody in America has sold more records in 2007 than Chris Daughtry – 3 million and counting.

Given that proof of popularity and his 2006 run on “American Idol” as the show’s resident rocker sex symbol, you might think Daughtry’s head is growing with his record sales.

Don’t believe the hype. As Daughtry’s self-titled band prepares for its Aug. 9 concert at the Sioux Empire Fair the bald rocker offers a dose of humility.

“We love our popularity status right now,” Daughtry says. “We love that people love our music. ... We could be at the other end where people are throwing beer bottles at us and telling us to get the hell off the stage ’cause (we) suck.”

It's an interesting comment considering that's just what some people would love to say to Daughtry.

While the rock singer is unquestioningly popular, there are legions of critics and naysayers who rail against Daughtry because his debut album contains a host of songs sounding suspiciously similar to other platinum-selling rockers like Nickelback or Three Doors Down.

Surprisingly, Daughtry doesn't recoil at the idea of being a copycat or issuing formulaic radio-ready rock.

"It is a formula," he says. "Anything you hear on the radio has a formula to it. It's a formula that works. We want to write songs that people can sing along to. So far it's worked well for us."

Read more about Daughtry and the Sioux Empire Fair's other attractions in Thursday’s Link.

Chris Daughtry is one of the biggest new names in rock music. It has been a hard and surprising climb. A year ago, he was voted off the American Idol TV talent contest and seemed to be just another failed contestant. But Daughtry was just getting started. He went on to form his own band and create a debut CD that has already sold over three million copies in the U.S.  VOA's Larry London recently sat down with Chris to talk about his quick rise to success.

Chris Daughtry

"I wanted to become a comic artist,” says Daughtry. “I was in every possible art class through high school you could do. When I (finally) got into music, I knew that's the thing I wanted to do."

Daughtry UNofficial has added a video section right here on our site!

You may have noticed the section to the right of the home page (also available from the modules menu). Daughtry UNofficial is now able to assemble a video collection for the viewing pleasure (and hopefully convenience) of our members. You can watch, rate, forward, and comment on videos all in one place.

Have a video you don't see here? Members can submit videos to the collection as well! (Don't worry about preview pics, those will be added when your video is approved). Simply click "submit video", copy the Url, enter a title and description and select video format from the drop down. (If you're unsure of the size just leave the default in there).

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