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By LANCE MARTIN

rrspin.com

ROANOKE RAPIDS – The outdoor concert venue that once hosted a country music festival called Rapids Jam in June of 2011 will come alive again when Jamey Johnson headlines the first act at Carolina Crossroads Amphitheatre in August.

Julie Powell of BarnBurner Promotions said last week that planning for the outdoor venue off Wallace Fork Road had been going on before Bruce Tyler and partners signed the deal to purchase what is now the Weldon Mills Theatre.

“A few years back we had inquired about the property when Gil Cunningham owned it and it just didn’t work out,” said Powell.

Then fortunes changed and from the dense brush that grew as the site was idle came the clearing of land, the erecting of a permanent stage which is nearly completed and the construction of other amenities that will create a concert venue with a capacity of 30,000 people.

“When I posted on Facebook the other day we went from growing trees to growing crowds I wasn’t lying,” Powell added.

With the current size of the Weldon Mills Theater, Powell said, “We’re limited with space so we can’t get who you’re hearing on the radio today, these big artists that people are craving. We can’t get them up here. We’re limited to where we can pull from so the only option is outside.”

With the Jamey Johnson show, Powell anticipates starting out with 2,500 seats.

“We’ve got plenty of room to grow,” she said.

Done in steps

Down the road the organizers want to have permanent seats.

“Everything is going to have to be done in steps. So we’ll do the seats, cover the seats, keep adding additional seats,” Powell noted.

As construction on the stage continues, construction is also underway on a VIP building with a private bar, private restrooms, private parking, and a private entrance.

“It’s also going to have a viewing deck as well so you can get up higher. It’s similar to what we have upstairs at the theater,” Parker said.

The permanent stage, she said, is 60 x 100.

“It’s a massive stage. There’s not a band in the world that you couldn’t put on the stage.” Powell said.

The stage at the Weldon Mills Theater is about 40 x 80.

On the amphitheater stage, she said, “It’s way more than we need but you never know — go big or go home.”

There are buildings set up for beer booths, concessions and merchandise and in between them is room for vendors.

The ticket booth and ticket holder gates have been constructed and there is also a smaller stage.

Jamey Johnson is no stranger to Roanoke Rapids.

“I had him at the theater back in 2017 or so,” Powell said. “It’s been one we’ve been trying to get back for a while. We just played around because we get locked in with radius clauses. There were a few others that we were hoping to get that we couldn’t because we got blocked out from Richmond and Raleigh and even Norfolk and Durham. We just got lucky and Jamey had a date open.”

Powell anticipates the initial outdoor venue to have three shows.

“I think three is ideal. I don’t think we should really shoot for much more this year,” Powell stressed.

There are offers in for Lynyrd Skynyrd and Alabama, she said.

“I think in ‘26 it’ll be a whole lot better,” Powell said.

Positive response

Thus far early response to the reopening of the amphitheater has been positive, she said. “I don’t think I’ve seen one negative comment yet. Everything has been exciting.”

McKenzie Dunlow, who is part of the team, said, “I think people, especially the younger people, are excited to have something to come back to.”

Those who experienced the outdoor venue in the early 2000s are excited, Powell said.

“They were having the time of their life. They’ve got kids now so they can take them,” she said.

Dunlow remembers those days as a child. “I was a kid and I thought this was the greatest place on earth. I loved going backstage, running around out here before and after the show. It was all fun to me.”

She said, “It’s nice to see it come back and see some dreams lived out. I moved away and it’s bringing me back home. I’m back with my family. All my friends are excited.”

Dunlow remembers meeting Gretchen Wilson.

“She was like my number one. Of course, Dolly Parton. That’ll always be a number one for me as well. She was really nice,” Dunlow recalled.

Hannah Turner, another member of the team, came to the outdoor venue at age 14 when Powell, her mother, was working her first show in a beer booth.

“I had nothing to do with the production. I just tagged along for the day and just watched the show, hung out and made a day of it,” Turner said.

And for Powell, it was those three days at Rapids Jam she said kicked it off for her.

The BarnBurner effect

With BarnBurner running the shows at the theater, Powell sees the venue as finally getting to the successful stage anticipated in its early days.

Before, BarnBurner was just sporadic because of the different owners.

“I had to rent it and it wasn’t solely at my discretion to use it whenever I wanted,” Powell said. “Now everything is in my hands and I’m the one that determines if a date is open and who gets in it. It’s been a whole lot easier that way. We’ve got good contacts that we’ve had a relationship with for over 10 years.”

BarnBurner has also built great relationships with the bands that have come through.

“I’ve never had one that I haven’t heard them say they didn’t want to come back. They love the experience at the theater,” she added.

Now, the acts want to come and see the outdoor site.

“We brought the Front Men out here. Everybody when they’ve come through said they want to ride out there and see it. They’re all excited. They all say when you get it going let’s bring them back,” Powell said.

Powell believes the success of the theater and the potential of the outdoor venue has helped BarnBurner’s stock to rise.

“Since it was sporadic, they didn’t really understand who was behind the show,” she noted. “Now they see and all the owners give us full control. They don’t want to micromanage. The three of us — me, Hannah and McKenzie — I think we’ve kind of got it down to science right now.”

The convenience factor

Now, Powell said, “I feel like the shows are getting easier and easier because we all know our place. We know who’s going to handle what. We see the goals and we handle it.”

The potential success of the new venue comes from “sitting at a space that nobody else is really at,” Powell said. “Nobody else is as convenient as we are. It’s right off the interstate so in terms of location you can’t beat this one. We’ve had people come from Raleigh that would rather come drive to Roanoke Rapids for a show at the theater than go to a place in Raleigh or Durham because of the traffic and how much it costs to park.”

There will be a parking fee at the outdoor venue but she said it will be affordable.

Powell believes this outdoor site will lead to other opportunities beyond music.

“I think that we have a team of owners and everyone is a successful businessman so if anybody can handle it it’s going to be them,” she said.

And with this site comes the potential for bringing something like Rapids Jam back to Wallace Fork Road.

“Any kind of stuff you can go with it out here. We’ve got 83 acres. Out here, you can pull off some stuff you didn’t even realize you could and the only way you’re going to be able to bring those bigger artists is outside,” Powell concluded

(Lance Martin is the Editor and Publisher of www.rrspin.com. Permission was received to publish this story.)