Freedom Over Texas

Country star Chris Young to headline huge Freedom Over Texas Fourth of July celebration

Country star Chris Young is set to headline the 2018 edition of Freedom Over Texas, the official City of Houston Fourth of July celebration to take place at Eleanor Tinsley Park.

The event, taking place from 4 to 10 pm on Independence Day, July 4, will offer four stages for music, culminating in a massive fireworks display. The family-friendly event will also have a kids zone and beer garden.

This year’s party follows up a successful 2017 edition that featured performances from the Joe Jonas-led band DNCE and country singer Hunter Hayes.

The headliner has ties to the Bayou City. Young auditioned for the reality competition series Nashville Star in 2006 in Houston, which he would go on to win, launching his career. He also was one of the first stars to set up a donation fund for Hurricane Harvey victims following the storm. He also performed at RodeoHouston five times, including last month. Young has made a name for himself with numerous award nominations and ten No. 1 country hits, including "I'm Comin' Over" “The Man I Want to Be,” and “Voices."

Other music acts on the bill include Americana country band, The Mavericks; Louisiana R&B singer Cupid, known for his 2007 hit “Cupid Shuffle,” a requisite spin at any wedding or bar mitzfah; Austin-based singer-songwriter Jackie Venson; Latin fusion group Bamuaya Band and Houston country singer Will Carter. Also performing is the Ernest Walker Band playing alongside the Houston Allstars.

The best part? Tickets to Freedom Over Texas are only $5 through May 31 at the event website. Following that, they’ll be $8 through July 3 and a still affordable $10 on the day of the show. Admission is free for kids ages five and younger.

Tickets and the line-up are now available at the Freedom Over Texas website. For those who can't make it downtown, CultureMap partner ABC 13 will simulcast the performances.

Austin singer-songwriter Jackie Venson plays the Freedom Over Texas celebration on July 4.

Courtesy of Freedom Over Texas

Austin singer-songwriter Jackie Venson plays the Freedom Over Texas celebration on July 4.

concerts festivals music event-planner

One More for the Road

ZZ Top honors late drummer Frank Beard with Austin tribute concert

ZZ Top/Facebook

ZZ Top will celebrate their late drummer, Frank Beard (middle, after a show in Canada), at one of his favorite venues.

Texas rock trio ZZ Top will play a tribute to their late drummer, Frank Beard, at their scheduled Austin tour stops at ACL Live at the Moody Theater on August 22 and 23. Beard died Monday, August 17, at 77.

The band announced Beard's death in a social media statement.

Lead vocalist and songwriter Billy Gibbons wrote, "Today, Elwood and I lost a great friend and collaborator, and the world lost one of the most naturally innovative drummers and a great and true son of Texas. His signature backbeat was key to keeping ZZ on top."

ZZ Top canceled performances in Salt Lake City and Colorado Springs following Beard's death. The Austin shows will be the band's first onstage again, offering a fitting time to celebrate the Texas great. A statement on the band's website calls the Austin City Limits stage "one of Frank’s favorite venues and in a city that had been something of a second home for him."

Beard was born near Tyler in Frankston, Texas, in 1949. He was raised in Irving, outside Dallas, and the band formed in Houston in 1969. The Austin Chronicle reported in 2013 that Beard was then splitting time between a house on Lake Travis, in Austin, and Houston. He died on his ranch in the Houston suburb of Richmond.

ZZ Top was known for its large performances and elaborate setup, none more so than the Worldwide Texas Tour, which included a Texas-shaped stage and a collection of live Texas animals.

In 1974, the band left its mark on Austin — for better or worse — at "ZZ Top’s First Annual Texas Sized Rompin’ Stompin’ Barndance & Bar B.Q." at the University of Texas. It was the first, but also the last, since around 80,000 of the band's "friends" trashed the venue, earned the disapproval of the famous Coach Royal, and were ostensibly responsible for the venue not hosting another rock show until 1995. ZZ Top's two encores had 20 years to ring out after the legendary, if infamous show.

ZZ Top will make their upcoming Austin appearances as part of The Big One! Tour on Saturday, August 22, at 8 pm and Sunday, August 23, at 7:30 pm. Tickets are still available for both shows at acllive.com.

live music music history celebrities obituary acl live concerts