Canadian country music band Emerson Drive will be taking over the Cold Lake Energy Center on March 14 as part of the band's “Tilt-A-Whirl” tour.
The show will be sort of a homecoming for lead singer Brad Mates, who grew up in Grande Prairie.
“It doesn't really matter where it is in Alberta it is just like my back yard,” said Mates, who is the only remaining original member of the band. “I am always really excited to get back home. It is a great place for us to start.”
The “Tilt-A-Whirl” tour will kickoff down south in Lethbridge before making stops in Calgary, Red Deer, Grande Prairie, Edmonton, Whitecourt, and then Cold Lake. The tour will continue with several more stops in Ontario and Atlantic Canada.
“We have played every type of venue throughout the years. For us, playing live has been the biggest part of our career. It has always been built on live shows and winning people over on the stage,” said Mates. “It doesn't matter where we are as long as someone wants to see the band play live and they can bring us in there, most of the time we are going to turn up and deliver a great show.”
The band formed back in February of 1995 when Mates and his friends entered a talent contest at his high school in Grande Prairie. The group originally called themselves 12 Gauge, and went on to produce two records and tour Canada for several years.
In the early 2000's they made the jump from Alberta to Nashville, Tennessee in search of a U.S. record deal. The move forced them to change their name to Emerson Drive, as the name 12 Gauge belonged to an American rap artist.
“I don't think we had much of an idea of what was happening at the time,” said Mates, referring to the move to the “Music City”. “You don't really pay attention to all of the roadblocks that are in your way, you are just eager to get out and just play live as a band.”
It has been 20-years since Mates started his music career, one that has seen him travel to bars and clubs all over the United States and Canada. Mates attributes that success to hard work and perseverance.
“We were just a very hard working group that had a great work ethic and received a couple lucky breaks along the way,” Mates said. “If stuff lines up and you are prepared for it you can make that next step.”
Mates was in Grande Prairie recently to visit some old friends, most of which he says are working in the province's biggest industry.
“All of my buddies I grew up with, most of them are in the oil and gas industry. I probably should be in that as well, but I am a bit of a left wing when it comes to sneaking off and doing something different with my career,” said Mates. “It just goes to show you that there is Canadian talent out there but you just have to be willing to work hard and compete with a lot of other people.”
Mates and the rest of Emerson Drive will be taking over the Energy Center Field House on March 14 to perform classics such as “Believe,” “Still Got Yesterday,” “She's My Kind of Crazy,” and “Let It Roll.”
Tickets can be purchased on the City of Cold Lake website for $60.
