Multi-platinum recording artist and Grammy nominee David Nail is bringing a free concert to Milton at 9 p.m. this Friday at Jernigan’s Landing as part of the city’s Mardi Gras Kick-Off weekend.
Most easily recognized for country music power hits such as “Whatever She’s Got,” “Let it Rain,” “Night’s on Fire” and “Red Light,” Nail has been a dominant face in the country music scene since the early 2000s. He has been releasing new music ever since, with at least two unreleased singles slated to go out this year.
The new year has brought new energy, and he is ready to be back on the road performing for his fans.
“The Pensacola area is one we’ve gotten familiar with over the years, we’ve vacationed there a couple of different times,” Nail told the News Journal. “We’ve played pretty much one corner of the United States to the other and everywhere in-between … I would like to pride myself on whether it is Milton, Florida, or Madison Square Garden, hopefully we bring the same energy and bring the same quality performance any time we step on stage.”
He looks forward to more intimate venues that help to foster some of the most memorable connections with fans.
Nail’s visit to Milton will be his first concert of 2023, and he will be blending some of his crowd-pleasers with some of his newer music.
“I’m sure if I played a show and didn’t play ‘Whatever She’s Got’ or ‘Red Light’ or something like that, people would probably revolt and throw whatever was in their hands at me on stage,” Nail teased. “It’s a new year, so there are probably some songs that we haven’t played in a long time, or we haven’t ever played that we will incorporate here and there because we’ve quite frankly never played them live.”
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Nail said he has been known to find a groove with his setlists, but he is challenging himself this year not to solely base his line-up off of his top hits, but the music he has loved making. He will be spending the next few days working on the right lineup for Milton’s show.
“When I was a kid, I always had a competition within myself of trying to pick the songs that would be on the radio, but far too often I would find myself in love with the songs that I hoped would be on the radio, but didn’t ever end up getting on the radio,” Nail said.
“If you move on too fast, you lose sight of what you love,” Nail added. “That is one of the questions you get in Nashville more than anything — what’s next?”
Nail expressed how the pressure to keep moving began to catch up with him when his twins were born. Each goodbye to his wife and twins became more excruciating.
Even with the lull in his career he eventually had to take to focus on his family, he realized his songs would continue to live on, as they would be enjoyed 10 to 15 years past their release date. So much so, he himself has not grown sick of playing them.
“I remember people telling me when I was on the radio, ‘This song is just never going to get old.’ It’s funny because I’ve sang it probably 10,000 times and if it was ever going to get old for anybody, it probably should be (me),” Nail said.
More on Milton’s Mardi Gras Kick-Off
The Milton Mardi Gras Kick-Off will start off Friday with food trucks and festivities at 6 p.m., a live performance by Keith Anderson at 7 p.m. followed by Nail at 9 p.m. Personal chairs and seating are permitted, but no food or beverages are able to be brought in. However, food trucks and beverages will be available to purchase Friday and Saturday night.
On Saturday, the celebration will continue for the parade at 4 p.m. starting at Milton High School and ending at Jernigan’s Landing with an after party, live performance by Frank Fletcher from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., a kids zone, vendors and food trucks.
The weekend events are hosted by The Krewe of Airship Pirates and sponsored by city of Milton. While the event is free, a VIP option is available for $60 each night, or $100 for both nights. The VIP ticket includes dinner, beer and wine, a heated tent, VIP bathrooms, tables and chairs and a VIP viewing platform.
Tickets can be purchased online on The Krewe of Airship Pirates website.