Darius and Friends Benefit Raises Big Money for St. Jude
The numbers are in for the fourth annual Darius and Friends benefit. Spearheaded by Darius Rucker, the charity concert, auction and celebrity golf tournament raised more than $95,000 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
The concert took place at the world-famous Wildhorse Saloon in downtown Nashville on June 3. In addition to Rucker, Luke Bryan, Sam Bush, John Cowan, Radney Foster, Mallary Hope, Randy Houser, Dustin Lynch and Justin Moore performed. Joel Crouse, who is the opening act for 16 Taylor Swift stadium dates this summer, also made a surprise appearance.
The artists all shared some of their own hits with the crowd before teaming up with Rucker for a cover duet. Rucker then called everyone on stage for a group rendition of the Hank Williams, Jr. classic 'Family Tradtion' before closing out the night with his recent No. 1 hit 'Wagon Wheel.' Rucker's band, the Carolina Grey Boys, served as the house band for the evening.
"I look forward to this event all year long," Rucker says in a press release. "I get to share the stage with some of my favorite artists, friends and musical influences. As much fun as it is, it's all in the spirit of raising support for St. Jude's, an organization very dear to my heart."
One particular performance stood out from the rest for Rucker. "Getting to sing with Sam Bush and John Cowan from New Grass Revival, one of the bands that made me want to be a country singer, made the night even more amazing for me," he shares. Rucker joined them for 'Callin' Baton Rouge.'
The celebrity golf tournament portion of the benefit took place the following day and included Nashville Predator J.P. Dumont, Dierks Bentley, Jay DeMarcus and Joe Don Rooney from Rascal Flatts, Colt Ford, JT Hodges, Charles Kelley from Lady Antebellum, Dustin Lynch, Justin Moore, David Nail, Chuck Wicks, NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip and more.