The Music Strikes Back for Veterans returns to Lake Barkley State Resort Park Beach this weekend, offering two days of live, local music and raising funds for homeless veterans in the community. Austin Carter speaks to the principal organizer and owner of Freedom Sound Productions, Kelyn Brown, ahead of the free public event. The festival begins on Friday, June 2, from 4 to 10 pm and Saturday, June 3, from 11 am to 10 pm.
Friday's line-up is as follows:
4 pm: Daniel Thile
5 pm: Lonnie Flemmer
6 pm: Riley Lemons
7 pm: Cameron Haag
8 pm: Dustin Rector
9 pm: Derek Stoner
Saturday's line-up:
11 am: Past Nine
12:15 pm: Blackberry Moon
1:30 pm: Carl Woodall Band
3 pm: Tim Lynch Band
4 pm: Haas Holiday
6 pm: Driving
7:30 pm: Flight 4 Eleven
9 pm: The Weathered Feather
"All these bands are playing for free," Brown says. "The intent of the day is to raise funds for homeless veterans in western Kentucky. All the funds that we collect that day, other than minor expenses for utilities, go to homeless veteran organizations. This year, the two beneficiaries are HOPE Calloway, and Camp Rendezvous, the new organization Camp Graves has specifically for vets in Mayfield. They're actually refurbishing a house over there so they can house nine homeless veterans semi-long-term, around 18 to 24 months, so we're real excited."
Brown says the festival would not be possible without help from local sponsors, which include Woodman Life chapters in Graves, Calloway, Trigg, and Christian counties; District 1, the VFW western Kentucky district; the Murray VFW, 6291; Freedom Sound Productions; Dana Corporation from Maumee, Ohio; Allegro Marinade from Paris, Tennessee; Hart Distributing; CFSB Bank; Saputo; Harley-Davidson Four Rivers; Bank of Cadiz; and Sirloin Stockade.
"If you're not aware of the beach over at Lake Barkley State Resort Park, they have a 500-car parking lot over there. It's amazing. The park made a huge investment in the beach this year. They dumped 60 truckloads of sand onto the beach, a really nice, clean beach that they're taking care of. Really good facilities. You go into the park, follow the signs, and it'll take you right down to the beach. There should be ample parking. If [attendees] encounter an issue, the park has a contingency plan to use an overflow area as well. And you won't have to walk from there — we'll have some transportation for us if we need it," Brown concludes.
For more information on the Music Strikes Back Festival, visit its Facebook event.
