Bret Michaels & Edwin McCain Coming To Tennessee!
NEWS RELEASE
Wednesday, April 2, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Brad Paisley, Bret Michaels and Tauren Wells to headline 2025 Fun Fest Sunset Concert Series
Kingsport, TN – Fun Fest is proud to announce the 2025 Sunset Concert Series lineup. Tauren Wells kicks off the series on Thursday, July 24th, with opener We Are Messengers. Bret Michaels headlines the Friday Night Concert on July 25th with Edwin McCain opening. On Saturday, July 27th, Brad Paisley headlines the show, with opener, Avery Anna. The Eastman Fireworks Spectacular will conclude the Sunset Concert Series.
“The Fun Fest lineup is insane – an electrifying mix – from a legendary rock artist to one of country music’s most popular stars, these will be shows you don’t want to miss,” says 2025 Fun Fest Committee Chair, Kevin Jones. “The energy, the music, the crowds – it’s going to be an unforgettable experience! I can’t wait to get lost in the 80’s MTV Hair Metal vibe with everyone!”
The Sunset Concert Series kicks off on Thursday night with Tauren Wells headlining the show.
Wells has more than one-billion worldwide streams, seven #1 radio hits and three consecutive Top 5 debuts on the Billboard Top Christian Albums Chart. Throughout the past 10 years, Wells has garnered 10 Grammy nominations and eight GMA Dove Awards. His platinum-certified singles, Known and Hills and Valleys are just two songs in his expansive catalog. In March, Wells released his newest EP, Let The Church Sing and in May, he’ll make his literary debut. He, along with his wife, founded the Church of Whitestone in Austin, Texas, where they also serve as the lead pastors.
Opening for Wells is We Are Messengers.Fronted by Darren Mulligan, the goal of We Are Messengers is to engage culture in conversation about the goodness of God and to put words and melody to some of the hardest things we feel as humans. The band has built a career through touring across America, Europe and beyond. They have had 11 consecutive top 10 radio singles, including the multi-chart #1 hit song, Come What May and the gold-certified song, Maybe It’s Ok.
In addition to the Sunset Series sponsors, Thursday night’s concert is supported by Cook’s Mechanical Services, Carter Trent Funeral Home, Goodwill Industries of Tenneva Area, Tele-Optics, Inc., 88.3 WCQR and multiple local churches.
The Friday Night Concert welcomes Bret Michaels. Whether he’s selling out stadiums or headlining hit TV shows, Bret Michaels consistently brings his iconic energy and star power to over three generations of loyal fans. As one of music’s most legendary singers and songwriters, Michaels counts Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Go That Far and Nothing But A Good Time as part of his robust catalog of megahits. On television, Michaels’ shows include the record-breaking enduring hit Rock of Love with Bret Michaels and a recent turn as the audience-favorite Banana in Fox’s hit The Masked Singer. As a well-known creative entrepreneur, Bret took his Celebrity Apprentice-winning Trop-A-Rocka Iced Tea and turned it into a best selling global product for Snapple. Michaels still finds time to give back through his Life Rocks Foundation which supports a myriad of charities and causes around the globe.
Opening for Bret Michaels is Edwin McCain. A major-label breakout in the mid-’90s with Honor Among Thieves, McCain became a Top 40 “Radio Star” with smash hits like I’ll Be and I Could Not Ask For More. McCain continues to connect with fans through his music as well as viral TikTok videos where his witty, self-deprecating humor has won over a new generation of fans. His 11th full-length studio album, Lucky, was released earlier this year.
The Sunset Concert Series wraps up on Saturday with Brad Paisley. For the past 20 years, Paisley’s songwriting and showmanship have won him numerous awards, including three Grammys, two American Music Awards, 14 Country Music Association Awards and 15 Academy of Country Music Awards, among many others. A member of the Grand Ole Opry since 2001, Paisley has written 21 of his 24 No. 1 hits, and in 2008, became the first artist to achieve 10 consecutive Billboard Country Airplay No. 1 singles. The 2010 CMA Entertainer of the Year’s past works have amassed more than 3.9 billion on-demand streams. Paisley and his wife are co-founders of the nonprofit organization, The Store, a free-referral based grocery store, which aims to empower low-income individuals and families in the Nashville area.
Avery Anna will open for Brad Paisley. Attracting attention from esteemed media outlets like Rolling Stone, Billboard, American Songwriter and more, newcomer Avery Anna is currently climbing the charts with Sam Barber on their viral duet, Indigo. The singer/songwriter is also continuing to celebrate the release of her 2024 debut album, Breakup Over Breakfast. The album features 17 tracks all written or co-written by Anna. The album follows her viral, Platinum-certified hit, Narcissist. With more than 500 million global streams to date, Avery Anna quickly become an in-demand touring artist. Most recently, she released two singles, Wish You Well and Mr. Predictable.
The Eastman Fireworks Spectacular will immediately follow Brad Paisley.
The Fun Fest Sunset Concert Series will take place at J. Fred Johnson Stadium on the Cardinal Glass Industries Stage.The Sunset Concert Series is presented by: Eastman, Domtar Packaging, Eastman Credit Union, Cooks Mechanical, Carter Trent, Brightspeed, Goodwill Industries of Tenneva Area,Appalachian Power, Tele-Optics,GRC Construction & CRW Architects, Honda Kingsport, Visit Kingsport,Electric 94.9, 96.9 WXBQ, 99.3 The X and 88.3 WCQR.
Concert Series tickets go on sale on Friday, April 4th at 10:00 a.m. General admission and a limited number of Friends of Festus tickets can be purchased online only at FunFest.net. General admission tickets for Thursday, Friday and Saturday are $25. Friends of Festus tickets are priced at $70, $80 and $90 for Thursday, Friday and Saturday respectively. Each Friends of Festus ticket includes a reserved seat in a fenced area closest to the stage. One reserved parking space located in the stadium parking lot is also included with the purchase of two or more Friends of Festus tickets. Friends of Festus is sponsored by Cintas.
Get your tickets early and save. Prices will increase closer to show dates. Beginning June 27th, tickets will also be available for purchase (in addition to festival merchandise) at the Fun Fest Store located at 400 Clinchfield Street, Suite 100.
A reminder that Fun Fest has a Clear Bag Policy for the stadium concerts. Coolers are not allowed in the stadium and all items will be subject to search. Clear bags should not exceed 12”x6”x12” and approved bags will be available for purchase outside of the stadium. For additional information, visit FunFest.net.
