Big Kenny (one half of the Big & Rich duo) has plans to bring a new musical experience called Electro Shine to next years' top festivals. According to Billboard, Electro Shine is a fusion of EDM beats and traditional instruments — a trend that is seeing success in the EDM world (think Avicci's "Wake Me Up").
"We were starting to see other artists coming from EDM right now who are putting country elements into their music," he told Billboard. "We started doing that before any of them. Now, you've got Avicii coming out with 'Wake Me Up,' and 'Hey Brother,' using bluegrass artists in that music - a whole new place for that. We've been building this melody and bringing those EDM elements into it for two years. What we found is performing it live, the audience doubled. We did it in 2012 at Twin Lakes, and then again this year. This year, there were so many people climbing over the fence to get on stage that I had to stop. It was getting so packed that we were scared somebody was going to fall off the stage."
Big Kenny has big plans coming in the next year for this experience he wants to bring to the masses, and he thinks fans will go crazy for it.
"With Electro Shine it's all about the experience," he told them, "We never went into the music thinking we were building it for radio or that it was going to fit into a format, but we know there's an audience because of how they've reacted as we've tested this thing. We're building this all-inclusive festival inside of a circus tent that will put people inside an experience they've never had before. John and I travel the world and go in some of the banginest clubs you'd see anywhere and see how intense the whole experience is."
According to the article, Electro Shine is ready to launch worldwide. They have nailed down a concept and secured two circus tents. The experience will be all inclusive, complete with lasers, fog sheets, dancers, actors and aerialists. "It's a musical circus that doesn't stop and is all engaging. It's going to be fun, fun, fun."
To get this project moving, Big Kenny plans to align with several top music festivals across the country. The plan is to have the festival buy the "circus" and set it up on the festival grounds. The circus would take place every night of the festival. Big Kenny will present the show.
"I'm going to put a lot of musicians and entertainers to work, because our goal is going to be to have multiple tents," he told them. "It's a musical experience based on that. We bill it like you're coming to a show on Broadway than you're coming to hear hit songs by specific artists. Multiple artists are involved, and all the songs are collaborations. We're going to build more and more of those."
Through all of this, he hopes to introduce new talent to the festival scene. But according to Billboard, he doesn't plan to put Big & Rich on hold even with all this work. They reportedly have nine new country songs mastered for an upcoming album. A 60-date tour is in the works for Big & Rich in 2014 as well as about 25 festivals planned for Electro Shine.
Watch the Electro Shine documentary here, and let us know what you think in the comments section below!
