As you know, I went to Garner yesterday for Scotty McCreery’s homecoming. I was overwhelmed by how many people support this guy. I would say the size of Garner (about 30,000) doubled in just one day at that celebration!

It was almost a fair-like atmoshphere with food, games, and music. They even had deep fried candy bars and good ‘ol classic funnel cakes! While waiting for the man of the hour to perform, fans could also buy all kinds of Scotty gear, from t-shirts to buttons and even masks with his face on them. 

As we got closer to the time of the concert, fans piled into the area around the stage and we could hardly even get out. Finally, at about 2:30 or 3:00 pm, Scotty arrived and went on stage. When he finally saw how huge the crowd was (which spanned almost three-fourths of the field at the park) he was shocked to say the least.

He performed about five or six songs and even got a surprise while singing his audition song “Your Man.” The artist of that song himself, Josh Turner, walked on stage and Scotty walked right into him while singing. It was perfect!

They sung a couple songs together and Scotty still could not believe he was singing with his favorite artist. It was really special to see! Near the end of the concert, Scotty told everyone thank you and how much he loved everybody. Overcome with emotion, he began to cry and his family came over and comforted him while we clapped and chanted. It was a tender and special moment for everyone.

This was the first time I had been to an “American Idol” hometown visit and I had a blast! I will never forget all the emotion that was in that park yesterday and how Scotty felt about seeing all of us there to support him. This was a highlight of 2011 for sure! Below are some pics from the concert…