Danny Gokey and Holly Williams are among the latest additions to Sprint Sound & Speed Presented by SunTrust, a fundraiser pairing NASCAR and country music, set for Jan. 8-9 in Nashville. The annual event benefits the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum, and Victory Junction, a camp for children with serious illness.

A special edition of the Grand Ole Opry at the Ryman Auditorium will open Sound & Speed on Friday, Jan. 8. American Idol Season 8 finalist Gokey will make his Opry debut, joining other newly added singers Holly Williams and Jason Michael Carroll, along with already announced participants Hank Williams Jr., Chris Young and Kyle Petty and his band. There will also be appearances by NASCAR’s Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, Jamie McMurray and Greg Biffle during the Friday night shows. There will be Opry performances at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., with varying artists schedules.

On Saturday, Jan. 9 the event continues at Nashville’s Municipal Auditorium, where fans of racing and country music will have the opportunity to get up-close and personal with drivers, team owners, and artists for autographs, story-telling, and question-and-answer sessions. The fan event will feature show car and sponsor displays, as well as a charitable auction with memorabilia from the racing and entertainment industries. Gokey, Danielle Peck, Corey Smith, Ashton Shepherd, Brady Seals, Nathan Lee Jackson and duo Kate & Kacey join previously announced participants Jason Michael Carroll, Josh Turner, members of Diamond Rio, and Young.

NASCAR stars Aric Almirola, Justin Allgaier, Kyle Petty, Michael Annett, Carl Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Kyle Busch, James Buescher, Brad Kesolowski, Logan Ruffin, Brian Scott and Morgan Shepherd join already announced participants Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Michael Waltrip, Clint Bowyer, Reed Sorenson, and David Stremme.

More drivers and country music artists will be announced in the coming weeks.

Since its inception five years ago, Sound & Speed has attracted an estimated 40,000 fans and raised more than $800,000 for Victory Junction (a camping experience founded by Kyle and Pattie Petty for children battling illnesses) and the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum.

For details and ticketing information visit soundandspeed.org.

Jimmy Wayne is on a crusade for the homeless. The singer plans to walk from Nashville to Phoenix to raise funds and awareness for at-risk individuals, particularly youth and young adults. He will sleep outdoors and in shelters along the way.

His journey—called the “Meet Me Halfway” campaign because he is walking halfway across the country—will start on New Year’s Day at Nashville youth services organization Monroe Harding.

Wayne says his journey is inspired by his teen years, during which he experienced homelessness, and was spurred on the nation’s recent economic downturn which has given rise to the number of people without a safe place to sleep.

“I realize beginning a mission like this in the dead of winter and walking through the middle of the country is going to be difficult, but I hope and pray I am up to the challenge,” Wayne said. “But that’s what the homeless are dealing with each and every winter they go without a home of their own.” Marmot Sportswear is providing Wayne with essential cold weather clothing.

As a teen growing up in North Carolina, Wayne occasionally found himself homeless. He was shuffled between shelters and foster care until an older couple took him in and changed his life at age 16.

Wayne has selected HomeBase Youth Services in Phoenix, where he will end his trip, as the recipient of donations because of the work they do with homeless young adults (age 18–21).

According to Google Maps, walking the more than 1660 miles from Nashville to Phoenix would take at least 22 days.

Read more about “Meet Me Halfway” at www.jimmywayne.com.