Louisiana’s Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff opens with NewOrleans.com Tailgate Town

Champions Square Event Features Multiple Performers, Fun for All Ages

NEW ORLEANS – The inaugural Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff (Saturday, Sept. 2, Caesars Superdome) presented by the Louisiana Office of Tourism will include a full day of activities as events begin at 12 Noon with NewOrleans.com Tailgate Town hosted by New Orleans & Company. Staged in in Champions Square at the Caesars Superdome, NewOrleans.com Tailgate Town will feature multiple performers and football-themed activations to entertain fans of all ages as a lead-in to the main event inside the Superdome.

Tickets for Louisiana’s Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff featuring headliner Garth Brooks and opening acts Lainey Wilson and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band remain on sale now via Ticketmaster. Tickets are $98.95 and include the full day of activities including the NewOrleans.com Tailgate Town.

NewOrleans.com Tailgate Town opens at Noon. DJ Jevity, Alex Smith, and Austin Bishop will provide the musical entertainment for Tailgate Town. Bishop will open the outdoor event at 12:30 p.m., followed by a set by Alex Smith, and then the closing performance by DJ Jevity.

Superdome doors are scheduled to open at 4:30 p.m. for the Brooks, Wilson, and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Wilson, a native of Baskin, La., was the CMA 2022 Female Vocalist of the Year; and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is a Grammy-Award winning band that has delighted audiences for nearly 60 years.

A music and entertainment event to celebrate the start of the 2023 college football season, the Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff is anticipated to be an annual Labor Day weekend affair, adding another world-class musical occasion to the New Orleans calendar. Fans are encouraged to wear their favorite school colors to celebrate their teams kicking off the 2023 college football season and visit the New Orleans & Company activation for free giveaways.

DJ Jevity is a highly talented and versatile electronic dance music (EDM) artist based in Nashville Tennessee. With a passion for music that knows no bounds, DJ Jevity has been captivating audiences and igniting dance floors for Twenty years. With an impressive repertoire of original tracks, remixes, and live performances, DJ Jevity is a name synonymous with high-energy and unforgettable music experiences.

“There’s more than one way to do country,” says Alex Smith, a native of Alexandria, La., “mine was born in Louisiana, same as me.”

From the bayou to the big city, Smith is bringing the best of the Pelican state’s musical stylings to the modern Nashville sound. His offerings see slide guitars and swamp grooves blended seamlessly with impeccable pop hooks and lyrics that shoot straight for the heart. Produced for years by Dolly Parton’s ace-in-the-hole Kent Wells, and boasting Billboard top one-hundred credentials, it’s no wonder Nashville Music Guide described him as “what country music needs right now.” His touring dates have seen him opening for auspicious acts like Brett Eldredge, Uncle Kracker, and Dolly Parton, and he’s enjoyed millions of streams on his music across all platforms. With a mouthwatering slate of releases poised to drop, Alex Smith has made it a good time to be a Country music fan.

Austin Bishop is a singer/songwriter from Piedmont, Ala. He found his love of music at the young age of six when he began singing in the church choir. A lover of all genres of music, Bishop’s writing inspiration comes from his own personal experiences – both good and bad. He tells his stories through his lyrics. Being raised by his grandparents, he was brought up as he calls it, “the old school way” and learned to respect everyone no matter who they are or where they come from. Bishop played college football and has been an elementary school teacher, bringing together all three aspects of the Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff.

Proceeds from the event will help the Allstate Sugar Bowl in its support of numerous community programs, including the organization’s much-publicized backing of the New Orleans Teacher Collective. These community programs also include boys and girls scholarships along with youth sports competition.

Tailgate Town will also feature range of football-related games and activities, including:

• 2-Minute Warning – Two players go head-to-head against each other and the clock. With two minutes, they will have to find and throw to hit the targets.
• Speed Pass…The Bullet – As a quarterback, under pressure you must throw that bullet pass fast to reach the receiver. This challenge will test throwing speed.
• Down and Out – This training area will have participants go through mini obstacles, as players go head-to-head or against the clock.
• QB Challenge – Think you are up to the challenge of being the QB? This drill will test skills in a side-by-side competition throwing footballs at moving targets.
• Football Fowling – This fun game combines football and bowling. Players will take turns throwing footballs to knock down the pins.

For the latest updates on the Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff, follow @CountryKickoff on Twitter and Instagram, “like” Sugar Bowl Country Kickoff on Facebook, or visit SugarBowlCountryKickoff.com.

About the Sugar Bowl:

The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 28 national champions, 102 Hall of Fame players, 52 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 89-year history. The 90th Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Semifinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2024. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests over $1 million into the community through the hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards, scholarships and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting nearly $2.4 billion into the local economy in the last decade. For more information, visit www.AllstateSugarBowl.org.

New Orleans & Company:

New Orleans & Company is the tourism and hospitality industry’s official destination sales, marketing and trade organization, responsible for driving over $10 billion of diverse annual business to the regional cultural economy. We attract leisure and cultural travel, business meetings, conventions, weddings, festivals, sporting and special events to New Orleans, considered the cultural capital of the south, in a highly competitive global environment. Founded in 1960, New Orleans & Company is committed to celebrating the richness of our culture while creating jobs, building careers, and enhancing the quality of life for every New Orleanian. For more, please call 504-566-5011, visit Neworleans.com, Facebook at New Orleans & Company, or Twitter and Instagram @Visit New Orleans.