Boots & Hearts Coors Banquet Kickoff Party

The date was set in anticipation in many calendars for the past year, August 10th 2017. This was the night BH6 was going to get kicked started with the Coors Banquet Kickoff Party. The energy was high, the excitement off the charts and the beers were cold and flowing as Boots and Hearts kicked off for another year. Changing it up how things were done this year, the kickoff party took place on the main stage, which in past years was on the Front porch stage. Also altering this years schedule, things kicked off with the emerging artist showcase, followed by last years winner Vanessa Marie Carter. I had the chance to speak with Vanessa the following day and chatting about winning last years showcase and playing on the main stage she said “It was truly a dream come true and it came and went so fast, I could do it all over again!” Vanessa’s set was full of energy on the stage and her beautiful powerful voice carried through the festival grounds as she had the honour of kicking off Boots and Hearts 2017.

The dynamic duo of Love and Theft were up next and the ramped up boots crowd showed them all kinds of love. Eric Gunderson and Stephen Barker Liles both leading the crowd through their own hits like Whiskey On My Breath and Angel Eyes. They also belted out perfect covers of David Lee Murphy’s Dust On the Bottle and Tom Petty’s Free Falling. These boys definitely know how to put on a show while being ever so charming and engaging with the crowd. Completely in sync they had an awesome set and we hope to see them back in Canada soon!

Doc Walker showed the crowd they still have what it to takes to get the crowd rocking after two decades of putting out countless hits. It was great to have the Canadian group to finally hit the Boots and Hearts stage. With their energy high the crowd reciprocated with dancing and singing along to song after song. They played their hits like Put It Into Drive, Country Girl, Rocket Girl and Driving With The Brakes On. Their set got everyone in the mood for what was going to be yet another unforgettable Boots and Hearts!