Texas Rose Horse Park has been home of the Tyler Cattle Baron's Ball for the past several years. This year's ball will be held Saturday, June 8. (Santana Wood/Tyler Morning Telegraph File)

From Staff Reports

The Tyler Cattle Baron’s Ball has announced its 2024 headliner.

Randall King, a West Texas native and legendary country artist, will headline the performances at the 36th annual Cattle Baron’s Ball scheduled for June 8 at Texas Rose Horse Park, announced Kimberly Taylor, 2024 Cattle Baron’s Ball Chair, on Friday morning.

The ball, themed “Give Cancer the Boot,” is presented by CHRISTUS and Northeast Texas Cancer & Research Institute. Held at the Texas Rose Horse Park for the past six years, this one-of-a-kind evening features great food and drink, dancing, silent and live auctions, and more.

“We are so thrilled to have Randall King performing at Ball,” said Taylor. “… Sponsorship and underwriting opportunities are still available and individual tickets go on sale at the end of March. Please visit https://tyler.acscbb.org.”

A self-described “old soul,” Warner Music Nashville’s King has never wavered in his honky-tonk allegiance – “in fact, he’s worn it like a badge of honor, growing with pride into a leading voice for today’s traditional country,” a press release states.

Amassing over 300 Million streams with singles like “You In A Honky Tonk,” “Hey Cowgirl” and “Mirror, Mirror,” he’s kept the twang alive in country’s mainstream while also earning acclaim through deeply personal EPs like 2020’s Leanna, and his 2022 major label album debut, Shot Glass – which landed on both Whiskey Riff’s Top 40 Country Albums of 2022 and Billboard’s All Genre 50 Best Albums of 2022 (So Far).

Schooled on icons like Keith Whitley, George Strait, Alan Jackson, and John Anderson, but inspired by modern masters like Dierks Bentley and Gary Allan, King first built an independent, grassroots following on the strength of his electrifying live shows – “each one a harrowing mix of rowdy roughnecking, romantic tenderness and breathtaking emotion – never asking for permission to explore his creative vision.”

He has since gone on to headline across the U.S., the U.K., and Europe, where he continues to play nearly 150 shows a year and hone his craft where it matters most. Named a “Country Artist to Watch” by everyone from Pandora and Country Now to Music Mayhem Magazine, his sophomore major label album Into the Neon, available now, takes that craft to the next level, as King’s neo-traditional roots meet the blood-pumping rhythms and sharp, arena-sized grooves of Y2K-era country and beyond. Co-produced by King and Jared Conrad, and featuring 18 tracks, punchy sounds exist side-by-side with timeless swagger, further blurring the line between yesteryear and today – even as King renews his forever-country vows.

“It’s that smoky, edgy side of me that hasn’t gotten to be shown off yet,” King said. “That’s what I’ve been looking for, and I’m incredibly proud of the whole thing.

The Tyler Cattle Baron’s Ball is the primary fundraiser for the American Cancer Society-Tyler. Every day, ACS saves lives and supports patients in Smith County and beyond.

“… Grab your hat and dust off your boots for what promises to be a rip-roaring, kick up your heels good time and making a measurable difference in the fight against cancer,” the website states. “We hope to see you there in your boots and bling!”

The event will begin at 6 p.m. for VIP Baron ticketholders, while Baron ticketholders can enter at 6:30 p.m. General admission entry is at 7 p.m. followed by a VIP-only meet and greet with King at 7:30 p.m. There will be a live auction, paddle raise and raffle drawings at 8:30 p.m. King will take the stage at 10 p.m. and a satellite band performance by Jason Waldon and The Alibis is scheduled for 11:30 p.m.

The Cattle Baron’s Ball is a premier fundraising event, both locally and across the nation, first held in Dallas in 1974. Since then, the Cattle Baron’s Ball has brought community members together who are committed to raising funds and awareness to help finish the fight against cancer.

The American Cancer Society is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For more information on ACS programs and patient services available in your community, visit www.cancer.org or call 800-ACS-2345. The organization has touched 54 million lives through all patient support initiatives in 2021, has made a $5 billion total investment in research since 1946, and 50 Nobel prize winning scientists received research funding throughout the years, according to the ball’s website.

This year’s Tyler Cattle Baron’s Ball mission moment will support American Cancer Society’s Patient Transportation and Lodging Grant Program in East Texas and Pediatric Cancer Research. These funds will go to local health systems to help their patients with transportation and lodging needs while traveling to their life-saving treatment appointments, according to the ball’s website.

To support the Tyler Cattle Baron’s Ball or for more information, visit https://tyler.acscbb.org/ or call 903-570-8126.