MOUNT VERNON — Up and coming country music stars Lee Brice and Steel Magnolia will be the featured entertainment at this year’s Knox County Fair. The solo star and duo will perform Friday, July 29, at 8 p.m. at the grandstand stage.
Brice first entered the country consciousness in 2007 with the Top 30 hit, “She Ain’t Right.” He followed that up with hits, “Happy Endings,” “Upper Middle Class White Trash,” “Love Like Crazy” and “Beautiful All The Time.”
His first love was football and he played at Clemson University before an injury kept him out of the game. While at Clemson, he honed his musical talents and decided to head to Nashville to try his luck. There, he became a songwriter, writing songs performed by Jason Aldean, Adam Gregory, Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton and Garth Brooks. He wrote Brooks’ No. 1 hit “More Than a Memory.”
Brice was influenced by a wide variety of musicians, from Aerosmith and Tom Petty to Garth Brooks and Ray Charles.
His hit, “Love Like Crazy,” was nominated for ACM Single Record of the Year. That song broke the record for longest chart run on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
Steel Magnolia got its big break during season two of CMT’s “Can You Duet?” Josh Scott Jones and Meghan Linsey met at a karaoke bar in Nashville and honed their talents before trying out for the show. They won, getting a record deal in the process.
Their debut single, “Keep On Lovin’ You,” was released in August 2009. Their self-titled debut album was released in January 2011. It features their debut song, as well as “Homespun Love,” “Glass Houses,” “Ooh La La” and “Eggs Over Easy.”
Steel Magnolia has already garnered nine music industry award nominations, including Vocal Duo of the Year at the CMA Awards.
While grandstand seating remains free, track and infield seat tickets are available for the show by calling the fair secretary’s office at 397-0484.
