Ohio State Fair 2008 Concert Lineup

Lambert leads country-heavy fair concert lineup

by Dwayne Steward
Entertainment Coordinator
The Advoacte
July 24, 2008

This year’s Ohio State Fair includes a slate of concerts sure to please a majority of the masses, especially country-music fans.

Six of the 12 artists gracing the WCOL Celeste Center stage at the Ohio Expo Center, 717 N. 17th Ave., Columbus, are bona fide country stars, including last year’s breakout artist Miranda Lambert.

Lambert plans to open the fair’s concert series July 31 with country crooner Dierks Bentley, who just released “Greatest Hits/Every Mile a Memory 2003-2008.” His first compilation disc, “Every Mile” contains hits from 2003’s “Dierks Bentley,” 2005’s “Modern Day Drifter” and 2006’s “Long Trip Alone.”

Lambert, a Grammy-nominated, former “Nashville Star” finalist is still riding a high from the success of her sophomore album, “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” released early last year. The album’s third single “Gunpowder & Lead,” which details the revenge tactics of a woman in an abusive relationship, just popped through to the top 10 on the county-music charts, making it her top single to date.

“It’s really been a big deal,” said Lambert during a phone interview from the road. “The single also comes from a real place. My parents took in battered women and children so I saw firsthand what it does to families.”

A hometown girl to the core, Lambert, of Lindale, Texas, is just now moving out on her own, having purchased a farm in Oklahoma (near fellow country-singing beau Blake Shelton, who’ll be making a stop through the fair Aug. 6), a phase of transition mirrored in her latest album. She considers every song an “upgrade” from those of her 2005 debut “Kerosene.”

“It was scary moving out on my own,” she said. “But my family was very supportive and my boyfriend lives only six miles away so it’s really been perfect.”

Lambert has come to be known for her high-octane live shows, which have sparked a cult following among country fans.

“We’re pretty consistent with our shows; we strive to make every show better then the last and really don’t hold anything back,” she said. “But I always say that the more the crowd’s into it the better our show will be.”

Bentley and Lambert will take stage 7 p.m. July 31. Tickets are $30. Call (614) 644-3247 or visit www.ohiostatefair.com for more information. For more on Lambert, visit http://www.mirandalambert.com/.

Ohio State Fair concert series:
• Dierks Bentley and Miranda Lambert, July 31, $25 to $30
• Musiq Soulchild, Aug. 1, $12
• Melissa Etheridge, Aug. 2, $25 to $30
• All-Ohio State Fair Band and Youth Choir, Aug. 3, free
• Toby Mac, Aug. 4, $12
• Four Freshmen, Aug. 5, free
• Peter Frampton, Aug.5, $20
• Blake Shelton and Candy Coburn, Aug. 6, $20
• Oak Ridge Boys and Charlie Daniels Band, Aug. 7, $20 to $25
• Chaka Khan, Aug. 8, $20
• Ted Nugent, Aug. 9, $20