Jo Dee Messina to play at Greene County Fairgrounds
WAYNESBURG – Grammy Award-winning country music artist Jo Dee Messina doesn’t complain about playing smaller venues and says she gives her full effort at every performance. And Messina plans to give it her all when she headlines the “Salute to Veterans” at the Greene County Fairgrounds in Waynesburg this evening.
Messina has had nine No. 1 singles, two platinum records, three gold records and the first female country artist to have three multiple-week No. 1 songs from the same album. She accomplished all of this with only a few albums to date.
The concert in Greene County will feature hits like “Lesson in Leavin'” and her first hit song, “Heads Carolina, Tails California” but also will introduce fans to songs from what she hopes is her soon-to-be released album, “Unmistakeable.”
During a recent interview, Messina shared how her career in country music started.
“When I was 13, I went around singing with house bands, there was no karaoke back then,” Messina said. “I put together my own band at 16 and toured around New England and then I moved to Nashville right after high school.”
She was 19 years old, and going to Nashville was like heading off to college for most, she said.
“At the time when most people are being asked ‘What do you want to be?’ I was already singing,” Messina said. “It was all I ever wanted to be (a (singer).”
When asked if there was a specific song in her catalog that defined who she is, Messina laughed.
“I have been asked that question before and the answer is that they are all me. It all depends on the day which one it would be,” she said. “Some days it is ‘I’m Alright’ and others it is ‘Bring on the Rain.’ It really is dependent on the mood that I am in and what is going on in my life at that time.”
Her last album, “Delicious Surprise”, came out in 2005.
So, fans who may have wondered where Messina has been recently might be happy to know that she does have a new album. Unfortunately, the reason the release date is up in the air is tied to the side of the music business that Messina said she dislikes.
“I wish I knew the answer to when the new album will be coming out,” she said. “It has been done for a long time and they keep changing the release date. Sometimes labels just over-think things. It’s sad because it is not only my life that it affects but everyone that works for me, too.”
She said that it took nearly five years for “Delicious Surprise” – that included her hit single “My Give a Damn’s Busted” -to be released.
“It is one of the hidden, ugly sides of the (music) business,” she said. “They can really tie you up.”
She said she can’t switch labels until she fulfills her obligation of seven albums for her current label, Curb Records. Messina said releasing seven albums can take many years if the record label chooses.
“It is a little bit discouraging. My writing has slowed down a little bit because I don’t have an outlet for it, a place to put it and release it,” Messina said. “When I am out there touring with a new album, it inspires me to write.”
Messina said that she is looking forward to performing in Greene County but that is how she feels about all of her performances. She does not have a diva attitude about where she performs.
“Every time we perform, it’s a blast. We have been doing a lot of radio promotions for the new songs where there are 20 people in a studio and we are singing acoustic,” she said. “Whether it is 60,000, 6,000 or six people, it is a chance to sing and share my music, and I always have a blast doing that.”
Messina said that working at any venue should be treated the same as the last.
“If you aren’t enjoying it every time, then you are doing it for the wrong reasons … you are not in it for the music,” she said. “You are in it for the recognition and fame.”
To people like that who don’t give it their all and complain about playing at a smaller venue, Messina said with a laugh that she just wants to tell them, ‘Oh god, then don’t play, you brat.’
“I only sing about the things that I can relate to and when I am singing, I am really feeling it,” she said. “I have been really passionate about all of the songs that I’ve done.”
It shows when one sees a video of a Messina concert. Her high energy is almost exhausting.
“I workout a lot. When I did the ‘Bring on the Rain’ video and ‘Delicious Surprise’ I was really at my leanest. I run every day and watch what I eat. You don’t get arms like I had in ‘Bring on the Rain’, naturally,” she said with a laugh. “I run every day but I was running an hour a day then. It is actually easier to do it when I am on the road where things are more structured.
“I know what time I have to be places and I find a gym wherever I am at and work out, go for my run. At home, I get up in the morning, let out the dogs … it is not a set schedule.”
Does Messina ever see herself retiring from music?
“No, I don’t think I will ever stop completely. I look to those people like Sting and Tina Turner who have had a lifetime of entertaining and making music, and that is what I strive for,” Messina said. “It is a part of who I am, and as long as the good Lord lets me, that is what I will be doing.”
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Tickets for the Jo Dee Messina concert at the Greene County Fairgrounds will be available for purchase at the gates. The walk-in gate will be located on the Route 21 side of the fairgrounds. Drive-in traffic will enter on the Route 188 side. Tickets are $10 and $20 with cash-only being accepted as a form of payment. Parking is free. Proceeds from the event are slated to go to local veterans’ organizations. The venue will open at 5:30 p.m. with food and beverage, souvenir and mining-related vendors under the grandstands. The opening act for the event is local country recording artist Bryn Marie. A 25-minute fireworks display will follow immediately after Messina’s performance.