Candy Coburn, a rapidly rising star in the music industry, will be the featured attraction during a benefit concert Saturday night at Clemens Field in Hannibal.

“She’s the right kind of entertainment for this town,” promised Larry Owens, a co-owner of the Hannibal Cavemen and the concert coordinator.

Coburn will feature a blend of music styles.

“She’s a little country and a little rock,” said Owens. “She’ll do some Janis Joplin. She’ll do some Led Zeppelin. She’ll do some country. No one gets disappointed I assure you.”

Owens feels fortunate to have Coburn as the feature attraction at the first concert he plans to bring to Hannibal.

“She will be a big star,” he said. “She’s one of the hardest working girls in country music. I was so excited when she told me she’d do it in May. She’s very, very talented.”

Music lovers never leave a Coburn concert disappointed, according to Owens, who has worked with the University of Missouri graduate before.

“When the show is over everybody says, ‘Man!’” he said.

Coburn, who Owens says will present approximately 180 shows this year, has been coming east this week on her current tour. On Wednesday, she performed in Colorado Springs, Colo. Thursday she entertained fans in Garden City, Kan. Friday she’ll be performing at Lake Lotawana, Mo. After Saturday’s concert, Coburn will take a few days off before heading to Milwaukee for Summerfest at the Milwaukee World Festival, Inc. 

While it is not uncommon for Coburn concerts to sell out, tickets remain for Saturday’s event.
“I think we’ve approached 500. We’d can go up to 1,200 or 1,300, so I’d like to see a lot of people come. The phone has been ringing today. People have been calling,” said Owens. “Some of the shows sell out in two days and we do the show six weeks later. It’s a little different here. People have a lot going on and have to figure out if they can come or not. I think it will be fun. You get your money’s worth. She’s pure entertainment.”

Tickets prices range from $15 to $35. They are available at www.startickets.com.
A portion of the proceeds will be put in a trust fund for the children of Amanda Thomas and Carl Patrick Epley, who were murdered in Hannibal earlier this year.

“She always helps out on a good cause. She’s big in cancer fighting,” said Owens, noting that Coburn performed her song, “Pink Warrior,” earlier this month in Washington, D.C., as a part of the 20th Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure which raises money for breast cancer research and prevention programs.
Owens came up with the idea to stage a benefit concert.

“It’s a cause that will be overlooked. It’s easy to do big causes, so I pick little ones sometimes. People will give a little money and forget about them. Those kids will have to try and get through with their grandparents and whoever is helping them. I thought if we could feed that trust fund every now and then it might help them,” he said.

The opening act is slated to kick off the evening of music at 7 p.m. Coburn is slated to take the stage around 9 p.m.

This may not be the last time music fans in Northeast Missouri will have the chance to hear Coburn.
“We’ll do more shows with her here. I’ll probably put her at the Orpheum some time for a winter inside show,” said Owens.

Coburn is just the first concert Owens would like to bring to Hannibal.

“The idea is if they support this concert I’ll bring them more,” he said. “Give me feedback on who you want to hear and we’ll have them in here as long as the budget allows it. With a smaller venue you can’t get people that cost too much.

“We are working on shows for next year already and there will be concerts in Hannibal.”