By Eric Ladd PUBLISHER
Wow.
That’s the word that keeps coming to mind when we think back on the last two weeks at Big Sky Events Arena. Watching that venue fill up with fans from across the country, seeing kids perched on their parents’ shoulders straining for a better view, watching local vendors work through lines of hungry fans, and then watching world-class artists take the stage in support of conservation—it’s a lot to take in, and we’re still taking it in.
This past weekend’s headliners, Riley Green and Carrie Underwood, lived up to every bit of their billing and delivered one of the most memorable shows Big Sky has ever seen. LeAnn Rimes and Kaitlin Butts brought performances straight from the heart, the kind that leave artists saying our venue is one of the most special in the country to play. And opening acts Jamie McLean and Fader McGavin were the perfect match for the weekend—their gratitude for being part of it matched our own for having them.
That sentiment didn’t stop at the artists. Talking with managers and touring crews after the shows, the same thing kept coming up: that Big Sky Events Arena has become one of the top venues in the country to play, full stop. Coming from people who spend their year on the road in every market imaginable, that means something. And it’s not lost on us; planning for next year’s lineup is already underway.
Zoom out further and the picture gets even bigger. Over the past month, we’ve hosted more than 20 events at Big Sky Events Arena, welcomed over 40,000 people through the gates, generated a marketing reach in the hundreds of millions of impressions worldwide, and raised more than $1.5 million for charity.
Let that sink in.
We showed that a small mountain community can host on the big stage. An intimate venue in the center of our town has a heart as big as anywhere, and we’ve built a reputation for being best in class. My team at Outlaw deserves a standing ovation for the work they put in to make it happen.
Three generations of families gathered together under the big Montana sky: grandparents, parents and kids, including my own. That’s what stuck with me most: looking around and seeing families like mine, spanning generations, singing the same songs and making the same memories side by side. Money and awareness were raised to help us support each other. But most importantly, we all cheered and sang together, and created a memory of gathering and celebrating life, together.
Over these past two weeks, I personally received hundreds of high fives and thank-yous from all of you, and I hung on every word of it. Every one of those exchanges was a reminder of why we do this: to create a fun energy in Big Sky for reasons that truly matter.
Thank you, Big Sky. Here’s to what’s next.
