Coors Banquet One Horse Town Concert a hit in Taber
There were 600 applicants for the 2018 Coors Banquet One Horse Town Contest, 235,000 votes were cast, and Taber came out as number one and was rewarded with the 2018 Coors Banquet One Horse Town Concert Sept. 15.
Despite the cold weather, over 3,000 people attended the concert at Taber’s Confederation Park.
“I think the concert was really well-received,” Jessica Teixeira, brand public relations manger for Coors Banquet, said. “Just looking at the energy and the crowd; it seemed really high from beginning to end. Everyone seemed like they were having a really great time. People had their hands in the air, they were dancing, and they were singing the words to every song; I really felt the energy for sure.”
Prior to the concert, Dawna Salvarinas from the Coors Banquet Team presented a guitar to the Town of Taber as a token of appreciation. Taber's mayor, Andrew Prokop, received the guitar on behalf of the Town.
“With the guitar being such a big part of country music and country music being such a big part of the DNA of small towns, and of course the DNA of Coors Banquet, we thought it was a fitting gift,” Teixeira said.
The guitar was signed by all three artists, was branded with the Coors logo, and was intended to be a momento of the occasion.
“On behalf of the entire Coors Banquet Team, we wanna thank you for rallying around One Horse Town,” Salvarinas said. “Taber has so much passion and energy and it's thanks to you and the entire community that we're here tonight; so thank you, Taber!”
The concert began promptly at 7 p.m. and emcee Jason McCoy opened the concert with a few comments before Kira Isabella took stage.
“I'm so happy to be here with you guys tonight,” Isabella said. “I have been really, really looking forward to this show. I really can't believe the turnout; this is incredible. I feel like the world's best country fans are in Alberta. This is my last show of the summer and this is my favorite crowd of the summer,”
Isabella sang several songs including Quarterback; her current single, Little Girl; and Danger, Danger ,a song written by and given to her by Maren Morris that will be released as Isabella's new single on Oct. 1.
“Every time I do Quarterback, someone comes up to me after and tells me how they can relate to this song, or how their story relates to it, and it breaks my heart,” Isabella said. “It made me realize, though, that's why I needed to do it.”
Between performances, McCoy kept the massive crowd pumped with jokes, information about the performers, and reminders of how great of a town Taber really is.
“Taber, Alberta; you guys are awesome!” McCoy declared. “Coors Banquet Canada is made up of folks, people. It ain't just a company, my friends; they love country music, they love small towns.”
Following Kira Isabella, Jason McCoy took to the stage and performed several numbers.
Tim Hicks then performed several solo numbers with his band and also performed duets with both Kira Isabella and Jason McCoy for nearly an hour.
“It's so great to be here,” Hicks said as he prepared to sing. “I have friends in Lethbridge who used to live in Taber and I used to be out here as a little kid, so it's good to be back. Music brings everyone together.”
For the grand finale, Dallas Smith took to the stage and wowed the crowd for nearly an hour and a half.
“Coors Banquet One Horse Town is the awesome party of the year!” Jason McCoy said. “Coors Banquet is a smalltown company; they come from a town of 20,000 in Golden, Colorado. They know all about small towns because they are a small town. Taber, y'all are a small town, but y'all throw one heck of a big party.”
Teixeira says that all three artists repeatedly gave kudos to the crowd for their energy and spirit, as it felt like a real concert, not just a visit to the park. The artists, Teixeira says, really enjoyed themselves.
“Thank you to the town of Taber and thank you to the surrounding communities who helped Taber bring it home,” Teixeira said. “We loved every minute and every bit of energy you guys gave to us. We were happy to be there and we hope you guys enjoyed it.”