Contemporary country is woefully short on proud progressives. Though Brad Paisley doesn’t try to fill the void, he happily spoke for the more open-minded contingent of country audiences on his bright-eyed 2009 album American Saturday Night, which looked beyond pickup trucks and small-town values to celebrate American marvels that his country peers sometimes ignore, including multiculturalism, marvelous technological advances and the remarkable capacity to embrace change. It was one of the only hit country albums that welcomed the nation’s first black president with open, unsuspicious arms. Of course sometimes Paisley's good intentions get the best of him, as on last year's infamous "Accidental Racist," a well-meaning but oafish song with LL Cool J that was, ironically, as accidentally racist as its title.
Summerfest announced this morning that Paisley will headline the Marcus Amphitheater with openers Darius Rucker and Joel Crouse on Friday, June 27. Tickets go on sale Friday, Feb. 21 at noon.
