West Plains, MO. – The International Country Gospel Music Association will be holding it’s 66thg annual award ceremony and concert coming up July 21st through the 23rd, and the public is welcome to attend this free event.
Artists from all across the nation, and even a few others, will show up to perform. For more, we spoke to event organizer Dan Duncan:
Daniel Williams:
This is Dan here with Ozark Radio News, and I’m here talking with Dan Duncan about an event that’s coming up. It’s an annual one from what I understand here, the ICGMAs. You want to tell us a little bit about this?
Dan Duncan:
Yes. That stands for International Country Gospel Music Association, and we have our annual convention and award show here in West Plains, have been having it for 12, 13 years. One of the favorite events of the year, I believe. This is the 66th annual, so we’re one of the oldest music organizations in America. We have singers coming from all over America and several foreign countries. It’s all country gospel and it’s all free to the public. Now, we’ll have people like Barbara Fairchild, Roy Morris, James Payne, Chuck Hancock, bluegrass favorites like The Waymasters, Bruce Haynes, Ava Kasich, Chuck Hancock. Altogether, almost a hundred singers.
Daniel Williams:
Quite a few, you’re saying.
Dan Duncan:
Yeah.
Daniel Williams:
So you’ve been doing this for at least a few days and you got like one or two entertainers that’s going to show up, right?
Dan Duncan:
That’s kind of the deal. It’s pretty neat. You know, each night they go across there pretty rapid-fire. We don’t dawdle, we introduce them, they come sing their songs, and boom. We run a little bit like a Grand Ole Opry format, and keep it rolling. They’ll hear 25, 30 singers each night, and that’s a Thursday, Friday, Saturday night, July 21st, 22nd, 23rd. This year, we have a new home. All these years, we’ve been having it at the West Plains Civic Center, but we have a new home this year. It’s what was formerly called The Barn Event Center, four miles south of West Plains, past Dairy Queen on the right if you’re going towards there. Wonderful event center, we sing all day and we sing all night. Starts at 10:00 AM and goes till lunch break, come back from 2:00 to 4:00, and come back at 6:00, and the big concert’s at night.
Daniel Williams:
Free admission, correct?
Dan Duncan:
Yes.
Daniel Williams:
So anybody can drop by, anybody can stop in. It looks like there should be more than enough seating for everybody to be involved.
Dan Duncan:
Right.
Daniel Williams:
I remember being there just over December, whenever the Toys for Tots Concert was going on.
Dan Duncan:
Yes, yes.
Daniel Williams:
I can’t imagine how much it’s improved even since then, because you guys were really doing a lot of hard work to get it all going.
Dan Duncan:
And we have really put a lot into it lately. Added additional seating, the balcony and so forth, and it’s really coming along. I think people will be surprised if they’ve been into that event center before. They’ll be surprised what it is now.
Daniel Williams:
A definite far cry from what it used to be?
Dan Duncan:
That’s right, and it’s really, thank God for what it was, but thank God it’s coming along great.
Daniel Williams:
Yeah.
Dan Duncan:
And so we’re really excited about being able to bring this to West Plains. It’s one of the most fun events of the year. Saturday night is the big award show. Now, it’s award show and concert. We don’t just give awards, we have concert, lots of it, and awards sprinkled in the middle of there. That’s a very prestigious thing.
Daniel Williams:
Yeah.
Dan Duncan:
And some of the nation’s top country gospel artists will be here to sing with us and for us, and it’s a good thing. The public always enjoy. Of course, they can visit and shake hands, get acquainted with them, and just have a good time.
Daniel Williams:
Understood, understood. I’m actually pretty excited about this though. From what I understand, this is actually a really large nationally-recognized event, and honestly, I think before I had talked to you previously, I didn’t even really know that this went on. So I really want to try to do a good job of making sure and stressing that this is going to be as big of an event as it is. I mean, you guys have over a hundred artists there, and that speaks for itself just alone.
Dan Duncan:
Yes, it is a big deal. It’s one of the most beloved events of the year locally, and certainly is recognized as that across the nation. So West Plains is on the map with a thing called ICGMA.
Daniel Williams:
Well, I hope everybody out there has been listening to this, that you’ll drop by and see what the ICGMAs are all about. Actually, I’m pretty excited.
Dan Duncan:
And it’s all free to the public.
Daniel Williams:
This has been Dan Williams here talking about this, and Dan Duncan, who’s actually hosting the event. So you get a little bit of a double Dan action going on here.
Dan Duncan:
Thank you, Dan. It’s been fun.
Daniel Williams:
It has been fun. Nice to talk to you.
Dan Duncan:
Thanks.
If you wish to learn more about the ICGMA, check their website here.
