'Roots & Boots' to headline 2018 Phillips County Fair

Country music fans are in for a treat at this year's Phillips County Fair as the veteran country singers Sammy Kershaw, Aaron Tippin, and Collin Raye form the trio 'Roots & Boots' and will be headlining the Grandstand on Friday, August 3.

Sammy Kershaw

Since his debut on the music scene in the early '90s, Kershaw has remained one of the most consistent power hitters in country music, both with a chain of major hit records and sell-out touring schedules.

Kershaw's plan for country music is reclaiming its roots and recapturing the spirit that made it great.

"Man, for someone like me who had George Jones' music imprinted in my DNA before birth, the last few years have been rough as a fan of country music," noted Kershaw candidly in a recent interview. "Country music is not a formula. ... It's a music with its own soul, ... and I'm all about saving that soul."

Collin Raye

Born Floyd Elliot Wray on Aug. 22, 1960, in De Queens, Arkansas, Raye was one of the true hit makers of the 1990s. Raye continues to record soulful, heartfelt material with the honesty and richness that is signature to his vocals alone.

With 24 top 10 records, 16 No. 1 hits, and having been a 10-time male vocalist of the year nominee, Raye remains one of his era's great voices.

Aaron Tippin

Tippin, who marks his silver anniversary as a recording artist this year, admitted that he looks at his career longevity with a little bit of amazement.

"I think about it and go, 'Wow, what am I doing still here?' I look at the flight that we took off in," he said, referring to his fellow newcomers at the time of his career launch. "A lot of them are gone it seems. Some quit by choice. Some ran out from under it, but to be here 25 years doing it, I am the luckiest hillbilly that ever lived."