JACKSON HOLE, WYO – February is normally a cold, frozen month with not much going on and spring a long way off. Not so this February as JacksonHoleLive announced today it has booked a mid-winter Snowdown on February 17, 2019.
The special concert features Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, along with with special guest Jalan Crossland. The event will be held at Heritage Arena at the Teton County Fairgrounds.
Proceeds from the mid-winter Snowdown will support the annual JacksonHoleLive summer concert series.
“By offering an exciting winter concert that is a ticketed affair, we hope to raise funds that will support the summer concerts, potentially on an annual basis,” explained Shannon McCormick.
JacksonHoleLive is an all-ages community concert series that is affordable—$5 for adults and free to kids 17 and under—and builds a pop-up community at the base of Snow King Mountain each summer. It is made possible by community sponsorship, individual admissions, and concessions. JacksonHoleLive is a fundraiser for Center Management, Inc. (CMI), the nonprofit operator of the Snow King Sports and Events Center.
“JacksonHoleLive supports CMI’s mission to maintain affordable ice rates and program fees for youth hockey and figure skating,” explained co-founder Jeff Potter. “We greatly appreciate the community’s continued support for JacksonHoleLive and look forward to a show with Lukas and his band that we can be excited about this winter!”
Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real has a devoted fan base in Teton County, and JacksonHoleLive is thrilled to bring the cosmic country soul and rock and roll band to Jackson on the heels of their appearance in the film, A Star is Born. Not only did Promise of the Real appear as members of Bradley Cooper’s fictional band, Nelson wrote and produced a bulk of the film’s soundtrack while working closely with Lady Gaga and Cooper (who co-wrote, directed, and stars in the film).
It’s the first movie soundtrack to spend its first three weeks at number one on the Billboard Music Chart in more than a decade, and the film’s signature track, “Shallow,” picked up four Grammy nominations including Song of the Year.
Nelson’s slow burn of a career has reached epic proportions this year. The 29-year-old is one of few artists to have evolved right before our eyes here in Teton County. He first appeared on a Jackson stage with his father, Willie Nelson, as a seventeen-year old guitar slinger on Labor Day 2006 at Snow King Amphitheatre. Not long after forming Promise of the Real as a teenager, Lukas performed locally several times as a budding artist—and the buzz around those shows spread like wildfire among local music connoisseurs.
“What’s happened with us feels similar to the career trajectory of The Band,” Lukas said. “They were already a great band when they started working with Dylan, who lifted them up, which is similar to what Neil’s done for us. He’s also given people a chance to hear what we’re doing and what our own songs have to offer. Then we played the Desert Trip with Neil, along with Paul McCartney, the Stones, the Who and Dylan. That was incredible.”
Bradley Cooper saw Lukas play at Desert Trip and the two met backstage. It didn’t take long before the two got together at Cooper’s house and began working on musical ideas for A Star is Born. These creative bonds led to Cooper basing his character (Jackson Maine) off of Nelson’s mannerisms, and Gaga co-writing with Nelson for her 2017 hit, “The Cure.”
“At first I was just helping [Bradley] out, and then I started writing with Stefani [Lady Gaga], who’s in the movie,” Lukas explained. “We connected and she and I became really close.”
Jalan Crossland is an “endemic Wyoming treasure.” He is widely acclaimed by audiences, critics, and his musical peers as being a quadruple threat—premier acoustic guitarist, extremely fluid banjo player, phenomenal singer-songwriter, and an engaging showman. His extraordinary guitar work earned him National Fingerstyle Guitar Championship honors in 1997 and he was bestowed with the Governor’s Arts Award in 2013.
Crossland has released seven albums of primarily his own songs. According to the New York Times, “his song ‘Big Horn Mountain Blues’ is so popular in Wyoming that it is practically the official state song.”
“If you’re lucky enough to hear Jalan Crossland play live, observe the audience. It will be made almost entirely of drop-jawed, glassy-eyed, altogether astonished listeners,” said Panache Magazine recently.
JacksonHoleLive’s mid-winter Snowdown is Sunday, February 17 at the Heritage Arena. Doors open at 6pm and you must be 21 years old to attend. Tickets will be available online beginning at noon MST on Thursday, January 3, 2019.
Tiered ticket prices ($28/$36/$44) allow early buyers to get even more affordable tickets. Limited VIP tickets ($125) include a private entrance, bar and restrooms, and a premium stage-front viewing area. Proceeds from the event will benefit the JacksonHoleLive 2019 summer concert series.
