I always enjoy a trip. Nashville is such a nice city and makes any trip worth the drive!
I left town on Friday June 6th, with my sister and mother for our trip. We live in Ohio, so it’s about a 9 hour trip with bathroom/gas stops. Of course, the road conditions in KY certainly slow the trip. That’s a completely different post. haha. We always stop in White House, TN, which is about 10 minutes North of Nashville. White House, is a very nice small TN town. I’ve gone a number of years down to see Bryan White and the last few years, rather than drive down and straight back, we have been staying in White House. We stay at the Best Western there and it could not be any nicer! If you ever plan on going to Nashville but do not want to stay in Downtown, you should consider staying in White House. (Trip Advisor Reviews Here)
If you are not familiar with Bryan, he’s a country singer and 1996 Horizon’s Award Winner (CMA). He has had 17 singles on Billboard and six of them went to #1 including “Someone Else’s Star” and “Rebecca Lynn”. Bryan is from Oklahoma and a tremendous guitar player as well. He sang “From this Moment” with Shania Twain, is close friends (and toured with) LeAnne Rimes, helped Hunter Hayes in the early days. Hunter actually performed at a Fan Club Party a number of years ago with Bryan. You can read more on Bryan White at his website www.bryanwhite.com or at Wikipedia.
Bryan is celebrating 20 years in the business.He started in 1994 and has came a long way. Bryan is a truly wonderful person to whom I’ve had the chance to meet many times along the last 20 years. He doesn’t have the Big Head. He’s still the same boy next door. He’s down to earth, humble and a real person. Saturday’s party, as is the normal, was a casual get together to share stories, new music and give back to the fans who have supported him all these years. His voice may not always be perfect. So what? he’s spent his life singing/entertaining and such is the life that you have that. We don’t care. Bryan always remembers you and we can always reminisce about past times.
Bryan tuned up his guitar (always misplaces something, usually it’s in his pocket! haha), sang a few songs, we talked, some shared stories from back in the early days. I love his story about the time he miss spoke about the lakes in MN. He once said something like, “Thanks Minneapolis! The land of a thousand lakes!” Of course, it’s the land of ten thousand lakes.
Bryan brought his friend Andrea Pearson with him. She sang a few songs and just always blows me away! She is quite the singer herself! I had the chance to talk to her while the meet and greet was getting organized. She is such a nice person herself. Please check her out on her website, www.amandapearson.com and she is also on Facebook.
Bryan’s wife, Erika Page White, and their two sons, Jackson and Justin were also there. You may have seen Erika on TNT’s Private Lives of Nashville Wives. Erika is an actress who has appeared on One Life to Live. I only watched Private Lives of Nashville Wives to see her and Bryan. When I spoke with her at the party, while she was cutting up the anniversary cake, I told her I was proud to know her and Bryan and that I respect them both for their integrity they maintained throughout the show.
Erika never lowered herself to the other wives’ level. She’s a true person and she stuck to her strong family values. Whatever “so called” bad habits or personality traits those wives may have thought she had are inconsequential! The “sponge” factor she was dubbed for was ridiculous. The life she and Bryan have made for themselves and their children is part of the family value and I love it.
She was really appreciative of my praise for her. She told me that she knew she had the support of Bryan’s fans and that is part of what kept her going in some ways. I mentioned to her that I would yell at the TV and she laughed and told me, “So did Bryan!”
Bryan, as usual is just so loving. He called my mom, mom and gave her his usual big hug. We talked about my niece, who a long time ago was so shy when meeting him she wouldn’t talk. he signed her bandana and made her feel special. A few years back, he spoke to her on the phone at the party also. He was overwhelmed when I told him she was almost 21 now and living in MS. He said she needed to come out and see him when he’s in Meridan. He’s such a wonderful soul.
The next part of the trip, on Sunday was the trip back home but on the way back home to Ohio, we took in a Cincinnati Reds game. Cincinnati is one of my favorite cities. I also love the Reds. 🙂
Usually we arrive early to the game so arriving late was strange to me. We bought bleacher seats but didn’t bother to goto them. We hang out at the Power Stacks in Right Center Field with other Reds fans. We hadn’t seen them yet this season so it was good to catch up with them. We had some good excitement during the game and won. After a win, we waited outside the garage for glimpses of the players. We save Todd Frazier and finally, Brandon Phillips. Brandon was supposed to stop for his daily game doughnuts from Chuck D #1 Reds fan but he was late leaving and didn’t stop. Chuck interacts and talks to Brandon a lot. Chuck D is a bit of an eccentric and exciting fan who has the opportunity to talk to many of the players. After we saw the players we went to Long John Silvers (they offer a free platter for Reds fans on game days) with our friends, including Chuck D.
So, it was a good trip. No major problems or issues. I mention this because I’ve had incidents in the past.
Ann Dawson's - Travel Blog 