GONZALES, La. (WAFB) - The Boots on the Bayou Music Festival is set to bring thousands of country music fans to Gonzales.
Locals hope the festival will give the area an economic boost, especially the people who work at the Holiday Inn and Frenchy's Bar and Grill. They said construction on Highway 30 has made staying busy difficult.
"It's definitely been a headache for the last year and a half," admitted Mason Lirette, General Manager of the hotel and restaurant.
Lirette and Megan Boutte have been struggling to keep their booking rates high.
"The LSU games and maybe the occasional Saints guests that want to stay a little outside New Orleans, we'll pick up some of that, but there's not a lot that brings in guests otherwise, so these events definitely help us to thrive," explained Boutte, General Manager of the Holiday Inn Express in Gonzales.
The outdoor country music festival is coming to the front lawn of the Lamar Dixon Expo Center.
"This is a festival that is going to be a staple in Southeast Louisiana," said Kyle Rogers, General Manager of the Expo Center.
After having huge success with the Rock the Country festival a few years ago, Rogers was eager to bring a more permanent event back to Gonzales.
"The idea was to bring a high-end music festival to the Capital Region, and we all felt like Lamar Dixon was the best place for it," explained Rogers. "Having the opportunity to continue a festival in this area and bring something of this scale here, we jumped all over it."
In just two weeks, the expo center's front lawn will be transformed into a giant music stage, with big names like Chris Stapleton, Keith Urban, Riley Green, Parker McCollum, and more. Urban is the newest addition to the lineup. He will now be the headliner on Friday night instead of Cody Johnson, who had to cancel his shows for the rest of the year after having surgery on his eardrum. It's still a lineup Rogers knows will bring in thousands of people each day.
"Tickets have been sold in five countries, and about 30 different states have bought tickets, so we are really looking forward to hosting our out-of-town friends," said Rogers.
All those out of towners will need a place to stay, eat, and shop. Rogers estimates the festival will generate roughly $10 million for the local economy, bringing a much-needed boost to businesses like Boutte's.
"It shows those guests those people we can rely on, the other businesses we can work with, and again, if we're doing good, they're doing good and being able to know we've got this repeat business year after year," said Boutte.
If all goes well, Rogers plans to have Boots on the Bayou return for years to come. Tickets for this year's festival are still available online. You can buy tickets for October 31, November 1, or both nights.
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