Nashville TN- Homeland Recording artist Ron Blackwood and The Blackwood Quartet have been selected and given the opportunity to participate as a performing artist at the 2009 Farm Aid event in St. Louis Missouri.
The Blackwoods are the first gospel music artist ever to be invited to perform after over 20 years of events that showcased many top secular artists. The event will take place this weekend Sunday October 4th as an all day event with over 100,000 spectators expected to be present. The Blackwoods will share several of their Southern Gospel Music selections along with the message of the Gospel as they occupy the stage with such talent as John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews, Billy Joe Shaver, Gretchen Wilson and Willie Nelson.
Ron Blackwood states “It is such an honor to be invited to this great event. Willie Nelson has been a personal friend of mine for many years and to receive this privilege to share Jesus with many who have not heard the gospel of Christ or that are familiar with Southern Gospel Music is a joy to be included.”
Farm Aid started as a benefit concert on September 22, 1985, in Champaign, Illinois, held to raise money for family farmers in the United States. The concert was organized by Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young, spurred on by Bob Dylan’s comments at Live Aid earlier in that year. (Dylan said, “I hope that some of the money…maybe they can just take a little bit of it, maybe…one or two million, maybe…and use it, say, to pay the mortgages on some of the farms and, the farmers here, owe to the banks….”) Nelson and Mellencamp then brought family farmers before Congress to testify about the state of family farming in America. Congress subsequently passed the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 to help save family farms from foreclosure.
Today, Farm Aid is an organization that works to increase awareness of the importance of family farms, and puts on an annual concert of country, blues and rock music with a variety of stars. The board of directors includes Nelson, Mellencamp, Neil Young, and Dave Matthews. Young’s speeches about the environment are a highlight of the annual shows.
Ron Blackwood and The Ron Blackwood Quartet recently signed an recording agreement with Homeland Entertainment Group and their first Homeland Project will be released in early February 2010.
