Summertime By George Starts 11th Year

(KNSI) – Summertime by George is back for year 11! The concert series kicks off its 2022 shows Wednesday night with two acts presented by RBC Wealth Management. Kat Blue will open at 5:30 and Mason-Dixon Line rock the stage from 6:30 to 9:00.

The Summertime by George website describes Mason-Dixon Line as “the Mid-West’s premier Country outfit. Formed in 2018, brothers Justin & Jason Ploof along with seasoned musicians Micah Barrett and Tony Mazzone came together to celebrate the rich history of country music and its inhabitants. The band focuses on a live show that brings their audiences the biggest hits of three decades by country music Hall of Famers and icons.”

St. Cloud Rotary organizers the concerts. Member Troy Fritz says the series at Lake George had humble beginnings when it was conceived a decade ago.

“We had done a five-year renovation project of Lake George. We spent about three and a half million dollars in cooperation with the City of St. Cloud and a whole host of businesses and community members that contributed to make it possible. We kind of said, well, if we built this and nobody uses it, it might have been a waste of time or money.”

Since then, over one million people have caught a show at Lake George. Some of the biggest concerts challenge for the city’s largest event ever.

Fritz says, “We were hoping to attract maybe 1,000 people a night and it’s grown over the last 10 years to where we have on average about 10,000 people a night. Our largest nights are about 20,000.”

Summertime By George has traditionally featured cover bands and a lot of classic rock. This year’s lineup is more diverse. You can find the schedule here.

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