Chase Matthew, a country music artist who signed with Warner Brothers Records in 2022 and made his Grand Ole Opry debut this year, will be the headlining artist for June’s Worthington Windsurfing Regatta and Music Festival, set for June 9-11 on Sailboard Beach.
Matthew will take the stage at 9:30 p.m. Friday, June 9 and is part of a talented roster of artists that will take the stage during the festival’s first two days.
‘I am once again extremely happy with the music lineup,” festival president Josh Miller said. “The 2023 Regatta is only a few short months away. We are working hard on putting this all together for another successful Regatta.“
Matthew, a Nashville native, began his career by independently carving out his own path thanks to an infectious personality, raucous live performances and authentic, relatable music. His songs have amassed more than 360 million global career streams, with more than 150 million global streams on his first Recording Industry Association of America GOLD-certified smash, “County Line.” Matthew had released a 2021 EP of the same title through Holler Boy Records after being signed that June by country rapper Ryan Upchurch.
Matthew released his debut studio album “Born for This” in February 2022. A song from that record, “Pull Up,” currently has more than 19 million streams on Spotify. “Born for This” debuted at No. 31 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart and at No. 2 on the Top Heatseekers. He has since been busy selling out venues across the country on his “Born for This” tour and recently made his Nashville headline debut to a sold-out crowd.
Mathew is only one of many musical artists set to perform during Worthington’s Regatta celebration.
“We believe we have another exciting weekend filled with great entertainment for the whole family,” Miller said.
The Worthington Regatta and Music Festival gets underway June 9 with opening ceremonies at 6:30 p.m. Afterward, Jacuzzi Puma will take the Sailboard Beach stage from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Jacuzzi Puma, an experienced and powerful six-piece Twin Cities-based band, is billed as a group that “plays a bunch of songs you didn't know you loved.” Generally rooted in classic rock, Jacuzzi Puma can and will touch just about every other genre available during a set. The song list is vast, and the band’s goal is to keep people listening, dancing or singing along – and, its hope, all three – throughout their show.
Three bands are scheduled to perform Saturday during this year’s Regatta.
The Fabulous Armadillos, a well-loved party band and no strangers to Worthington, will be on stage from 9 to 11 p.m. The group is renowned for its re-creations of beloved songs from many genres and has performed multiple “themed” concerts over the years such as “Take It to The Limit: An Eagles Tribute,” “What’s Going On: Songs From The Vietnam War Era,” “Rumors & Dreams The Music Of Fleetwood Mac” and more. The band is bringing the highly requested eight-piece Party Band Show to the Regatta.
The Fabulous Armadillos, whose lineup includes KFAN radio personality Chris Hawkey, have performed across the Midwest as well in Mexico and are hailed for their fun and entertaining – and musically spot-on – performances that make each show feel like a musical party.
Saturday’s first musical act of the day, meanwhile, will be Show Me Your Hits, a group of musicians from the Minneapolis metal scene, which will perform from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Among the bands whose songs are part of the Show Me Your Hits repertoire are Blink 182, Van Halen, Motley Crue, Shania Twain, Bruno Mars and much more. The group’s professed goal is to provide a high-energy performance reminiscent of original recording artists while giving the crowd a dose of nostalgia.
Following the annual chair auction at 6 p.m., Derek Jones & The 50 South will step aboard the Sailboard Beach stage and perform from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Jones, described in publicity material as “a relentless country-rock outlaw harboring a principled character and deep-rooted respect for people and our nation,” is a U.S. Navy veteran who has appeared on – and written songs for – multiple television shows. In addition to four years touring alongside Billy Ray Cyrus, he’s also shared stages with Charlie Daniels, Trace Adkins, Dwight Yoakum, Ashley McBride, Jamey Johnson, Whiskey Myers, Phil Vassar and others.
Over the past five years, the Worthington Regatta and Music Festival has continued to grow in popularity. More than 22,000 people combined have attended the last five festivals, which have included 25 top-rated Midwest bands, five national headlining acts, 45 food vendors, 43,000 beers sold and 263 windsurfers. The festival would have been impossible without the efforts of 467 volunteers and $180,000 in sponsorships.
“As a board we are wanting to deliver the best free festival that our budget allows,” Miller said. “We are all volunteers and take pride in our community. Be sure to save the date for Regatta weekend!”
As always, the Worthington Regatta and Music Festival is free and open to the
public. All operating revenue from the festival comes from sponsors, registrations, food vendor fees and beverage sales. Event sponsors for this year include United Prairie Bank and Merck. Music sponsors include JBS, Sanford Worthington and Jaycox Powersports.
If your business would like to support the Regatta, contact FORWARD Worthington at (507) 372-2919. For more information, go to www.worthingtonwindsurfing.net or look them up on Facebook.
