From the KY Downs Media Team / Jennie Rees:

Worley gets us in the spirit for July 4

Quick glimpse of Darryl Worley, his toe-tapping music

Video: “Have You Forgotten?”

Singer-songwriter Darryl Worley brings his rich, reedy acoustic tones and all-American, blue-collar themes to The Mint Event Center at The Mint Gaming Hall-Kentucky Downs this Saturday.

It’s an ideal way to kick off the long Independence Day weekend. Worley reminds us that freedom is not free in his signature song, “Have You Forgotten?,” about the 9/11 attacks, the aftermath and the dedication and sacrifice of soldiers fighting overseas. “Have You Forgotten,” released in 2003, spent seven weeks at No.1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs, one of three Worley songs to reach the top.

Worley’s other No. 1 hits, “I Miss My Friend” and “Awful, Beautiful Life” are reminders of the down-to-Earth, Merle Haggard-like Worley. Saturday’s performance will also showcase island vibes and blue-eyed soul in later songs “It’s Good To Be Me,” “Lay It On Me” and “Lonely Alone.”

Tickets can be purchased here. The performance begins at 8 p.m. CT, with the doors opening at 7 p.m. Must be 21 to purchase tickets. No outside food and beverages are permitted.

Worley grew up in southern Tennessee and got his career start in Alabama’s musical hotbed of Muscle Shoals before moving onto Nashville. A USO trip performing for the troops in Kuwait and Afghanistan during the 2002 Christmas season inspired “Have You Forgotten?,” co-written with Wynn Varble. He has continued to perform for the troops ever since.

Worley lives in Savannah, Tenn., where he established the annual multi-day Tennessee River Run music festival to raise money for the Darryl Worley Cancer Treatment Center and other local charities.

The 5,000-square foot Mint Event Center, which opened earlier this spring, is the area’s largest space for events, weddings, parties, business meetings and conventions and also creates an intimate setting for medium-sized concerts. For guests arriving early, Irons Steakhouse and the Corner Cafe are just steps away, with the Mint Gaming Hall — home to more than 1,000 gaming machines and year-round simulcasting — providing entertainment before and after the concert.

The holiday festivities continue the next night with the annual fireworks extravaganza at Kentucky Downs on Sunday, July 2. The free show takes place about 30 minutes after sunset, with the gates opening at 5:30 p.m. Central.

For more information or to book an event at The Mint Event Center, email sales@kentuckydowns.com.