Red, White and 90's: Dublin Celebrates Independence Day with Nostalgic Music and Community Traditions

The easiest part of July 4th is showing up. The hard part is making Dublin's traditions run on time, feel welcoming, and still surprise people who’ve been coming for years.  Lindsay and Bruce sit down with Alison LeRoy, Director of Community and Events, to break down our Independence Day, America 250 celebration.

We talk about moments to watch for and join in:  including a fun nod to the circus and crowd-pleasing balloons at the July 4th parade, the morning fishing derby at Avery Park, and then all the festivities at Coffman Stadium. Music is a huge part of the night, so we dig into what to expect from Jakob Dylan and The Wallflowers.  Plus, Lindsay and Bruce talked with the opening act and country music up-and-comer, Adam Sanders. 

If you still want to come and enjoy music and fireworks, there's a way to do it for free too!   All you have to do is volunteer.   So, if you’re searching for Dublin Ohio Independence Day plans and America 250 celebrations, this is your practical guide with real context and scoop behind the holiday.  For more, just visit www.DublinOhioUSA.gov 

Subscribe for more ways to connect with Dublin, share this with a friend planning their July 4th, and leave a review so more neighbors can find the show.

Transcript

Welcome And America 250 Preview

SPEAKER_01 0:03

Hello and welcome to Link Ahead. Roll out the red carpet. Cue the fireworks. We know why.

SPEAKER_02 0:10

Back by popular demand. We have to have her on at least once per season. The one person I think she's been on more than any other guest, and that is none other than Alison Leroy, our director of community and events. Welcome back. Thanks. I mean, it feels like home. Yeah, we should just give her a co-host badge at this point.

SPEAKER_01 0:31

That's it. That's it. All right, Allison. It's that time. Let's talk about America 250, Independence Day. It's coming to Dublin this year. Celebration. What is going on? You know, are we going to let's light the town up? Tell us a little bit about this year's celebration.

SPEAKER_04 0:45

Well, it's it's really been something great because we've been doing it all year round. You know, what you know, starting out with state of the city, doing some history there, and kind of bringing it all through. We just had our Memorial Day event, which was a lot of fun, where we were able to take our traditional Memorial Day event, but kind of do this community picnic afterwards that just brought everybody together. We had some great bands. You know, it was really fun. And so some of that stuff we're gonna carry for through the Fourth of July, obviously. There are some amazing floats and parade units planned. So it's good, you know, the parade's really gonna pop off. And you know, I think it's gonna be a lot of fun setting up for the whole night, too.

SPEAKER_02 1:22

Yeah, so we've already done, like you mentioned, things

Parade Highlights And Circus Throwback

SPEAKER_02 1:25

throughout the year, but with it being America 250, the 250th birthday, a real milestone. Um, talk about some of the things that are gonna be special this year. I mean, are there gonna be special floats, things like that in the parade that people can watch out for?

SPEAKER_04 1:39

One of the coolest things that we're most excited about is the Sales Circus recreation that's gonna happen with the float. And we've been putting together some posters and working with the Dublin Historical Society. They're really kind of taking the lead on that. But I, you know, for the people who don't know the Cells Circus, um, it was one of the largest circuses in the country, and it all started out with the Sales Brothers. Um, and so it's just it has that real great connection both to America 250 and Dublin's history.

SPEAKER_01 2:08

All right, clowns. Are there clowns? Oh, there's clowns.

SPEAKER_04 2:11

There's always gonna be clowns. We're bringing back some of the really big balloons. Um we're just kind of adding a little special touches here and there.

SPEAKER_02 2:18

Uh okay, but this is one of the best days in Dublin. Everybody loves it. It's a whole day celebration. Walk us through

From Fishing Derby To Fireworks

SPEAKER_02 2:25

that starting uh first thing in the morning.

SPEAKER_04 2:27

The first thing is the fishing derby, which um, you know, I I said it's one of the things that's kind of held on the longest, and it has that cool tradition of, you know, kids and adults go out and fish, and you know, whether you catch, you know, the one-inch fish or the three-foot-long. Either way, you're throwing it back, or whatever your story is gonna be. Um, you know, it's just a kind of a great way to start off the morning. Um, and then followed by the parade, of course, that starts at 11 and goes through historic Dublin. And then we always say, um, the middle of the day is kind of a fun thing for people just to gather with their, you know, their family, their friends. A lot of people have picnics. We tried at one point to do some different things in the middle of the afternoon. Everybody already had their tradition. Yeah. I mean, I mean, I say this all the time, but 4th of July is all about traditions.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 3:16

You can't really change it. It's like, you know, whatever your family does at this time, you know, my family always had red, white, and blue pancakes in the park. Yeah, it's a lot of fun. So, you know, everybody just kind of has their thing. And then at 4 30, we open up the gates at the high school. And so whether you are one of those people that comes and gets your table and you've had it, and you all your friends or family are gonna be there, or you're one of those people who sits outside. We get people who I mean, they have their spots picked out, they have their their blankets all marked out on the ground, they know exactly where they're gonna be. Um, so everybody has their own way of kind of experience that night, which is you know, you can enjoy the food and the entertainment, and you can do it your own way.

SPEAKER_02 3:56

I've done it all. I was just telling someone, you know, I've sat at the table, I've sat in the bleachers, I've sat out on the blanket, and there's not a bad spot in the stadium.

SPEAKER_01 4:03

So you know, we get really geeked out when we talk about entertainment, and I know we're everyone in the city is

The Wallflowers Booking Story

SPEAKER_01 4:10

just like, hey, what do they have this year? Who is it? So we know it's the wallflowers. Yeah. Um you ever thought about doing a surprise? Pull back the curtain.

SPEAKER_03 4:19

Oh, that's an interesting thing.

SPEAKER_01 4:22

Put that in a in a file somewhere in the case.

SPEAKER_02 4:24

It would probably be the worst-kept secret.

SPEAKER_04 4:27

I probably would get so much pressure. I could I would crack for sure.

SPEAKER_01 4:30

All right, so so tell us a little bit about the wallflowers.

SPEAKER_04 4:32

So the wallflowers, I think, for a lot of people know that Jacob Dylan is the leader of the band, and um his dad is Bob Dylan, but I mean he's kind of one of those first Nipo babies, but or but I think you know his talent really showed through.

SPEAKER_05 4:48

Sure.

SPEAKER_04 4:48

I mean, I there's a lot of people that actually you tell that to when they don't even know it. So it's kind of funny. So he's got all these great songs from the 90s, and I think that's for us is being able to move into some different decades, get some you know, music that different generations know. Um, but it's just it they had he has a ton of songs that are just fun to hear.

SPEAKER_01 5:05

And bringing down the horse is the 25th anniversary of that or 30th? I think it's the 25th.

SPEAKER_02 5:12

We can't be that old.

SPEAKER_01 5:13

No, it's 25th. It's 25th. But I will I would tell everybody who's listening right now, go to Spotify, go to where you get your music, and listen to this album from start to finish. And it is a great album.

SPEAKER_02 5:24

It's definitely 30. Yeah, I'm doing the math. Oh, so it's gotta be the 30 years. It's okay.

SPEAKER_04 5:31

It takes us back. Yeah, I mean, I think that's one of the things that people don't do anymore. They don't listen to the whole album all the time. But you go back, and that that's what he's doing a lot on this tour, is kind of doing that whole album just to kind of have that feel and to, you know, like experience what it's like to sit down and listen to a whole album.

SPEAKER_02 5:47

Right. And booking bands is always about logistics and timing and a lot of hard work. Uh, because you are talking with like four different managers for months and months. Tell us more about that.

SPEAKER_04 6:00

I always say it'd be great if you could just go to the shelf and say, I want XYZ band. And oh, they're available. Um, but you know, we've had bands that are available, but they're in California, and we're trying to figure out does it make sense to try to fly them in, you know, but then we think, uh, you know, or they're you know, they're playing on the second someplace. Do we have enough time? Even the wallflowers, um, like we were trying to figure out um they're gonna be in Montana right before. So is it is their equipment gonna get here? Or do we hope so? Can you have some stuff at the ready in case they need to borrow your guitar? Right. But it is fun because at one point we thought we were gonna have to rent, like, you know, he could bring his guitar, sure, but we actually just confirmed today, actually, that it's actually all gonna get here in time and this bus is gonna pull up and it's gonna have all their stuff so that you know they're not borrowing stuff. But it's one of those things that's like, you know, the the whole summer sets up for a lot of these bands where they're going to different festivals, they're you know, and sometimes they might get booked at a specific festival, but they don't know exactly what time of day or what day even they're gonna be performing. Um, so sometimes it is like, wait, do they have time to get on a plane and get here, or do they need that day in between? So there's just a lot of different things. And a lot of times bands are also then touring with someone else, so you just you just kind of never know. And then somebody's cousin has a wedding and you know the drummer can't come. Um just actually happened.

SPEAKER_02 7:29

And then you have to have a band that wants to play on the 4th of July rather than just whatever their family traditions.

SPEAKER_04 7:35

There's a lot of bands that have it blocked out. We'll get a list and they have their blackout dates, and a lot of them black out this week um just because, yeah, there are those family traditions.

SPEAKER_01 7:45

Weird Al must have that because you've never brought him in. Sorry. Uh changing gears

Why Adam Sanders Opens

SPEAKER_01 7:50

on that. Let's talk about the opening act. Adam Sanders. Now, we had the pleasure to talk about, talk to him, but before we get to that, uh, how did he land on your radar?

SPEAKER_04 7:59

You know, we were kind of um we're having these discussions, you know, because people have talked about do, you know, they want to get some more country, and we've had some country artists in the past, but we also talked about wanting somebody up and coming. So, you know, that we have the wallflowers that are well established at work, but let's start maybe bringing in some of those newer acts that are sort of up and coming. And he's you know, when you started reading his resume, it was like, you know, he's an amazing writer, you know, he's written all these hit songs for other people, but you know, having the experience being on TV, being in his own show, and being in that competition, we kind of knew we had the chops to be able to be on stage and perform.

SPEAKER_02 8:36

Yeah, and speaking of chops, as Bruce mentioned, we had a chance to catch up with Adam um in Nashville, Tennessee earlier this

Adam Sanders On Crowd Energy

SPEAKER_02 8:44

week. Well, hello, Adam, and thank you so much for joining Link Ahead.

SPEAKER_00 8:48

Absolutely. Thanks for having me today.

SPEAKER_02 8:51

Yeah, we are um so excited to have you as part of our Independence Day celebration uh here at Kaufman Park. Uh, you are going to be here, and I know you actually have a lot of longtime fans uh here in Central Ohio. And then uh for those people and for those who maybe haven't been familiar with you or your music, what can we expect out of your concert on the 4th of July?

SPEAKER_00 9:13

Well, we like to do a very high-energy show. I like to say I want to be the host of the party, and the the concert is really all about the fans. I just want to be the soundtrack to their night. Um, you know, I I want to make people feel what I feel when I listen to music. And so it's less about me, it's more about them, and just uh just a fun environment, uh a lot of crowd interaction. Um, so it's gonna be a great, great night. Awesome.

SPEAKER_01 9:38

So you were recently named an artist to watch, and you're coming off your win. Congrats on CBS Paramount's The Road. Um were you you worked alongside some major names like Keith Urban, Blake Sheldon. What was that whole experience like for you?

SPEAKER_00 9:52

Incredible. I mean, those guys are obviously uh legends in our format. And, you know, what I took away from the whole experience is their willingness to help guys like myself uh and the other contestants that were on the show try to get to the next level just because they sort of understand how tough it is to make it in this business. And I think they all looked at us as artists that were deserving of a next spot up in the ranks. And so the fact that they were just so willing to help us get there was just something that we'll never be able to repay them for. Um, you know, all in all, it was a very cool show, a very different concept from what we're sort of used to with sort of a quote unquote singing competition show. This was all about, you know, us going out and opening for Keith Urban uh in front of real fans in real cities, playing our original music, full bands, um, and then also having some uh some major networking behind it uh to sort of show it to the world. So it was really cool.

SPEAKER_02 10:48

What a great opportunity. Uh so give us a little behind-the-scenes scoop. What are Keith and Blake like when the cameras are off?

SPEAKER_00 10:56

Well, uh Blake is a nut, if you can imagine. Um you see and who you would expect. Uh Keith is just, you know, I've always said Keith is is like a triple threat. You know, he can sing them, he can write them and perform them. Um one thing I'll never forget is we were in Memphis, and uh each night we performed, we got to do two songs, one original and one cover. And I was planning to do um Tim McGraw, I Like It, I Love It in Memphis. And Keith came up to me during rehearsal and he said, Hey, you're never gonna believe this, but I sang the demo to that song. And it blew my mind. He literally pulled out his phone and played me him singing the demo to I Like It, I Love It, which would later be recorded by Tim McGraw. And so even that was just mind-blowing to sort of hear Keith Urban singing that, which was pretty cool.

SPEAKER_03 11:49

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 11:50

So, did either of them give you advice about performing, touring, connecting with the audience that really stuck with you?

SPEAKER_00 11:57

Not really. I think, you know, they all sort of looked at us uh as artists that sort of really knew who we were and what our strengths were. And I think a lot of it was just, hey, do what you do that has got you to this point and uh be confident in your abilities and you know, relay that to the fans. The good thing about The Road is all of all 12 of us were so different in what we bring to the table. You know, you've got Cassidy Daniels, who is just a powerhouse vocalist, and you've got me who's running around and entertaining and just kind of a jackrabbit on stage, and then you've got a guy like Forrest who is a very sweet personality, can crack a joke and make you laugh. And so uh musically we were all different. And then we also brought a little bit different things to the stage, sort of our our our secret weapon, I would say. Um, and I think that they just kind of did a really good job of setting back and letting us do our thing. Sometimes they would sort of say, Hey, um, I don't know if that song is gonna translate well, or maybe you should try that a half step up or half step down. You know, they would sort of give those kind of critiques, but all in all, it was just more about uh do what you do best, I think.

SPEAKER_02 13:11

Great. What a great opportunity for you. And now you're part of that club. They'll probably bring you back in in seasons to come. So congrats again. So now you are out on the road. Tell us what your summer looks like. How many shows are you playing? What's it look like for Adam Sanders?

SPEAKER_00 13:26

Yeah, so we're really excited. You know, we got to go out and do Stagecoach, which was an incredible performance. Uh, I don't think you get any bigger than Stagecoach. You know, that was an awesome experience. We're coming to see you guys July 4th weekend, which is gonna be awesome and open for the Wallflowers, um, which is obviously an iconic band. I mean, it's when you listen to their music, you you sort of forget how many songs you know of them, you know, which is really cool. Um, but we've got a lot of stuff teed up for the rest of the year. Um, we're working on new music, we're gonna be uh traveling all over. I actually found out yesterday that I'm getting ready to make my Opry debut next Wednesday, which is gonna be awesome. Right, bucket list milestone for me. So just a lot of great things happening in my world, and I couldn't be more grateful.

SPEAKER_02 14:11

That's great. You know, I uh was going to ask if you were a Wallflowers fan, and I remember seeing you in the finale with a 90s hat on, and I thought, I I think this is his kind of music too.

SPEAKER_00 14:20

Yeah, you know, I was a kid that grew up on uh just a lot of popular music. You know, 90s country has always been the roots of my music, and Alan Jackson was my childhood idol. But I was saying that, but I was a guy that listened to everything. I mean, I literally was uh when I would get off the bus uh from going to school, I would turn on uh MTV and watch TRL Live and would listen to all popular music. So it was a blend of a mix of all that, and and the wallflowers just kind of fit right in with all that. And again, it's kind of uh when you at least for me, um, when I found out that I was gonna get the the chance to open for them, I I kind of looked their music back up and I was like, oh my gosh, I did not realize that I know so much of their music, you know, which is kind of crazy.

SPEAKER_01 15:05

So so some of our listeners might not know that they've already heard your work. You've written number one songs for artists like Cole Swindell, Dustin Lynch. You know, what is it? Is it songwriting or performing? Which one of those like fit is the itch that you want to scratch the most?

SPEAKER_00 15:23

Well, I moved to Nashville to be an artist, without a doubt. Uh, it's what I've always enjoyed. I started singing and performing when I was three or four years old. Songwriting was just what sort of got my foot in the door in Nashville. And the fate of everything is when I was 12 years old, my uncle, who is in the music industry also, he called and said, Hey, have you ever thought about writing songs? And as a 12-year-old, that didn't really compute to me. And so he said, You should look into writing songs. I know you want to move to Nashville one day, and that could be your way into the industry. And fast forward several years, I started writing in high school, realized I enjoyed the process of it, moved to Nashville, started co-writing. Uh, I was I was in town for two years, working in construction with my dad when I got my first publishing deal. And six months into that deal, I got my first cut with Luke Bryan on his Crash My Party album, which was later named Album of the Decade, which was crazy. And that's exactly how I got my start uh was through songwriting, all because he planted a sea when I was 12. Wow.

SPEAKER_02 16:21

That's fantastic. And Luke Bryan played here um in central Ohio just a few weeks ago for the Memorial Tournament uh concert, and it was fantastic. So uh nice full circle moment there. Um well, we talked a little bit about the concert here in Dublin. You were going to be here for Independence Day. It's also America's 250th birthday, so we're going extra big this year. Uh, talk a little bit about maybe what kind of extra meaning that has for you personally or as an artist.

SPEAKER_00 16:48

Yeah, you know, I'm a proud American, and and in so many of my songs, there is sort of a a nod or a tip of the cap to our military and people at first responders that keep us safe. Um, you know, there's a line in in the Cole Swindell song, A Worth the Whiskey, you know, raising our glass through, you know, saving our backs overseas, and uh a song Tough People that I wrote um for Drew Baldridge that was uh a top 10 on radio. Same thing, you know, it kind of has in the bridge a little section about uh a soldier coming back, you know, from war, you know, in a in a box and you know, just kind of paying uh tribute to that. And so um anytime we get a chance to honor our military is is what we love to do, and and being able to do that through music is is a way that we can give back.

SPEAKER_01 17:33

That's great. Yeah, thank you. The all right, Keith Urban said, Adam knows how to work a crowd. So what can the Dublin crowd expect from you when you hit the stage?

SPEAKER_00 17:43

Just a lot of fun, interacting stuff. I want to be able to um, you know, give them the mic and let them be able to sing and you know, just feel like they're right there with us on stage. Like I said, you know, um, I've always approached it, I've said many times, you know, I'm an artist that doesn't really care about being famous, if that makes sense. Um I just want to make people feel what I feel when I listen to music and be the host of their night, their party, be the soundtrack to their life. And so if we can do that, we've did our job.

SPEAKER_02 18:16

Wow. All right, and before we let you go, when people leave your set here in Dublin, what do you hope they are saying about Adam Sanders?

SPEAKER_00 18:26

Oh, that he was a guy that uh you can tell he has such a passion for singing. Uh, you know, that's that's what I love more than anything. I, you know, I sing with a lot of emotion, and and I think that comes out of my performance. And I want people to say, man, you can just tell that that guy is doing what he loves every single day. And it's great because his song touched our lives, and we put our own lives in his lyrics.

SPEAKER_01 18:50

Awesome. Awesome. Getting excited. I am getting excited for this. So, Adam, we're excited to welcome you to the stage on July 4th. Thank you so much for joining us on Link Ahead.

SPEAKER_00 19:01

Looking forward to it, guys. Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_02 19:04

And we are looking forward to having him here. Uh, what a great guy. Um, I'm I'm really glad you found him, and that'll be really exciting for everyone to enjoy. A little bit of country, a little bit of rock and roll, something for everyone.

SPEAKER_01 19:15

Right. Absolutely.

Behind The Scenes On July Fourth

SPEAKER_01 19:16

Now, Alison, do you feel any pressure on because it's our 250th birthday going into this event? Like, you know, what it what is it that we're gonna do that's gonna put it over the top?

SPEAKER_04 19:25

I I mean it's funny because you know, it's it's such a milestone that you can, you know, it's hard to even imagine like 250 years. Right. Um, you know, and I think that the whole point of Fourth of July is to be together, you know, and you know, we get to experience some of those traditions of the fireworks, you know. You can't have Fourth of July without the fireworks. And, you know, bringing the whole community together is the biggest thing, I think, in Dublin, that you get to see all your neighbors, you know, kids you went to high school with, you know, things like that. It's just a lot of fun.

SPEAKER_02 19:58

All right. Alison, you've been doing this for a while. Tell us on the 4th of July, Independence Day, what does your day look like?

SPEAKER_04 20:04

Every year it starts the same for me because um NPR runs um somebody reading the Declaration of Independence. Oh bro. And I think it's like at 7:30 in the morning because it's every year when I'm coming in. So it's a really cool way just to kind of remember what we're doing that day. That I'm, you know, listening to them reading that declaration. And it it's it's funny when they talk about the tyranny from the king and you know. Oh my gosh. Yeah, it's it's really if you have not read it, it's it's interesting to read. Um because that always starts it off for me. And then I go over to the high school, and then depending on when the band gets there, so sometimes we have bands that have gotten there at 5 a.m. or the bus driver does, and they actually just sleep at, you know, at behind the stage for a couple hours before they get up. Um so it kind of depends on what time the band gets there, and then we just sort of start setting up, you know, whether we have to, you know, fill coolers of ice, we have to make sure all the tables are set up, you know, those kind of things, start putting signage up over the high school, and then I run over to the parade to see that get going. And usually before it even finishes, I'm going back to the high school. And then the rest of the day sort of depends on you know what's going on with the band, whether we've got weather, those things. Right. And then, you know, when we open up that first at 4 30, it's sort of interesting because you start getting the you know, the lines in. So you're just making sure everybody's getting through, moving on, and you're running back and forth, and then we go check on the fireworks guys, which is always fun, you know, and we're always trying to figure out because Sunny 95 has the soundtrack done at the same time. So at some point in the night we get in a meeting and we're talking to Sunny 95 and the fireworks guys and the sound guys in the stadium, so we make sure we have everything timed perfectly. You know, so it's all those kind of just like detailed things that you you know kind of don't think about, but it's it's kind of a fun tradition where it's like, okay, now we gotta go meet with the band and talk to the security guys, those things.

SPEAKER_01 21:59

Now you have A little bit of a hiccup last year.

SPEAKER_04 22:01

So I'm going to bring it up when she said something about running.

SPEAKER_01 22:06

You know, you had a different perspective last year. I think that would be good to share with our audience.

SPEAKER_04 22:11

Um yeah, be uh last year at about four o'clock, I was grabbing uh some wristbands for the band, actually, for their their guests to come in, and I backed out and I fell in a hole and I sprained my ankle. And um the fine paramedics over at Washington Township convinced me to go and check out our brand new hospital at the time. So I went down to Mount Carmel and spent an hour or so there while they did some x-rays and everything. But then I got to come back to the event and sit at a table, which I've obviously freaking noise. Oh, I thought you did that every time. I saw her with her feet propped up. So it was kind of cool because you know, people would step over, staff would come over, and and I would think of something that I would normally be doing, and so I texted to somebody. But it was kind of funny just to see it sort of all unfold and realize, first of all, that we have a great staff that are always willing to jump in and do everything. Um, but yeah, it was fun to sort of see the whole thing just go off and be happy that it was happening.

SPEAKER_02 23:12

Yeah, maybe you can learn that just delegate and enjoy.

SPEAKER_01 23:15

Oh, my ankle.

SPEAKER_04 23:17

Ouch. I'm not doing that this year.

SPEAKER_01 23:19

Good, good. Watch out for holes. All right, so can people still volunteer for Independence Day?

Volunteering And Last-Minute Tips

SPEAKER_04 23:24

Yeah, and I think some of the things that we always need help with the most, um, I mentioned that we have some more of the bigger balloons this year. So we do need people to hold the balloons, which sounds weird. Um, but we we need people that hold the the strings. Right. So we inflate the balloons and then you walk down the street with the balloon, and it's just a lot of fun because you get to wave to your neighbors as you're walking by. And I think a lot of people, and I like I never knew this. My mom had a like inner bucket list to be in the parade. Up parade. Anyway, any parade. So this is a way for somebody who has a bucket list to be in a parade to kind of jump in and wave at all, you practice your wave and see all your friends and neighbors. Um, so yeah, we're looking for that. And then we're always looking for people to help out at night because um those, you know, at the gates and at the tables and things like that, we need people just to check check wristbands and tickets. And not only do you get to go and volunteer, you also get to go and see the show. So we have a table reserved just for our volunteers. So if you've never been in a table and want to be at a table, that's a way to do that too.

SPEAKER_02 24:25

Very cool. And you can find that information on DublinOhiousa.gov. And I think we still have a few wristbands available. Tables are sold out, but sold out. Yeah. You could you can still get in the gates at this point. So all right, are you ready for rapid fire?

Rapid Fire Music And Concert Memories

SPEAKER_02 24:41

I think so.

SPEAKER_01 24:42

Yes, you are.

SPEAKER_02 24:43

I thought she might show up with the questions this time. Number six. Number six. Number six, okay. All right, question number one. If you could ask Jacob Dylan of the Wallflowers, um any question as a fan, what would it be?

SPEAKER_04 24:59

Well, it's funny because I I I was thinking I could ask him it, you know, even though like you're like I've already asked him a lot of questions, honestly. Um, I think one of the things is is for me, like having a famous dad, what makes you want to kind of stand out on your own? You know, what is that drive? Is it, you know, does it come from a different place and how do you make sure that you're different than whatever expects of you? Right.

SPEAKER_01 25:22

Good question. Uh I think we might have asked this before, but funniest or weirdest thing any band has ever asked for.

SPEAKER_04 25:29

You know, I think you did ask, and so I was like, I don't want to repeat myself, but I was remembering, and I and I won't say who it was, but somebody had brought their children with them, and they had um they went out and bought some fireworks, you know, which are not illegal to buy the fireworks, right? If you take them outside of Ohio or some weird rules about buying fireworks in Ohio. Yeah. And um, so it was funny because we thought, well, how is she gonna get these home even? But they were going on a private plane. But we also have Franklin County there with their bomb sniffing dogs. Oh no, you know, because we want to make sure everything's fake. Sure. And all I kept thinking is don't let those dogs go over and play that like that teenage girl with her fireworks. Um, but we actually told the guys and they, you know, it was kind of funny, but I think that was the strangest like, wait, what is going on back here?

SPEAKER_02 26:18

She she never runs out of a good story. No, absolutely not.

SPEAKER_05 26:21

Absolutely not.

SPEAKER_02 26:22

All right, if you could be the tour manager for any band or performer in the world right now, who would it be?

SPEAKER_04 26:29

I think it would be cool to be with Beyonce. Oh, that would be a lot of fun. Wow. I don't I don't know where I pulled that one out of, but I just think, you know, the places she must go to. Sure. And, you know, I always say it it's kind of cool cool to be around famous people and not be famous. Yeah, because you could probably get to go to you know, say you're in Rome and you want a private tour of the Coliseum, just you know, call it Bay and say, Hey, get me a dreaming big over there.

SPEAKER_01 26:57

Wow, I love that answer. That's awesome. All right, let's rewind. 16-year-old Allison has posters in her room. Oh who were your favorite acts back then that you had posters of?

SPEAKER_04 27:08

Well, I was definitely an 80s girl, so I had like um Billy, I had Billy Jewel pins, I remember. And that's I'm almost thinking more of the pins of my jean jacket.

SPEAKER_01 27:18

Easy, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 27:19

It was like Billy Jewel, I had Dave a Bowie, um, I tried like Billy Idol, I think. You know, like it was a total 80s thing. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:30

I I gotta know your answer, Bruce. What posters did you have when you're that's funny you say that.

SPEAKER_01 27:35

So I had I had movie posters, but I had a Twisted Sister poster on my wall. My mom comes in, calm, cool, collect, like she would, and Bila, and she would say, Hey, you know, um, I want that off the wall. And I'm like, come on, it's D. Snyder, he's holding like this bone or something. So uh she comes in the next night. I noticed that poster's still on the wall. Okay, sorry about that. I come home from school the third day, and all that's left are corners of the Twisted Sister poster where she had ripped it off and didn't say a word to me.

SPEAKER_02 28:04

I know two stories about your mom, and they both involve ripping. You're right.

SPEAKER_01 28:08

You're right. She was good at it. She was good at it.

SPEAKER_02 28:11

Yeah, I was gonna say, I'm not sure I was allowed to put posters on my mom.

SPEAKER_04 28:15

Or I had a sister we had to share. Oh my god.

SPEAKER_02 28:17

All right, fast forward to today. Who do you listen to?

SPEAKER_04 28:20

Gosh, you know, it's fun. Um, I uh was just spent some time and a lot of time with my niece who's 22 in the car, and we let her kind of control the radio. And what I've decided is I'm trying to listen to as much new music that I don't know and like stuff that I miss because what was cool, she had this cool mix of like it's Aretha Franklin, then it's the strokes, then it's like you know, some like role model or something, you know, like she has like this total range of things. And I was like, okay, so I'm gonna start listening to some of these. Like she was talking about Sia. So I started to listen to Sia and like just different things. So I think that's my goal right now. That's my goal this summer is just to listen and kind of Bruce up what you're saying, is like listen to whole albums. You know, so I'm like taking new artists and just saying, okay, I'm gonna listen to the album.

SPEAKER_03 29:13

There's some singles. I've actually found that some of them like, wait, there's only four songs. You're like, oh, they got new music. Well, not really, you know, just kind of the one song, but yeah.

SPEAKER_04 29:22

Yeah, so that's my goal right this this summer is listen to new stuff that I don't know and see what I really like.

SPEAKER_01 29:28

Love it. All right, so when you go to a concert, are you able to enjoy or can you take your event brain and turn that off?

SPEAKER_04 29:34

I think usually once the show starts, I can enjoy it. Um but then there's some shows like I I went recently speaking of stuff, like I went to the nine-inch nails show um that was at the arena downtown, and the technical like show of it was so cool that I kind of got more into like, oh, look at the scrim they're putting up and the video that they're doing. So sometimes I do kind of get distracted by it. It was so cool that I got distracted by the cool stuff.

SPEAKER_02 30:06

Right. I mean uh nine-inch nails are no joke. I've seen them at Nationwide Arena and your heart is like thumping. I've never heard such loud music in my life. Yeah, I loved it. Okay, so to you, what turns a concert into something special, something legendary?

SPEAKER_04 30:23

I mean, honestly, I think a lot of it is, you know, who you go with. Because when I think about some of like the greatest shows I've ever been or how much fun it was. I mean, I think about you know, being a teenager and going to shows like Up at Blossom or like Polaris. Yeah, you know, and it was that experience of like who you're with, the experience around it. Obviously, it's gotta be a great show. You know, everyone has their favorite concert that they talk about, you know, of all time. But I think it's it's just gotta be of the moment. I and I think one of the ones that I use again, it shows how old I am. I so clearly remember, and my sister and I both remember this so well, we went and saw Princess Purple Rain Tour at the Coliseum in Cleveland.

SPEAKER_05 31:07

Whoa.

SPEAKER_04 31:07

Which to uh like to this day, both of us are like, that's it. It's number one. Yeah, but it was like the time, the show. It was so crazy.

SPEAKER_01 31:17

I always find it funny, like we'll talk about shows, and I know we've talked about concerts in the past that we were at the same show and it's like obviously we didn't know each other, but it's like how our paths crossed and then crossed again.

SPEAKER_02 31:29

Yeah, exactly. All right, Allison. Well, we can't wait to cross paths with you on July 4th. Uh, enjoying the Wallflowers and Adam Sanders and the fireworks and celebrating America's 250th birthday. Thanks so much for being here on Lake Ahead. Thanks.

SPEAKER_01 31:47

And to our listeners, thank you as well for taking the time to connect with your city. Tune in next time as we continue to explore the many personalities and experiences that make Dublin a thriving place to live, work, and grow.