Whittlesea Country Music Festival ready to go

While most people may know Craig Lloyd as the CEO of the City of Whittlesea, he will showcase his other passion when he headlines the Whittlesea Country Music Festival on Saturday. Mr Lloyd will perform his new single ‘Take The Wheel’, which won Tamworth Songwriters Association Best Country Ballad of the Year at this year’s Tamworth Country Music Festival.

By Grace Frost

The Whittlesea Country Music Festival is set to return for its 22nd year this weekend, bringing an abundance of family fun, entertainment and, of course, plenty of country music.

The festival will kick off on Friday at 16:00 with a cruise night with classic cars in Church Street, and music to follow from 17:00.

Friday night will also feature a launch event for the festival at Whittlesea Bowls Club, with highlights to include live music from five-piece band the Gami Gami Devils and twin pop-rock duo Pink Envy from 7.30pm.

The main event will be at the Walker Reserve in Whittlesea on Saturday, with gates open from 3pm.

Performances will kick off at 3.30pm with opening act Craig Lloyd, who was recently awarded a prestigious songwriting prize for local country artists at the Tamworth Country Music Festival for his single ‘Take The Wheel’.

Headlining act James Blundell is sure to have local fans singing along to his hits including ‘Way Out West’ and ‘Down On The Farm’.

David Watson, vice president of Whittlesea Country Music Festival, said the talented artist line-up would also feature Melody Moko, Iain Archibald Band and Mitch King.

“We like to claim we discovered Mitch King,” he said.

“He’s back for the first time, probably in about five years. He is a very talented young man.”

Mr Watson said the festival was a great opportunity for family fun and entertainment.

“There will be carnival rides and things for the kids, there are food trucks and it’s just one of those rare occasions where everyone actually just gets together and has a good time,” he said.

The event is free and designed to be a fun family night out.

But Mr Watson said attendance and continued support was vital to the survival of the festival in its current form.

“The thing that makes it more and more difficult for us is that our funding is not increasing at the same pace as inflation, so it makes it more and more difficult to put the program together,” he said.

“We are trying to make sure it remains free. It’s just a great family night.”

For more information about the festival, people can visit the Whittlesea Country Music Festival Facebook page.

The Whittlesea Country Music Festival team is also on the lookout for committee members to help organize the festival each year.

To register their interest in joining the committee, people can contact Whittlesea Country Music Festival President Anthony Holding on 0408 349 392.