WOKQ Acoustic Country By The Sea at Blue Ocean Music Hall

WOKQ Acoustic Country By The Sea

Wednesday, May 29 | 7PM
Doors Open at 6PM

ft. Matt Stell w/ Dillon Carmichael, Meghan Patrick, Josh Ross + Kelsey Hart
Presented by WOKQ Radio
PROCEEDS SUPPORT: New Hampshire Chapter – Surfrider Foundation 

Reserved Seating: $35
+ $3 Additional Day of Show

To Benefit:

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

ABOUT MATT STELL
It’s an insight the Arkansas native has long taken to heart. In his case, heroes and influences stretch from Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley, through Alanis Morissette and Oasis, to Miranda Lambert and Jason Isbell. But through the endless one-nighters, opening slots, and writers’ rooms that constitute paying dues, he learned what true artists always learn—that the best tribute is not imitation but transformation—finding the place inside that connects with those influences and turns them into a unique and honest voice. He has learned that lesson well.

“The music I make now is mine because I believe it and it’s true,” he says. “That’s what I can contribute, and that’s how I see myself fitting in. The currency of the realm is authenticity, and I think there’s room for mine.”

That’s something he proved with back-to-back #1s that put him in the forefront of this era’s artist-songwriters, and he proves it again with One Of Us, an EP that establishes him as an artist of real depth and vision.

The breakthrough came with the 2X PLATINUM “Prayed For You,” the only debut single to top the Billboard Country Airplay chart in 2019. The PLATINUM follow-up, “Everywhere But On,” made him one of just a handful of new artists to hit the top twice in a row in six years. In the process, he racked up more than half a BILLION total global streams across his catalog while surpassing 27 million views alone for the official music video for “Prayed For You.”

ABOUT DILLON CARMICHAEL
Born and raised in Burgin, Kentucky, the 6’4” troubadour first rose to fame in 2018 on the strength of his critically acclaimed Riser House debut, the Dave Cobb-produced Hell On An Angel, which prompted NPR to praise his “deep holler” and the New York Times to declare that his voice moves “with the heft and certainty of a tractor-trailer.” Dates with everyone from Lynyrd Skynyrd and Trace Adkins to Dwight Yoakam and Justin Moore followed, as did festival appearances from Faster Horses to Tortuga and Artist To Watch nods from the likes of Billboard, Rolling Stone, Pandora, and more. Carmichael followed it up in 2021 with Son Of A, another neo-traditional gem that’s racked up more than 13 million streams across platforms (Carmichael’s catalog boasts more than 140 million streams collectively) and yielded similarly glowing reviews for its feel-good mix of wry humor and raw heart. After debuting as the #1 most-added single at country radio, the album’s title track is already well on its way to a million plays on YouTube as it continues to climb the singles charts. Carmichael remains busy as ever on the road in 2022, headlining his ‘Son Of A’ Tour and opening for the likes of Brooks & Dunn, Cody Johnson, Brothers Osborne, and more.

ABOUT MEGHAN PATRICK

Since making her debut with 2016’s multi-award-winning Grace & Grit, Meghan Patrick has embodied the kind of unbridled truth-telling that leaves listeners feeling undeniably seen and understood. A back-to-back CCMA Female Artist of the Year whose accolades also include 18 CMAOntario Awards, the Nashville-based artist doubled down on that soul-baring specificity in the making of her latest project, The Greatest Show On Dirt. Over the course of the EP’s six intimately detailed tracks, the rural-Ontario-born singer/songwriter sets her storytelling to a high-energy but expansive sound that stretches beyond the boundaries of country—a move befitting of a musician whose background includes co-founding an all-girl band at age 13, studying opera and jazz, fronting a 10-piece funk act that once opened for Aretha Franklin, and touring extensively as part of a bluegrass group. Anchored in the powerful vocal work she’s brought to the stage as support for legends like Dwight Yoakam and top artists including Keith Urban, Old Dominion, Kip Moore, Brothers Osborne and more, the result is a body of work that captures the nuances of her emotional experience with equal parts boldness, humor, and wildly colorful originality.

“It’s always been important for me to be completely honest in my music, but I think this is the first time I’ve had the bravery that it takes to get to place where you can be 100 percent open about every aspect of yourself—the good and the bad, and not just the parts that you hear about in songs on the radio,” says Patrick. “I want to make music that has real longevity, and the only way to do that is to peel back the layers and be unapologetically yourself.”

Produced by Joey Hyde (Jake Owen, The Band CAMINO) and Aaron Eshuis (Rascal Flatts, Cole Swindell), The Greatest Show On Dirt kicks off with lead single “She’s No Good For Me”—a smoldering and fearlessly self-aware track that Patrick considers a major breakthrough in making her way toward the EP’s unguarded self-expression. “That song was definitely new territory as far as acknowledging some of the not-so-great moments in my past,” she says. “It came from looking back on a time when I was drinking too much and making bad decisions for my health and in my relationships, but I wanted to make the point that the first step to healing is recognizing that you need to heal. I’d never heard that exact idea in a song before, and it felt like a catalyst for digging deeper in my songwriting.”
 

ABOUT JOSH ROSS

Echoing the primary themes of country in his pop-rock-infused way, Josh Ross’s take on love, work, and play is often documented through his whirlwind experiences. From moving to Nashville the night of a tornado, leaving only a month later when a global pandemic arrived, to developing an ever-evolving career amidst the drawbacks of injuries, lockdowns, and conflicting relationships, Josh Ross is a country artist bound by the act of forging past and overcoming restraints.

“There is something to be said about when your heart is really in the right place to sing something… As an artist, I want the listener and me to go back to a song and remember our exact experiences around it, to encourage connection in all forms,” Josh said. The need for that musical connection began growing up in Burlington, Ontario’s suburbia. Overhearing his parents sing along to Guns N Roses and Bruce Springsteen in their kitchen while he ran around the house pretending to play guitar. Learning in those early years what music was, he found himself writing words in his notebook that, at the time, he didn’t realize were poems and lyrics. Onwards through school, he focused on sports like motocross and football, eventually encountering the injuries that came with each game.

ABOUT KELSEY HART

Indulge your senses in great food and dine at one of our on-site restaurants before the show! Click to make a reservation for dinner before the show at Seaglass Restaurant, SurfSide Salisbury, or Capri Seaside Italian Kitchen & Pizzeria.