Frankie Ballard Goes From Swift to Seger on a Fighter Plane
What do you do if you're pressed for time to get from a photo shoot with Taylor Swift in Nashville to a concert with Bob Seger in New Orleans that same day? If you're Frankie Ballard, you get a fighter plane to take you.
"It's been a totally crazy week!" Frankie tells The Boot. "We're out on tour with Bob Seger, then I had to fly to Los Angeles to film my video for 'A Buncha Girls' Monday (May 2), and today (May 3) in Nashville I'm doing a photo shoot with Taylor Swift that she's doing with her opening acts. I'm playing in New Orleans tonight, and there was no possible way to wrap the Taylor thing and then make it to New Orleans for the Seger show on a commercial flight."
So how did he get his hands on a private plane, you ask? "To make a long story short, my uncle is a pilot, and I called him up and asked him if there was anyway he could fly me privately down to New Orleans so I could make the show," the Michigan native explains. "However, the engines are off his plane getting maintenance and they won't be back until Thursday or Friday. But, he's got some buddies who are pilots and, basically, one's got a decommissioned Soviet MiG."
This generous friend is Frankie's saving grace. "He's going to come pick me up in his fighter jet and take me to New Orleans after the Taylor shoot," Frankie says. "I gotta put on a flight suit and a G-suit and a helmet. They have to show me the ejection seat just so I can go to the show. It's going to be awesome! [laughs]"
However, there's only one thing on the 'A Buncha Girls' singer's mind. "I'm going to ask him if we can buzz the arena like in 'Top Gun,'" he reveals. "It's going to be so fun."
While he may not be able to take the MiG, Frankie could possibly make a stop at your house in the next few weeks. "Right now at FrankieBallard.com, you can pre-order the album and it comes in package with a t-shirt. The album's signed, and it's a special price and everything," he explains. "We're going to randomly pick one pre-order client, and I'm going to specially deliver it to their house. We're just going to mix it up and pick one out of the hat. I might show up on your door step with your Frankie Ballard stuff. [laughs]"
If you can't get your hands on a fighter plane in order to make it to New Orleans to see Frankie tonight, check out his list of future tour dates here.