Scott Swanson
Oregon Jamboree organizers kicked off their 2021 festival Monday, April 19, by announcing performers for Saturday, July 31.
Festival Director Robert Shamek said that, thanks to the likelihood that crowds will be reduced this year due to COVID restrictions, “with everything that’s happened, we’re going to have more of a back- to-our-roots kind of show.”
He added: “I don’t think we’re going to be lacking on the artist side of things.”
Scheduled to play Saturday will be Jessie Leigh, Niko Moon, Parmalee, Cam and Dustin Lynch.
Shamek said some of those are acts that fans have requested repeatedly and that organizers have finally been able to line up for the Jamboree.
But it hasn’t been a walk in the park, he said.
“Most of the festivals across the United States have been canceled. Routing artists has been on the tough side. But we’re a 29-year festival. It’s nice to throw an offer out there, and have them recognize the Oregon Jamboree.”
Headliners have yet to be announced and the lineups for Friday, July 30, and Sunday, Aug. 1, are still being finalized.
“We just want to do full-day lineups,” he said. “Saturday is 100 percent done.
“We have some great offers out. I think this week we will be done and we’ll be announcing, though I don’t know when. We’re definitely super excited.”
He noted that the Saturday schedule is “definitely a younger lineup.”
“We have some amazing mature, veteran acts coming in as well,” Shamek said. “We have an all-around great lineup this year.”
He said organizers have been trying to secure “artists we have not had in the past” and, with the exception of Leigh, the Saturday line-up reflects that.
Leigh, of the Portland area, has performed on the second stage and made a special appearance at the 2019 SHAF Christmas Tree Auction in Sweet Home.
“She’s definitely coming up through the ranks,” Shamek said, noting that Leigh just returned from performing in Texas. “She’s playing everywhere she can. She’s played the the Jamboree several different times and she’s excited to play the main stage.”
Moon is a “big up-and-comer” who started out as a songwriter and producer for the Zac Brown Band, among others, before launching the group Sir Rosevelt with Brown and Ben Simonetti.
Shamek said when he saw Moon at a conference in Nashville last year, “I tried to book him right on the spot. He’s really excelled since then.”
Parmalee has been “on the top of the list for requests,” as has been Cam and Dustin Lynch.
Parmalee has been around since 2001, featuring brothers Matt Thomas and Scott Thomas, along with their cousin Barry Knox and Josh McSwain. Their hits include “Carolina,” “Close Your Eyes” and “Just the Way” (with Blanco Brown).
“They’ve been around for quite a little while and they have some great hits out,” Shamek said. “We’ve never had them. We’ve put offers out on them and this year they were available.”
Lynch, he said, has also been “highly requested, year after year” by fans. “These guys book years in advance and they get wrapped up in tours. It’s just one of those things. We got really lucky with the lineup. Actually, it isn’t just luck, it’s a lot of hard work.”
Since 2011 Lynch has released four albums and one self-titled EP, and he’s had seven No. 1 hits on U.S. Country Airplay charts, including “Small Town Boy,” “Seein’ Red” and “Ridin’ Roads.”
Cam started her country music career at about the same time as Lynch, in 2010, and has been nominated for a wide variety of music industry awards in recent years, with her hit “Burning House” going top-10 on multiple charts.
Shamek said he expects a minimum of 5,000 patrons at this summer’s festival, but if COVID restrictions in Linn County relax, that number could go up.
Tickets from the canceled 2020 festival are being rolled over, which means “we only have a few tickets left to sell,” he said. Ticket sales were “going crazy” Monday, after the lineup announcement, Shamek added.
The festival’s layout is in flux, and the Deschutes second stage may not be in Sankey Park, he said, depending on what the COVID restrictions look like.
“We have a couple of different scenarios. Our square footage allows 5,000 patrons at the current (“High” risk) level Linn County is in. If it loosens, we could add some more, closer to the festival.
“If available, we’ll open it up.”