Alabama’s June Jam Returns After 26-Year Hiatus
Alabama is bringing back their legendary June Jam in Fort Payne, Alabama on June 3.
The live concert event will take place at the VFW Fairgrounds for the first time in 26 years. Alabama will headline and close the festival, with special guests to be announced in the coming weeks.
Alabama’s Fan Appreciation Week will also take place in the days preceding June Jam including a public Celebration of Life for the late Jeff Cook, Teddy Gentry‘s talent contest, a songwriters’ concert, a brunch at Cook Castle for the Jeff & Lisa Cook Foundation, and “Fandemonium” at Owen’s farm. The week’s full schedule of events will be announced at a later date.
June Jam was created by the Fort Payne natives and brought some of the biggest names in the country genre together for charity. Over 30,000 fans attended the first June Jam benefit concert in 1982. By 1991, June Jam brought 67,000 fans to Fort Payne, making it one of the biggest country music events in the nation. The June Jam Foundation has raised over $15 million for various charities. Previous performers include Garth Brooks, Charlie Daniels, Alan Jackson, The Judds, Tim McGraw, Toby Keith, Wayne Newton, Dolly Parton, Trisha Yearwood, Charley Pride, Willie Nelson and more.
Pictured (L-R): Conway Entertainment Group’s Brandon Mauldin, Lisa Cook, Randy Owen, Conway Entertainment Group’s Tony Conway and Absolute Publicity’s Don Murry Grubbs.
Alabama Fan Club presale tickets for June Jam are available now via ticketmaster.com. Tickets go on sale to the public on Wednesday, March 1 via ticketmaster.com and at the Alabama Fan Club & Museum.
“Our wishes are that Fort Payne will take June Jam and it will go on forever,” explains Alabama lead singer Randy Owen. “We lost Jeff and when me and Teddy are gone, hopefully the city will continue with the June Jam. We want this to continue to help the city, the town, the state, and just help people in general.”
On Feb. 7, Alabama was honored in their hometown, receiving the V.I. Prewett Lifetime Achievement Award from the Fort Payne Chamber of Commerce. The award recognized the band for their decades of giving back to the local community. During the banquet, Alabama announced the return of June Jam. Lisa Cook was also on-hand at the awards banquet to accept the honor on behalf of her late husband and Alabama co-founder, Jeff Cook, who passed away last November.
