Photo Credit – Kate Green
HIGHWAYS FESTIVAL TAKES THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL BY STORM WITH AN UNFORGETTABLE NIGHT OF COUNTRY & AMERICANA MUSIC
London, UK – The Highways Festival made its unforgettable debut on Saturday night at the Royal Albert Hall, bringing together some of Country and Americana’s brightest stars for an electrifying showcase of talent. Kip Moore, Morgan Wade, Jackson Dean, and Stephen Wilson Jr. delivered captivating performances in the auditorium that left the audience spellbound.
Highways festival provided a unique and immersive experience that showcased a diverse range of talent in every corner of the iconic venue. From the legendary auditorium to carefully curated showcases in the adorning rooms. The festival touched the hearts of both fans and artists alike, bringing a flavour of Country and Americana to the heart of London.
This was truly a first-of-its-kind festival, and fans were able to experience the magic of the Royal Albert Hall like never before. Live Nation Entertainment and the Royal Albert Hall look forward to bringing Highways back next year. Sign up link for Highways 2024. SIGN UP LINK HERE
Follow @highwaysfest now!
ABOUT KIP MOORE
Known as “one of country’s more thoughtful artists” (Billboard), Multi-PLATINUM singer/songwriter Kip Moore has toured the world earning acclaim and a rabid fanbase as an all-in performer in each setting, consistently selling out headlining shows internationally with huge followings in The U.S, The U.K, Europe, Australia and Canada. Praised by Noisey as “an uncompromising, genre-defying artist firing on all cylinders” Moore has blazed his own trail, with “a bit more Southern rock than traditional country… to be a Kip Moore fan suddenly became a marker of your having a certain refinement in your country-music taste” (Chicago Tribune). Moore first splashed into the mainstream with the double-PLATINUM “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck” in 2012, then followed up with three more best selling No. Ones (“Hey Pretty Girl,” “Beer Money” and “More Girls Like You”), a trio of ambitious, critically-praised albums and two gritty EPs that landed Moore on multiple “Best Of” lists. Moore garnered resounding acclaim for his fourth studio album, WILD WORLD. The set, co-written and co-produced by Moore, was spotlighted by critics as “especially vital; occasionally, even rare,” (Esquire). Kip Moore’s fifth studio album, DAMN LOVE is available now. Over 13 new tracks co-produced by Moore and Jaren Johnston (The Cadillac Three), emotionally raw and thick with epiphany, Moore explores an internal tug of war and puts it simply enough: Damn Love. The genre-blending songsmith has a history of entrancing audiences around the world, with sold-out headlining shows in Australia, South Africa, the UK [headlining the inaugural Highways Festival at the Royal Albert Hall], Europe, plus a slot at Bonnaroo all slated for 2023. For more information visit kipmoore.net, and follow Moore on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
ABOUT MORGAN WADE
Most artists don’t top Rolling Stone’s Best Country Albums of the Year list with their debut album. But most artists aren’t Morgan Wade, who earned the top spot with her scathingly honest and raw 2021 LP Reckless which busted down the doors and introduced Wade as a once-in-a-generation songwriter. A Blue Ridge Mountain girl is willing to put her whole truth out there as an artist without flinching – and as a performer who gives it all away onstage. She now readies her anticipated follow-up project, Psychopath, arriving Aug. 25th an astounding 13-track LP crafted with the help of notable musical talents, from A-list songwriters to studio musicians and Wade’s longtime producer-guru/song whisperer Sadler Vaden, Psychopath most excitingly finds Wade peeling back layers of her psyche like never before.
Wade has been no stranger to the road throughout the first quarter of 2023 on her headlining NO SIGNS OF SLOWING DOWN TOUR, which sold out 35 shows for more than 40,000 tickets sold along with more high-profile festivals appearances before heading back to Europe for a fall headline run.
A Virginia native, Wade has broken away from the pack to become one of country music’s most compelling new voices. Possessed with a raw and unflinching voice anchored by a perfect tinge of twang; the rare ability to pen honest portraits of some of life’s most precious and painful and unpredictable moments; and an onstage vulnerability that so seamlessly breaks down the wall between fan and artist, Wade has quickly made her mark on the country music scene — and the music world at large – with nominations for ACM New Female Artist of the Year, Americana Music Association Emerging Act of the Year, and CMT Breakthrough Female Video of the Year.
ABOUT JACKSON DEAN
Odenton, Maryland native Jackson Dean is a singer/songwriter known for his old school, gritty style of Country. Mature beyond his years, Jackson has a daring and carefree spirit, having moved out at 18 years old to live in a cinderblock, concrete floor, one-room shack on the back of his grandfather’s property with no heat and no plumbing. Bringing that same sense of adventure to his songwriting, Jackson writes both independently and alongside outliers like Luke Dick, classic writers like Casey Beathard and everyone in between. Following the release of his debut collection JACKSON DEAN out now via Big Machine Records, Jackson continues to show people how real music can be with atmospheric, musically-forward album GREENBROKE, released March 11 2022. Featured on the soundtrack for Netflix’s The Ice Road and in an episode of Paramount Network’s Yellowstone, the stomping “Don’t Come Lookin’” is making its mark as his first single at Country radio. Following an early career of local performances in his hometown, Jackson has joined bills with superstar acts like Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Brantley Gilbert, Kane Brown, Jake Owen and Brothers Osborne. For the latest information, visit jacksondeanmusic.com.
ABOUT STEPHEN WILSON
Stephen Wilson Jr. is a singer/songwriter from rural Southern Indiana. Wilson was raised by a single father who was a boxer and had him boxing from age seven through adulthood as an Indiana State Golden Gloves finalist. Wilson, a self-taught guitarist moved to Nashville to pursue a degree in Microbiology at MTSU. There, he started indie rock band Auto Vaughn after finishing his degree. They toured for over five years and Wilson co-wrote songs as lead guitarist until his creative focus turned more to songwriting and singing. After the band, Wilson relied back on his education where he worked for several years as an R&D scientist at Mars until signing a publishing deal with BMG Nashville in Aug 2016. He is currently building his catalogue and has had songs cut by Caitlyn Smith and Old Dominion, Tim McGraw, Trace Adkins, Chase Bryant, Mackenzie Porter, Kameron Marlow, Sixpence None the Richer and Leigh Nash. Stephen released his first single “The Devil” and a cinematic video for the song in Sept. 2019 with follow-up, “Year To Be Young 1994” which is currently featured on Spotify’s Country Rocks editorial playlist, Apple Music’s5th Gear editorial playlist and was in full rotation at Nashville’s Triple A station, Lightning 100 last year. Wilson recently released latest single and video for “Holler From The Holler”. Wilson almost always plays a late-70’s gut-string acoustic and some of his main influences are Willie Nelson, Kurt Cobain, John Mellencamp, Bruce Springsteen, The National, Glen Campbell and Randy Travis.
ABOUT ABSOLUTE RADIO COUNTRY
Absolute Radio Country is the UK’s most exciting country music station playing the biggest songs in country from legends such as Dolly Parton and Johnny Cash, to superstars like Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban, alongside brand-new artists like Breland and Morgan Wade. Featuring presenters such as Baylen Leonard, Lou Nash, Una Healy and Ben Earle the station is also home to the Nashville Show which comes direct from the Music City itself with Elaina D Smith. Absolute Radio Country celebrates the vibrant and fast-growing genre, recognizing the huge influence the music style has over pop music. Listeners can find Absolute Radio Country on digital radio, ask their smart speaker to ‘Play Absolute Radio Country’, download the free Absolute Radio app, or go to absoluteradiocountry.co.uk
ABOUT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL
The Royal Albert Hall opened in 1871 and has since had a long history of promoting country music and Americana in the UK, including classic shows by Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, John Denver, Kacey Musgraves, and the UK debut of Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1970.
Other notable moments of American history at the venue have included addresses by five Presidents from Taft to Clinton, UK v US basketball tournaments during the war, The Beatles attending a Bob Dylan concert, Pink Floyd opening for Jimi Hendrix, and appearances by the likes of Muhammad Ali, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra, Jay Z, and Diana Ross.
The Royal Albert Hall is the world’s most famous stage. Throughout its 151-year history, it has welcomed a who’s who of world-renowned figures: artists, athletes and activists. No other place on earth has played host to Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein and Muhammad Ali; Ella Fitzgerald, The Beatles and Adele. This was the Suffragettes’ “temple of liberty” – the site of Votes for Women rallies that helped change the course of British history – the home of the Stonewall concerts, and a place of celebration during Nelson Mandela’s state visit. But its eccentric history has also seen it used for a séance, an indoor marathon and the world’s first bodybuilding contest (judged by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle).
From 2021 to 2022, the Hall celebrates its 150th birthday, with a special programme of events including major commissions from British artists, headline performances from musical legends, and a series of showcases promoting the next generation of talent. The season is designed to reflect Prince Albert’s founding vision of the venue: to promote the arts and sciences, and to offer a place of celebration, inspiration and commemoration for the country as a whole.
In an ordinary year, the Hall’s extraordinary auditorium presents around 400 world-class events: encompassing rock, pop and classical music, theatre, dance, films, Cirque du Soleil and sport. It typically welcomes 1.8 million visitors a year, while its 1,000 events in secondary spaces help to attract a young, diverse audience. Its Engagement programme includes music therapy, concerts in the community, and workshops with A-list artists, often in collaboration with other charities.
