Get your cowboy boots out for a night of Texas Country music at Texas A&M-Commerce.
Then on Friday, April 20, come out for a night of rock.
It’s the Pridestock Music Festival, and the music on both days will start at 4 p.m. and run until about 10:30 p.m. outside the Morris Recreation Center.
The Texas Country night will feature the Dust Devils, Jeff Allen, Fat Dixie, and Maren Morris.
Headlining the boot-scootin’ night is Deryl Dodd.
Deryl Dodd is a country, southern rock artist that has recently released an album titled Full Circle, which represents a return to his Texas roots.
Dodd grew up in Texas and learned music from honkytonks and dancehalls where he and his friends would go hear Gary Stewart, Merle Haggard or Willie Nelson.
After moving to Nashville, Dodd became recognized not only for his singing but also for his songwriting by many other artists.
He has toured as a guitar player and a backup singer for Martina McBride, has opened for Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw and Brooks and Dunn. Dodd was then signed with BMG Music.
Dodd credits his success to his family, which were incredibly musical. Dodd’s latest album Full Circle, features “Song of the Family”, which is dedicated to his family.
The lineup for the rock night includes Greenville band Melba Toast, A&M-Commerce student band Stavely, which won the campus Battle of the Bands and Paris bluesy rockers Post Oak Savannah.
Headlining the rock night jointly is Smith Point and Go Betty Go, both of California
Go Betty Go is a Los Angeles all-girl pop punk band consisting of Emily Wynne-Hughes (vocals), Aixa Vilar (drums), Betty Cisneros (guitar) and Michelle Rangel (bass).
Their Latina origins influence their music by the use of Spanish in their lyrics.
Following their well-received debut EP Worst Enemy in 2004, Go Betty Go continued their impressive rise with a series of non-stop coast-to-coast appearances, and they were featured on the Warped Tour.
Their music is featured in a range of media, from commercials, films and TV shows like Punk’d, One Tree Hill, Spring Break: The Movie and The Entertainment Tonight Insider, to video games such as Burnout 3: Takedown, The Sims 2: University, and Fantastic Four, for which the band wrote an original track.
They have also been featured in the pages of Alternative Press, Seventeen, Los Angeles Times and numerous Spanish publications, such as La Opinión, HOY and Latina.
Also playing on rock night will be California artist Smith Point. The band gained national attention when the song “Escape” was featured on the WB’s One Tree Hill. The band recently released their follow-up EP, Prospect Street, which represented two years of hard work for the band. They have also been featured on CBS’ Guiding Light and XM Satellite Radio Unsigned.
The Owl magazine writes that Smith Point’s Prospect Street is “Not only worth the wait, but a good sign that the San Francisco lads are headed in the right direction.”
“If we get good response, we will try to do the festival again,” said Sara Hillis, staff member of the Sam Rayburn Memorial Student Center and Breakout Entertainment adviser.
Buy your tickets for the festival, sponsored by Breakout and Campus Recreation, at the Rec Center front desk and the Candy Corner and Campus Synergy Lab, both located on the second floor of the student center.
Tickets are a two-day pass with A&M-Commerce students paying $5 with campus ID and all others paying $10.
Advance purchase of tickets is urged and can also be made by calling 903-468-8760 with credit card.
Phone order tickets will be held at Will Call. There will not be any refunds given for no-shows.
There will be some seating provided, but concertgoers can bring lawn chairs and blankets.
In case of stormy weather, signs will direct audience members to an alternate site on campus.
For more festival information, visit http://breakout.tamu-commerce.edu.